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We are what we read.

Recently I read an article that contained a passage that at first shocked me. It said, basically, that Americans do not read, listen to, or view sources of information containing opinions with which they disagree. I found it hard to believe that intelligent beings could take such a position.

Then, I thought about it again, and it began to make sense. Our news sources have become so partisan and one-sided; it is tempting to turn off to those whose opinions differ markedly from our own. I often find myself wanting to turn off or put down anything that I disagree with. I resist this temptation, however, believing in the old army motto, know your enemy.'

It would also be difficult, in my case, to deny myself access to information sources that I disagree with. I find that conservative sources, or at least those sources that identify themselves as conservative, rant and rave and try to appeal to the baser nature of their listeners or readers. So-called liberal sources, on the other hand, whine and cry about the basic unfairness of life and wail and moan for the government to come in and solve all the problems.

Between the ranting and the whining, if I only used sources with which I agree, my information universe would be almost unpopulated. As I cruise the airwaves or browse the newsstands, I find it difficult to identify a source of information that effectively or adequately presents both sides of an issue in an even handed manner. Where or where is Edward R. Murrow when you need him?

So, while I find Ann Coulter shrill and overbearing and Michael Moore just overbearing, I listen to or read both. Even though what they spew forth at times makes me want to vomit; gets me angry enough to raise my blood pressure to high normal levels; I continue to listen and read.

Why, you ask, do I subject myself to opinions with which I violently disagree? What could I possibly gain from being exposed to theories and ideas that are so far out on the wings of rationality they defy the laws of grammar, courtesy, and common sense?

I gain my friend, a balanced perspective on life and an even handed view of the world. By knowing what is being said and thought on the outer fringes of common sense and rationality, I believe I am better positioned to be a more productive citizen and a better human being. It is said that you are what you eat. Well, I think you are also what you hear and read, and if you only read or listen to one side of the cultural and political spectrum, you become lopsided

Learn more about this author, Charles Ray.
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