If there’s one thing this election has unified, it’s the perceived intellectual and political pundits such as Bill Maher and Glenn Beck.  Surprisingly, you can watch videos of both apologizing for their antagonizing stances on former political opponents in the past.  Beck even goes so far as to admit his role in building up a right-wing base that was pretty baseless in their attacks. More than anything, you can see the role that news and media played in this election, and their genre was especially successful because they made sensationalized and hyper-focused assumptions about the other side, while pandering to their fan-base without giving differing viewpoints.  That’s the world we live in:  we want to listen only to those whom we agree with and as such, we refuse to even believe in the validity of other sources because they differ.

The media has a lot to be sorry for, but in the end, it comes down to us, and we label ourselves as Republicans and Democrats and assume each side is more right than the other.  I have to admit that I am a Democrat, because not admitting that wouldn’t be fair to this article.  The one thing I’ve heard that resonates with me is when Republicans ask why Democrats don’t care if they are supposed to have such bleeding hearts, and I have to admit that this is true. Most, but not all Democrats will fight tooth and nail for the rights of those who are under represented, but they will refuse to listen to voices of opposition, going so far as to label the opposition idiots, which causes them to hate them in turn.  Democrats tend to fight for ideals, but they sometimes forget about the individual and the individual is more complex than just a set if ideas.  Republicans tend to be more respectful with individuals, but not broad ideals, not realizing that these ideals do impact people who are different than them.

In no way am I saying one side is better than the other, for they both have arrived at the same impasse.  As a Democrat, I realize where I stand, but I see now that I also cannot forget about those who have a different voice than I do even if that voice is intending to enact legislation that I don’t agree with.  What we do instead is shout over the other and call the other side names instead of just respectfully listening.  And my message to fellow Democrats is “you are right in what you believe, but just because you believe it doesn’t make the people who disagree with you go away.” Oftentimes, when you believe you are truly on a righteous path, you refuse to listen to the rhetoric of others because you know you are right, but knowing you are right doesn’t make you a compassionate person.  Compassion for those who you do not agree with is what we should ultimately embrace, for we certainly cannot continue living in our own segregated bubbles.

http://money.cnn.com/2016/11/16/media/bill-maher-trump-apology/