| Roughly
only 55% of Americans actually vote. Why such a low turn out? Could it
be the politicians nasty quibbles that frustrate American citizens?
Could it be that the American people have become passive, and believe
that it doesn't matter anymore? Or is it because Americans lack a
sense of their own beliefs, and honestly don't know who to vote for.
Are we a country of fickle, half-hearted
citizens who don't really know what we believe in? The educational
system has taught our impressionable children that there are no truths
and no rights or wrongs. Is it any wonder than many Americans live
their entire life without truly knowing what they believe in, since
doing so is assuming an absolute truth. The fact that we have the
ability to think
rationally and develop our beliefs is the only thing that sets us apart
from the animals. Shouldn't we exercise that ability?
I
have the pleasure of sitting through a 50-minute lecture on Political
Science everyday. My instructor has a firm worldview that can not be
swayed--and she infiltrates this worldview in almost everything she
says. In roughly every situation, I firmly disagree with that
worldview. My instructor is an example of a human being with a firm
set of beliefs, a firm opinion. I may disagree with her on,
well...everything. But I still give her credit. She knows what she
believes, and she is acting on it. This opens up a question though: Is
it wrong for her to force her opinion on others?
Another
one of my instructors has a political view similar to my own. This is
my second quarter sitting under his rants and raves about the current
condition of America. I wouldn't say that I agree with everything he
believes, but I agree with most of what he says. Is he firm in his
belief? Yes. Is he firm in his opinion and will not be swayed? Yes. And
I don't have a problem with that. How is it fair for me to question my
Polysci instructor's right to force her beliefs on me, when I welcome
the firm opinion of this like-minded instructor?
To
do so, I would be acting in hypocrisy. I pose my question again: Is it
wrong, as a teacher, to impose opinions on adult students? In most
situations, we are not forced to be there. Yes, the class may be
required for our degree, but most schools give us the opportunity to
take from different teachers. As college students, we are choosing to
sit under their rants. We can't run from others who differ from our own
beliefs. Every day we are being exposed to the ideals of other people.
This
leads me to believe that we must be defensive listeners. I am no longer
an impressionable child. Today, I am an adult. As such, I have to
develop my own personal belief system. I have to test everything I
hear--be it
from a peer, or a person in authority. I can't be afraid of another
person's opinion--I have to use their opinion to strenghthen my own. I
also can't just blindly depend on the belief system of my parents, or
the believe system of my religious organization, or the belief system
of my political affiliation. For me, my parents had a huge part in
shaping my beliefs. They are valuable influences in my life, and I
constantly seek their advice. But when I pose a question to my dad,
what does he do? He doesn't just spat out an answer and
expect me to accept it. He gives me a book and encourages me to learn
the answer through personal study. Many times he's given me two books,
one that supports the opposing worldview, and one that supports his
worldview. He wants me to know the answer on my own. As a human citizen
of this world, I have to have my own convictions and my own opinion.
So,
would I complain about a teacher who won't stand down in the face of
argument, who knows what he or she believes and has a firm opinion? Of
course not! I applaud such a person. Those teachers truly know what
they believe, and why they believe it. Yes, I may think some are
blatantly wrong, but I can't just think they are wrong--I have to know
why they are wrong.
I
challenge you to develop your own convictions and ideals. Don't rely on
others to tell you what to believe. Study it and know it for
yourselves. You have to know what you believe and why you believe it.
If you don't, then you can't truly believe what you say you believe in. |
| |
