An Admission of Guilt by Marcus J. Hopkins

A friend of mine on Facebook recently reminded me that I once reshaped his views about issues related to gay rights by being levelheaded in my observations of political issues.  Over the past few months, however, he has noticed how negative my responses have become as they relate to political issues, and Conservatives specifically.

He's right.  

I have become increasingly negative over the past two years as political discourse has become ever more virulent on both sides of the spectrum.  I can't really offer any excuses or reasons as to why I've allowed my normally even-handed self to become so incensed by issues about which I have always been passionate, but have always been reasonable.

The honest answer is that I've gotten as swept up in the political hysteria as anybody, and I have sometimes allowed my vitriol to get out of hand in addressing those issues.  I am embarrassed to say that this has led to a number of people bringing issue with my positions, not based on the validity of my arguments, but because of my presentation of those arguments.

This is a fair response, as I have done a poor job of communicating my political positions, arguments, and observations in a way that allows people to think me a rational human being capable of cordial discourse.

So, in an effort to address this concern, from this point forward I will make every attempt to provide more intellectually-driven, less emotion-based political posts, starting with my next post.

Sincerely,

Marcus J. Hopkins