On the EDge: We lost more than we gained in 2017

January 1, 2018 Utah Channel 3

OPINION — There’s really no way to quantify it, but the feeling here is that we lost more in 2017 than we gained.

It was, of course, a notable year for losing people in the public eye, from political figures to social activists to astronauts, actors and rock stars.

The losses were sad as some beloved figures took the next step in their journey.

But, collectively, the losses we suffered in other areas of our lives were staggering.

From the horror of the pummeling the continent took with repeated hurricanes to the senseless loss of life – from the Las Vegas shooting to the church massacre in Texas, right up to the last day of the year when a Denver man continued the carnage – it has been a tough year.

We lost a large chunk of dignity as a nation in 2017 as we hung on the precipice of nuclear war, watched the remainder of the world shake its head in wonder during a United Nations speech that will always be remembered for its playground intellect and name-calling and, of course, Russia, Russia, Russia.

It was a year of pettiness as the new boss tried to stamp out every vestige of the old boss; we further alienated ourselves via vicious political ideology and posturing; and we suffered a suspension of truth in greater degree than we have ever seen.

It would be nice to put out a plea for unity and ask everybody to put aside their grudges, dispense with their anger and, well, tamp it all down a few notches in an effort to get along.

But that ain’t gonna happen.

The wounds are too deep, the so-called “payback” dividend too rich, the attitude too severe. At this point, it would be like putting the pin back into a grenade – a delicate procedure that could end up quite messy if done incorrectly.

Still, we are at the dawn of a new year and it is up to us to make it work the best we can.

To sit smugly, holding each other in contempt will not suffice.

It’s time to tap the intellect that, hopefully, has only gone dormant and not totally disappeared. Revive it. Use that energy to explore, to investigate. Don’t be so quick to post that specious meme on Facebook or tweet that inglorious lie juSt to provoke or antagonize. We’ve certainly had enough of that.

Drop that “libtard,” “repugnican” and “snowflake” business. Using terms like that are contemptible, sophomoric. Those playground putdowns serve no purpose other than to agitate and anger.

Unfortunately, I don’t see a whole lot of healing taking place in 2018.

In fact, as the midterm elections approach, I can see it getting uglier before it gets better, with little chance of healing for a nation suffering from a mulish mentality. There is a prejudice that could prove lethal as we totally disregard anything that comes from the opposing side. And, most importantly, it’s time to drop the “they do it too” rationale. As we were constantly reminded by our parents, two wrongs don’t make a right.

There is, of course, a high degree of hypocrisy attached to our time.

We have been quick to condemn the despicable actions of those from the opposing parties while looking for the loophole, the get out of jail free card, if you will, for those with similar political leanings.

Scandals and inappropriate behavior afflict all parties and ideologies. It’s time to ‘fess up and admit it rather than make excuses or look for ridiculous degrees of culpability.

And, while a dose of skepticism is healthy, don’t carry it to outlandish extremes. Trust, but verify. Nothing is as cut and dried as it seems and passion is great, but don’t put reason on the shelf. I have seen intellect ridiculed as deceit because it goes beyond the lazy, monosyllabic grunts being used to communicate ideas these days. Ponder, don’t just react.

Most importantly, look to the greater good, not just the needs, wants and desires of those who look like you, think like you, believe what you believe. As I have said before, we are in this together, the old and young, the rich and poor, the black and white. We’ve seen expressions of protest over injustice shrugged off because well, it just doesn’t happen to “folks like us.” Of course it doesn’t. But, try to place yourself in somebody else’s reality before writing off their concerns as inconsequential.

Learn. We have a lot of history. We’ve been down many of these roads before. If we look to the past, we can learn what worked and what didn’t. Look outside yourself. This is a huge world and, as we can see if we simply open our eyes, others have found solutions to some of our most pressing concerns. This foolish pride that prompts us to shut down the outside world seriously hinders our ability to solve our problems. Thanks to the wonder of modern communication we have access to people and ideas in far-off places. Listen to what they have to say. Some of those ideas just might work.

I mean, seriously, haven’t we taken this animosity thing too far?

Haven’t we sewn enough seeds of hate, anger and distrust?

We have failed as our brother’s and sister’s keeper and abandoned the unrelenting responsibility of being selfless and doing what is right and proper simply for the sake of doing what is right and proper.

This does not mean we eliminate the critical eye or silence the opposing view, but allowing and encouraging its voice.

We’ve been falsely told that in order for us to regain our footing, we must tear everything down and start anew.

I don’t think we’re at that place yet.

We’ve torn each other down quite enough, thank you.

It’s time to find our character again, to understand we have differences, but also figure that those differences are not such a bad thing, that they can be used to inspire thought, discussion and a mutual desire for solutions.

I’m not quite sure what 2018 will bring.

But, I do know that we are responsible, each and every one of us, for how it turns out.

No bad days!

Ed Kociela is an opinion columnist for St. George News. The opinions stated in this article are his own and may not be representative of St. George News.

Email: edkociela.mx@gmail.com

Twitter: @STGnews, @EdKociela