Maybe I missunderstand you but the reason I support the rail system is not one about choosing sides. I don't have a politically vested interested in the rail system. Rather I have lived in Europe (Germany, Holland, Belgium and Luxemburg) and I saw first hand what mass transit can do and how beneficial it is. When I moved down here I was shocked to find out how bad the system is here. I often wondered if it was too late for change (mass transit wise). My personal experience tells me that a good mass transit system is always better than not having one. I asked a friend who has been here longer than me why there not a better mass transit system in Houston and he simply said Politics had more to do with it. How can people really object to a healthy mass transit system? Is the city or country so divided along partizan lines that they forget the more important things in life? Is it the finance? The financing can be debated and worked out but trying hard to block makes no sense to me. Oh well I am glad it passed - hopefully it will go as plan and even further and better.
It's not with every issue, of course. There are reasons to support and reasons to oppose rail that have nothing to do with politics. And some people support or oppose based on those reasons. But it sure seems like more and more people will defend actions, support policies or oppose policies based on the political affiliation of the people lining up on either side of the issue. And more and more issues are being fought on political battlegrounds rather than on their merits.
I would be tempted to say this is too much hand-wringing, that issues have always been politically split in this way, but I actually agree with you. It's not just on this BBS; it's the political climate of the nation. And honestly, I think this BBS is much more discussion oriented than over venues. What's the answer? The problem is that simply taking a side is the easy way out, of course. It takes much less energy than thinking. I guess more and more of us could declare ourselves "independents," and more and more of us could quit listening to politically motivated talking heads in the media. And by that I mean a boycott that would have economic impact on the clear channels and NPR's of the world, on Limbaughs and Hightowers alike. Both sides are guilty of having "comfy" media outlets that tell and spin what we want to hear, what challenges us least, what moves us least from our comfort zones.
