A Joyous Perspective on the Freedom to Be Diverse: Feed it, don't force it.

This week at the Friday Night Thought Tale Hour with the Henderson's, we find ourselves on the eve of a great, completely American celebration - Independence Day. It's an interesting time in our country, with elections, flags, rulings, and senseless acts of violence headlining our News reports. Social media has been flooded with rainbows and confederate flags, leaving one to wonder if we are even further apart as a nation than ever before. I had to do quite a bit of thinking before I arrived at the one thing I could take away and share from all of this noise.

There seems to be a loss of a great tenant our country's founders fought and died for. The freedom to be diverse and to allow others to disagree with you. To live peacefully, side by side, respecting diversity, not demanding it changes to suit your view.

Are we overthinking it?

I was accused of this as I shared some of my asides with Chris. But it seems to me that it hangs in the air right now like our famous Illinois humidity. When referenced with some factoid about Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, a local talking head on our small-town radio station burst out with, "He is everything that is wrong with America!" Condemning a person who has been a public servant for life as being all that is wrong with our country? Let's see. Poverty, violence, child abuse, broken homes, homelessness. Quite a declaration. I like to hope she really wasn't thinking before her thoughts came out, but her lack of coherent grace struck me as symptomatic of a terrible trend that has spread throughout our lands. Have we become the land of the free- unless your view juxtaposes another's? This, from my perspective, is actually everything that is wrong with America right now.

Because you might be good at snark, but that doesn't make you convincing.

There's no lack of debate around our lands' issues, but true discourse is hard to find. The Media moguls seem to have figured out that we want to be entertained more than we often seek to be enlightened. The most popular mouthpieces, regardless of the political sides, are those who are humorous and sarcastic in their delivery of the 'facts.' When one sees how news is sifted and chosen, you don't have to don a tin-foil hat to stop and wonder if we are being played like the flute section of an orchestra. As I thought about this during the week, clicking around the spectrum of sources that we have at our fingertips, I could not escape the feeling that people are systematically bullying those they disagree with. Whether Ann Coulter was snarled at by Bill Maher or Greg Gutfeld making fun of the Gay Pride parade, I just felt like I was back on the playground watching some mean kids surround someone they decided they didn't like. I realized that I had been laughing right along with everyone, and I suddenly felt embarrassed - and a little ashamed.

It's better to win a heart over than to crush it.  

What worries me most about one part of our government making law or pronouncing orders is that it encourages the bully in us, especially when it happens to fall on our preferred side. It shuts down discourse and whips up a loud debate or visceral judgments of others. We lose the chance to change minds through evidence, and I don't mean the kind found in a legal opinion. We close doors to the opportunity for diverse groups to get to know each other and come to an understanding. I reject those who feel we are doomed to a society of prejudice and walls of conformity. As I watch my grandson at dinner, I see hope glance up at a group of Amish as they enter the restaurant. Just a kid noticing new people. Gentle exposure works wonders. We are not feeding liberty; we are forcing conformity.  Don't ask me to accept you; ask me to know you. Don't demand a place at my table; invite me to a meal. Change me with the proof of your character, don't beat me into submitting to your will.

 And just to prove my point, we are spotlighting diversity in our cocktail.

As we pause to wish these United States of America a happy 239th birthday, we are drinking blended Margaritas with a bottle of Budweiser stuck in them. No, the two don't mix well together, but they share a common ability to accentuate any celebration. And the picture, well, demonstrates that it's always better to blend naturally than force collaboration. CHEERS, FRIENDS!

Joy's Diverse Margarita's with Budweiser**
3 ounces good tequila (white)
2 ounces freshly squeezed lime juice
1-ounce Tito's vodka
1/2 tsp orange extract
1 tbsp natural Stevia
Crushed ice
Kosher salt for rimming (optional)
1 Bottle of Budweiser
Fill a blender with ice. Add Tequila, juice, Tito's, extract, and Stevia. Blend until slushy. Pour into a large salt-rimmed glass. Open the Bud, and gently tilt upside down into the margarita. Serve, and let your guests decide how to drink it. 
**Always drink responsibly. Never drive after drinking.