Fiction Has to Make Sense...

Ok. I've been told I've gotta blog every day. This will be the last self-referential word in my blog about blogging. Blogging is old news. New news? How 'bout that State of the Union address last night? I spent a lot of time nodding, did a little frowning, and only said, "You lie!" once. The man can give a speech.


What I did find fascinating was waking up this morning and listening to NPR's Morning Addition coverage and analysis of the speech. The analysis itself was what I would have expected but what struck me was the parsing of the language Obama used and how carefully crafted it was. One example was how he got the GOP to stand and applaud healthcare reform. It reminded me of the scene in Gandhi when he got the parliament to stand in support of his cause by singing "God Save the King." Great politics and a great scene from an excellent film. But I digress.


I realized that the speech I heard was very different from the words spoken. This is credit to Mr. Obama and his speechwriters, but it is also a double-edged sword. If I heard the speech aimed at the choir, then I'm sure that the peanut gallery heard the speech aimed at them (intentionally, or unintentionally). How can I judge that whatever vituperous response to the speech was unjustified? The craftsmanship of the language created a generalized horoscope that would, of course, sound like bank-bashing socialism if that is the way you have trained yourself to view the world.


Who'd a ever thought that I would have compassion for what the right wing would have to say about was, most probably, a centrist speech. I know. Some of you might be bursting to scream that he's a socialist, blah blah blah... check that thought for a moment and see where it's coming from. Likewise, if you're hearing the gospel, better rethink that one too. Our brains are very unreliable interpreters of the information that is poured into it.


The cliche´ is we see what we want to see, and we do. Both the right and the left are correct in their reactions and interpretations. They heard their own truth, but did they listen? When people begin to understand the joke and laugh about, they end up shot, or nailed to a tree, or today, institutionalized. Some are even given TV shows. 


It's about understanding. It's about seeing all sides simultaneously because they are all right.
Cheers!