Desperately Seeking Liberals

[Geee]

American Thinker:


Desperately Seeking Liberals
By Robin of Berkeley


I recently embarked on a grand experiment. Unfortunately, it was a miserable failure.

It all started a few weeks ago, when I decided to include an e-mail address in my articles rather than read the comments thread. I thought it would be cool to commune with readers while avoiding the pesky trolls.

I received over four hundred emails the first time around. But there were unusual circumstances behind the deluge: My article, "A Shrink Asks: What's Wrong with Obama?" went viral.

Most of the e-mails came from conservatives, though I received my fair share of nasty-grams from liberals. That's when I hatched my big plan. Rather than just toss the angry missives in the trash, I'd respond to all of them.

I wouldn't just write back; I'd invite people to connect with me for a meeting of the minds. I didn't expect that we'd agree. We'd discuss, maybe debate, but always in an atmosphere of mutual respect.

I let myself fantasize: Maybe we'd become pen pals. Friends. Perhaps we'd compose an article on our journey for American Thinker. There'd even be a stint on Talk Radio.

Our collaboration would inspire people on both sides of the aisle. We'd be living proof that it is indeed possible for liberals and conservatives to find common ground.

Again, a big fat failure ensued, a stink bomb bigger than those flicks that go straight to DVD. This is what happened.

I excitedly began with my first teed-off liberal, Robert from Colorado, a man who called me a sick racist and asked why I wasn't analyzing George W. Bush.

I wrote back the following:

Dear Robert:

I would like to understand your support for Obama. Why don't you write me another email, one that doesn't call me names or finger point at George Bush? Let me know your reasons for still supporting Obama. I'm interested.

No reply.

Next came Jason, who demanded to know my credentials.

I responded:

Dear Jason,

I'm a licensed California psychotherapist. But I matter a whole lot less than Obama. What matters is that this country may be in danger. I'm interested in knowing why you are a believer in Obama. Can you write me back and explain why?

No more Jason.

I became more optimistic when Claire wrote. She was the only one out of the bunch who wrote a courteous and thoughtful letter. Claire attributed Obama's disconnect to his years of living abroad and his nicotine habit.

Sensing that I had finally unearthed a respectful liberal, I wrote right back. I asked her whether she'd like to engage in a dialogue with me about Obama.

Never heard back.

I was less optimistic about Steve, though I thought I'd give him a fair shake. Steve told me to "f" myself and said I was a racist.

I responded:

Dear Steve,

Do you kiss your mother with that mouth?

If you are willing to write back without the curse words and the personal attacks, I'd be interested in hearing from you. Please let me know why you feel Obama is doing a good job. I'd like to understand your point of view.

Another no-show.

There was one e-mail from a liberal that truly touched me. It was from a young black man named Stanley. While Stanley's e-mail was peppered with vitriol, I felt real pain there.

Stanley defended "Barack" like he was a brother. The young man maintained that white people just don't understand Barack, that he's different because he's black.

Stanley was obviously proud of having a black president. This personal identification was blinding him to the obvious red flags flapping around Obama.

I wrote Stanley the following:

Dear Stanley:

I am sorry if my article about Obama caused you any pain. My criticism of him has nothing to do with his being black. I can understand how proud you are to have a black President.

I can tell that you're an intelligent and well-meaning person, Stanley. I'd like to understand more about what Barack means to you: what he represents, what hopes you have for his presidency.

If you're willing to write back, I won't debate you. I just want to understand how you feel.

Disappointingly, Stanley, too, was missing in action.

I don't want to leave the impression that no liberals wrote back. In fact one did: Debra, a nurse from Southern California. Unfortunately, her personal attacks escalated with each e-mail, and I had to cut her loose.

About 25 e-mails into this project, I gave up. I had to admit that my desperate search for one good liberal was a flop that was zapping my time and energy.

However, I believe that we can learn from our failures even more than from our successes. So what did I learn?

1. First, my experiment reinforced what I already knew: Liberals cannot defend their beliefs without going on the offensive. Stripped of the freedom to attack George Bush and to use the "R" word (racist), most of them have nothing to say.

2. I learned that I truly am a recovering liberal -- with emphasis on the recovering part. Like all people in recovery, we suffer relapses. In my case, I reverted to my old liberal mindset that mere humans can change the world. I believed that I could help to heal the vast abyss separating conservatives and liberals.

But for change to take place, people have to want to grow. They need to have the courage to see what is right before their eyes. Clearly the liberals who wrote me wanted, instead, to cling to those tattered old notions of hope and change.

3. I also realized that recovery requires, as the twelve-steppers say, "letting go and letting God." There is only one power in this universe, and it is not any mere mortal.

Now, each day, I include the Stanleys and Debras of the world in my prayers. I ask the true Source of transformation to please work His miracles.

4. And finally, I have learned what to do with noxious e-mail. I now do what I should have done to begin with: mark it as spam and dump it in the trash.