
The Apostle Paul asked this question in his second letter to the church at Corinth. Although he was talking in a spiritual context, I have been thinking of this verse as I contemplate where our political discourse is going, particularly in the wake of the NPR-Juan Williams fiasco.
Williams, by all accounts, is a man of good faith. He is a liberal guy, but I appreciate and listen to what he has to say. He obviously thinks that Fox News and its viewers (and presumably contributors) have the right to exist.
I remember when Williams got choked up at the election of America's first black president. It made an impact on me. He's a thoughtful, liberal guy, and he loves America.
There are surely others like Williams who are reasonable folks who just think that we conservatives are missing it on the issues. I think of guys like Pat Caddell, Ed Rendell, and Joe Trippi. Funny, but these guys appear on Fox, as well.
You know, even Bill Clinton I think is a bit of a different cat, but I think he understands that good people can come to different conclusions than he does. I wonder about Hill, but that's a discussion for another day ... like when she challenges Zero in 2012?
We all have good-hearted libs in our lives, and hopefully, they see us as good-hearted conservatives. We simply see each other as wrong-headed. That's fine and dandy, and what political discourse is all about. We can have discourse, or fellowship if you will, under such circumstances. We believe in the same fundamental things -- the country is good, open exchanges are helpful and productive, we respect and can profit from talking to each other, and we each understand our fallibility and that we may be wrong.
But when some one goes over the edge -- that is, when the post-modern virus that infects us all becomes a full-fledged fever to where one becomes judge, jury, and legislature of the world as he sees it -- then discourse is unproductive. We simply have too little in common at that point to even talk. It's akin to speaking different languages, or maybe even trying to talk to some one who is shooting at you. You can try, but at best it doesn't work. At worst, you can get hurt.
In politics, this is why we are unable to work with the modern Demo party; it's infected with hard left types who think that we conservative are evil incarnate. And the modern left will refuse to relent until all vestiges of what we stand for are eradicated from the public square. Put another way, we are more than wrong; we are evil. If you go on Fox, or watch it, you are unworthy, period. Make no mistake. Williams' real sin was in undermining the NPR/Left theme that conservatives are a threat to the world.
For my part, I think we are all "bad," if you will, in that we are all fallible. At some point, any of us can become so off-track that there is simply no reason to talk. Lord knows I have wasted a lot of time and key strokes arguing with leftists out here in the cyber-world.
So, how do you "work with them," as some Republicans have postulated? The answer is ... you are wasting your time. There is simply insufficient common ground to even talk. There is no fellowship between light and darkness. The existence of one reduces the other, and vice versa.
Most conservatives instinctively know this, so you simply do what you know is right.
We all know -- Obama, Pelosi, and Reid have the post-modern fever. They have crossed the line.
What fellowship does light have with darkness?
After Nov. 2, we will expect our elected representatives to be on our side of that line.