“you see X, I see Y”
I hope to live simply. To not require labor-intensive attention from anyone. To do my work so that the labor is mine and not of another. I hope that my attention has been focused and my presence not an intrusion. I hope to always simply be fair and, despite difference, be decent.
Patriotism has been highjacked, leadership redefined, uncomfortable history is being erased and removed while the actions some see as help are killing citizens, destroying democracy, and international reputation. Some just don’t know it yet, but one by one they are having to confront the lies that are stripping away their freedoms.
I have only done this a few times, but I put something in Claude the other day. It was a long rambling statement. “I see this, you see that”, Nothing tangible referenced. Claude called it what it was;
“This passage is built almost entirely as a rhetorical device — a series of “you see X, I see Y” contrasts — rather than an argument with verifiable claims. That structure matters: most of the lines are competing interpretations of the same facts, not competing facts themselves. Let me sort what’s actually checkable from what’s just framing.
Pure interpretation / not fact-checkable
These are value judgments, not claims about reality — there’s no data that resolves “arrogance vs. confidence” or “childish vs. fighter.” Two people can watch the same speech and disagree here forever, because the words describe feelings, not events:
- “Republican” vs. “Patriot” — this one’s actually a false binary; being a registered Republican is a fact (he is one), and it doesn’t preclude also being sincerely patriotic in the writer’s eyes. The two aren’t opposites.”
If only this world of opposites was fantasy, science fiction, bad reality TV instead of reality. That someone was actually making this shit up! Right is wrong, rain is not wet, warm is cold, cold is warm, joy is sadness, love is conditional, revenge is honor, greed is awarded, criminals are not, character is no matter, empathy is bad, respect and honor are replaced with arrogance, disrespect, and demoralization.
Words had meaning. Words have power. Instead of using them for good, they are being used to pull people into a fictional void of inhumanity. Assumptions are used in an attempt to narrow the view and beauty of the whole. The thin layer of ideology that swirls us lacks reality and mocks decency. People say they are Pro this, Pro that, yet support a lawless administration weakening the justice system and somehow left God out of that list replaced with flawed and damaged mortals. Maybe that’s their redemption?
There is evil in the world. We all know that. Where does it actually live? Stop and think about your neighbor, your co-worker, your classmates. Are they evil? Am I evil? Are you evil? What has happened that it is now acceptable to call or write someone a threat of death to them, their family, or their destruction because they spoke their truth? “You are entitled to your opinion. But you are not entitled to your own facts.” ― Daniel Patrick Moynihan
What do we want? Peace? Opportunity? Shelter? Safety? Security? Family? Friends? Health? Sustenance? Air?…air to breathe in the relief of meaning, purpose, decency, community of care, appreciation, and solidarity. If we all want the same thing, which I believe we do, why is getting there filled with such resistance, suspicion, and ill will? Does it really matter how we get there?
Compromise in the absence of harm, setting your needs aside for grace and generosity that will repay tenfold. Now is all we have. Choose not to squander it on those who see you as an obstacle to their advancement. Choose not to squander it on those who have no regard for humanity, who refuse to speak against injustice.
Embrace equanimity for yourself, your home, and those in your path. Acknowledge an event, observe your immediate judgments, and respond with wisdom rather than reactivity; emphasize emotional regulation.