Do you listen to the many viewpoints of your fellow citizens that might disagree

1. 65

   rickzimmermanposted 13 years ago

   Do you listen to the many viewpoints of your fellow citizens that might disagree with you?
   
   Or do you prefer communing only with those that share your views? Do we need to seek consensus more often? Or has compromise done us harm?

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2. 61

   duffsmomposted 13 years ago

   It depends on how the opposing opinion is presented.  I enjoy hearing new ideas and getting my brain working.  What I object to is when the opposing opinion or idea is presented from a platform assuming I am stupid or ill-informed because I have a particular opposing viewpoint.  That makes it hard to give the opposing viewpoint the proper consideration or weight.
   
   In particular, religious discussions which may start out on a respectful level by asking why I believe certain things then degrade into such questions as, "why do you let yourself be fooled?"  Those kinds of discussions go nowhere and end up being more of defense then a discussion. I prefer to stay away from them.

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3. 62

   Dennis AuBuchonposted 13 years ago

   In my experience we as individuals do not always know all the answers.  We should always be open to the views of others as this is how we learn and develop opinions on a variety of topics.  We can learn from others and others can learn from us.  Understanding different viewpoints make us better as individuals. 
   
   Presenting our views and why we have them to others help them to understand our reasons and the same is true for those who thing differently than us.  We should take the approach after listening to reasons others do not have the same opinions that we can agree to disagree.
   
   I have found in many cases when discussing topics with others that there may be some common ground and there can be good points to be made in any discussion.  Too often we as individuals act like we have the right answer or opinion but in fact each of us have the right to our opinion for which we are not required to agree with.

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