Today's MOZEN: Keep Up or Move Over

F LoBuono

Arguing with an illogical person is like getting stuck behind someone driving too slowly in the left lane of any given highway. It makes you wonder; are they even AWARE that the law designates the left lane for PASSING, i.e. higher speeds? Or, is it that they simply do not care? One way or the other, it's frustrating as hell. You pull up behind them, hoping that they'll notice. Nope. You flash your lights, thinking that the universal symbol to MOVE OVER might be effective. Nothing. So, you break the law by passing them on the right. Then, they give YOU dirty looks. And, it's more than just an inconvenience - it can be dangerous.

Trying to reason with a person who will not, or CANNOT, conceive of rational concepts is just as frustrating - and dangerous. We are left to ponder if that person is simply not capable of thinking beyond there own "left lane"? Or, is a matter of them having the ability to understand, but lack the will to? Just as one car driving too slowly in the left lane affects the flow of ALL traffic, so does inflexible thinking disrupt the flow of the cognitive process. Progress is slowed when people are intractable.

It happens all of the time. Take the current debate on Same Sex Marriage. Despite legal ruling after ruling in favor of allowing same sex couples to marry, too many people are still stuck in the left lane.They refuse to "keep up". However, this time, it's a little different. Instead of being forced to "break the law" and "go around by passing on the right", now the force of public opinion if so great that the slow pokes are forced to abide by the law and MOVE OVER!!

Now, if we could only get those left lane crawlers on the highway to move the hell over . . .