2013: A year for reasonableness

Every new year holds promise.

They give us a new start and a new chance to get things right.

There is always something to be done to make things better.

Nationally, we all know there is a lot to do.

A good start will be to demand reasonableness from our leaders. It is not very sexy or catchy, but it is essential.

Most of the enduring problems facing us are the result of blindly following some arbitrary muse.

The new year is the perfect time to demand reasonableness and to work towards pragmatic solutions rather than ideological perfection.

Often, unreasonableness is bred by rigidity and lack of critical thinking.

It is easier to hold to a position than to question and ponder alternatives. One of the most common mistakes is that of judging things by virtue of their source, and not their content. This is the ad hominem fallacy.

It just means that ideas and solutions are judged by who suggests or backs them, rather than for their value. All too often it doesn’t matter what the suggestion is, it just matters who expresses it. We see this everyday with our leaders who cling to their party’s mantra rather than opening their minds to new options.

For 2013, Americans should start outing unreasonable people and rejecting unreasonable ideas. They should demand that ideas be judged for their own merit, not solely by who backs them.

“Be reasonable” should be the call of the new year.

Gordon Forgey

Publisher