08-07-2022, 07:33 PM
This was the closest thread where I thought I could put this. It pertains to two hot button issues - climate change and immigration. A couple of days ago, I was doing the second part of a three part paid survey. For this second part, I was in a zoom session with someone on the opposite side of my views on climate change and immigration. So it was me, a liberal democrat, and a lady named Rae, a conservative republican. We were to discuss both issues, our opinions, and go from there.
I have to say I was a little nervous. I'm not the most social person, and discussing hot button issues with a stranger with opposite political views isn't exactly my idea of a fun relaxing time. So anyway, the moderator started the two of us off with a neutral thing - to discuss our thoughts of the perfect day. We had a real nice conversation that I wish we could have extended, but we were limited on how long we could talk about that.
Then we got down to business. The first hot button issue we were to discuss was climate change. Rae and I agreed I would go first. I took a deep breath, talked about my opinions on climate change and what I thought it was doing to the environment. I talked about all the extreme weather all over the globe, and how there was so much well documented information on rising temperatures throughout the years. I also stated I thought climate change was mainly caused by humans. Then Rae stated her opinions. It was pretty amazing how similar we thought on this issue. Rae lives in California, and talked about devastating fires that came pretty close to her home. She also talked about how it is getting harder to get enough water to grow crops now. The main thing we agreed to disagree on was the cause of climate change. But it was very civil. We talked, and laughed a couple of times.
The second hot button issue we discussed was immigration. I thought we would be on total opposite sides of this, but again, I was surprised at how much we agreed on in common regarding immigration. I talked about the dairy farms in Wisconsin having problems getting people to do the dirty work that many of us consider beneath us. The majority of people working those jobs on dairy farms are immigrants. Without them, it is much more difficult for farmers to do what they need to do to stay solvent. I also talked about the thriving Hmong and Hispanic communities where I live. There are so many wonderful Hmong and Hispanic festivals and cultural events around here. I also talked about how I'm taking online Spanish lessons to be able to talk to Spanish speaking people if I volunteer. There is so much need. Rae talked about similar things going on with farms in California. There are many immigrants who pick the crops and all that. Without them, there is no harvest. In addition, Rae's neighbors, who are both Hispanic immigrants, are her best friends. We both felt that immigrants are valuable, and without them, this country would be screwed. We felt they are not taking away jobs. They are adding to the economy in a big way. We also agreed that Border Patrol is overwhelmed, overworked and underpaid. We felt more Border Patrol workers need to be added to combat the problems at the border. We also agreed that politicians on both sides liked to talk and talk but not actually do anything about the problem.
After all was said and done, I felt very much at ease. I wish I could have talked to Rae a little more. I could see us being friends, despite our differences. I truly believe there are more Dawn's and Rae's out there. It seems when average ordinary people get together and have civil discussions, we find more common ground than we think we have. Problems could be tackled and things could be made better by average citizens banding together, regardless of political beliefs, and making things better.
I have to say I was a little nervous. I'm not the most social person, and discussing hot button issues with a stranger with opposite political views isn't exactly my idea of a fun relaxing time. So anyway, the moderator started the two of us off with a neutral thing - to discuss our thoughts of the perfect day. We had a real nice conversation that I wish we could have extended, but we were limited on how long we could talk about that.
Then we got down to business. The first hot button issue we were to discuss was climate change. Rae and I agreed I would go first. I took a deep breath, talked about my opinions on climate change and what I thought it was doing to the environment. I talked about all the extreme weather all over the globe, and how there was so much well documented information on rising temperatures throughout the years. I also stated I thought climate change was mainly caused by humans. Then Rae stated her opinions. It was pretty amazing how similar we thought on this issue. Rae lives in California, and talked about devastating fires that came pretty close to her home. She also talked about how it is getting harder to get enough water to grow crops now. The main thing we agreed to disagree on was the cause of climate change. But it was very civil. We talked, and laughed a couple of times.
The second hot button issue we discussed was immigration. I thought we would be on total opposite sides of this, but again, I was surprised at how much we agreed on in common regarding immigration. I talked about the dairy farms in Wisconsin having problems getting people to do the dirty work that many of us consider beneath us. The majority of people working those jobs on dairy farms are immigrants. Without them, it is much more difficult for farmers to do what they need to do to stay solvent. I also talked about the thriving Hmong and Hispanic communities where I live. There are so many wonderful Hmong and Hispanic festivals and cultural events around here. I also talked about how I'm taking online Spanish lessons to be able to talk to Spanish speaking people if I volunteer. There is so much need. Rae talked about similar things going on with farms in California. There are many immigrants who pick the crops and all that. Without them, there is no harvest. In addition, Rae's neighbors, who are both Hispanic immigrants, are her best friends. We both felt that immigrants are valuable, and without them, this country would be screwed. We felt they are not taking away jobs. They are adding to the economy in a big way. We also agreed that Border Patrol is overwhelmed, overworked and underpaid. We felt more Border Patrol workers need to be added to combat the problems at the border. We also agreed that politicians on both sides liked to talk and talk but not actually do anything about the problem.
After all was said and done, I felt very much at ease. I wish I could have talked to Rae a little more. I could see us being friends, despite our differences. I truly believe there are more Dawn's and Rae's out there. It seems when average ordinary people get together and have civil discussions, we find more common ground than we think we have. Problems could be tackled and things could be made better by average citizens banding together, regardless of political beliefs, and making things better.