Reader's Note: I wrote this ahead of the recent US election and its results.
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Politicize - to make something political.
De-politicize - to remove from political activity or influence.
So many otherwise mundane items are made political by easily triggered people. Because of this unwanted gift to our culture, we now look at a person's choice of clothing, bedding, the form of transport, or favorite cuisine as if they were extensions of our favorite political movements. We use these cosmetic choices to assess whether people are aligned with us or are condemned. And, with each troubling event in the political landscape, employees, vendors, and customers expect CEOs to make public statements of support. If CEOs remain silent, they are on notice that people will not feel safe and will withdraw their support or alliance. They will up and quit.
We are all caught up in this maelstrom - forced to deal with it - whether we are political or not. Even my long-time love-thy-neighbor, quiet-in-the-land commitment to independence, non-alignment, and moderation exposes me to condemnation rather than the commendation that once was mine. It is not nearly as fun to "be Switzerland" in this day and age.
To commit to de-politicize one's life and environment will not necessarily be seen as noble, but that does not mean it does not need doing! We benefit societally from those courageous leaders whose statements are not so much about allyship with splinters of factions of breakaways of larger parties and platforms. Instead, the advocacy of these leaders for the agora, the commons, and human flourishing globally and generally--for the big tent--will raise our sights and welfare once more. Should we choose it over the brittle rage into which we are letting ourselves be manipulated, the world can be better, and we can return to loving our neighbor over being suspicious of them.
More Ghandi and less Machiavelli, please.
Yes, more Cervantes and less Chainsaw Dunlap!
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We love this episode with Donna Schummell!
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