Death By Partisan Palate

“If the present world go astray, the cause is in you, in you it is to be sought.” –Dante

It’s killing us, this cloud of suspicion, this partisan derision, this one-eyed squint at the future as we huddle to root for our side. We are all weary and wary of political comment, so I offer a parable instead:

A Non-partisan Palate

Long ago…

…in a village with two different views,
herbivores and carnivores prepared their own stews
in peace, respectfully acknowledging diverse culinaries,
trading bone broth for berries, ripe cheese for cherries.

The lords in high places made no profit from kindness,
from humble admissions of bias and blindness.
In the face of the villagers’ habit of sharing,
they devised a new message, both cunning and daring:

“Life is not about preference and the meals shared between us,
we need to punish THEM for daring to not BE us!”

So they crafted in darkness a new kind of norm:
From both sides were hurled rotten food in some form–
a platter of t-bones, a bucket of peach stones,
culinary allegiance creating a war zone.

Cries became common, “They’re causing this riot!
Anyone can see they are mocking our diet.
We’ve had enough of their supercilious glances,
Of patronizing looks and superior stances.”

Offended, defended, suspicious, afraid,
gastronomic generosity was replaced with Kool-Aid.
The lords chortled in triumph and high-fived with glee–
they’d turned difference of opinion into mean lunacy!

Hate was stockpiled for unpalatable winters,
New fences were built for inevitable splinters,
For now vegans, detoxers and gluten pretenders,
Atkins, and Paleo, and slow food defenders

Made everyone right, and everyone wrong,
No one remembering what it meant to belong
to one common platter from which they all ate,
and the omnivorous reasons to pass every plate.

When your point of view demands your allegiance,
Then life will consist of one long, bitter grievance.

Here’ s the thing–we all, both strange and familiar, want the same things:

• For the neighbor’s dog to stop barking
• For their children to be happy and safe
• To be treated the way you want to be.

Our world is in trouble because we refuse to believe it. We’re being groomed to think of each other as caricatures, as voodoo dolls, a convenient place to stick our angers and fears.

While the partisan lords grow rich from our compliance.

Here’s a simple test.

• Think of the political leader, past or present, you’ve most despised or admired. If that same leader played for the other team, would you still hold the same opinion?
• Think of a people group you fear. Are you as generous with their flaws and failures as you are with yourself?

Be honest with yourself about your allegiances–you’ll thank me someday. The world is too complex to live under the delusion that only you, or I, have all the answers.

The Heart of the Problem

As Jesuit priest Pierre de Caussade wrote over 300 years ago, “All God wishes is to be the sole object and only enchantment of our hearts.”

What other voices have enchanted you, have put you under their spell?

Coming soon: A new series! “The Alphabet of Life: Wisdom Learned in the Verbs”