Last night, we had a special political edition of our weekly potluck. All our food and beverage was (very loosely) related to the candidates in some way: I made “mooseburger” casserole (actually lamb, cause where am I gonna get moose in Kansas?), Krissy made “pigs in lipstick” pork with cranberry sauce, Sarah brought chicken hazelnut marsala (I still don’t get that one), and another friend of mine made moose track cookies. Krissy, being a hospitable girl, also invited two brothers to the potluck - nice guys who are new to town and needed a social scene! One of the brothers had been to our potlucks before, and apparently somehow we hadn’t scared him off with our peculiar blend of vulgarity and dorkery. So we were happy to see him back with his brother in tow.

As we sat down to watch the debate, plates piled with food and bingo sheets at the ready, Krissy looked over at me and said “Oh, by the way, he’s a REPUBLICAN,” pointing at one of the brothers. Then afterwards followed an immediate look of regret and maybe panic on her face, as I turn to him and go “really?”

Now, let me explain the night from my point of view. I LOVE engaging in political discussion, and frankly I find it more interesting to talk with someone that doesn’t agree with me. So I asked him why he supports McCain over Obama, and he said “taxes,” so I mentioned that he might want to look up Obama’s tax plan and compare that with McCain’s (long and short of it: if your annual income is under $250,000, you’ll get a tax break under Obama, and even more of a benefit if your income is under $75,000). He mentioned that he’d heard that, but he was concerned because he is a small business owner, and then I started to try and talk with him about Obama’s plan to help support small businesses, when all of a sudden I noticed the horrified chirping from the two other girls in the room.

I looked over and both Krissy and Sarah were staring at me with frightened looks on their faces. From their perspective, I imagine, they were worried I would 1) offend our guest, who didn’t start the conversation about his political views, and might not want to discuss them or 2) be offended by my guest, just by virtue of the fact that he disagreed with me politically. At one point, Sarah even turned to me and whispered tensely, “Down, girl! Down!” I was pretty shocked, especially considering that I was trying to answer a question that he had about the debate. His question was something along the lines of “what are the candidates even talking about when they discuss corruption on Wall Street?” and it was a valid question considering how often that vague term is tossed about, and I gave the example of credit rating agencies relaxing their standards because it was profitable to do so. Nothing politically incendiary, yet the girls seemed to act as though I’d detonated a bomb or something!

Taken aback, I asked the Republican guy and his brother if I have offended them, and they insisted “no, no, you’re fine, we actually like talking about this.” And you know, maybe they were just politely tiptoeing around meanie old dragon me, breathing fire in their faces, but I really didn’t sense that anyone was upset besides the girls. I thought I was careful to not be offensive or patronize him because of his views, a trap that liberals often fall into, but I don’t see a point in sweeping one’s political views under the rug. Especially at, you know, a politics-themed event! (At my house even!)

There is a definite sense, I think, that politics is not something to be discussed in “polite society.” Maybe it’s because we’re nice Midwesterners who don’t like conflict. I’ve even speculated that there’s a gender element to this too - in my anecdotal experience, girls tend to be shyer about getting into political discussions in public than boys (this may be an effect or cause of the fact that most of my friends are boys). Lately I haven’t noticed this as much because of the intense interest in politics, even among previously apathetic types. It seems as everyone’s got an opinion and commentary on this election, whether it be grannies in the checkout line, the bus driver, gas station clerk, or whomever.

But there’s still this reluctance to actually talk to people who might disagree with you politically. Not shout at them or call them names or belittle them, but actually talk to them and hear what they have to say. This is actually one of the many reasons I favor the Obama / Biden approach to policy-making - the idea that much can be achieved from open communication. It’s not a cure-all, obviously, and negotiations can break down. But it should absolutely be the very first option attempted, well before the use of force, which should be the last resort.

I don’t think anyone has much to gain from ignoring the elephant in the room. I see the purpose of politics as trying to get a large number of people with varying interests to form a consensus. And you can, in fact, talk with people who fundamentally disagree with you on issues, without resorting to mudslinging or vitriol. Moreover, I think you should - what fun is it to live life in a constant echo chamber?

p.s. - Krissy, I love you and didn’t write this post to pick on you! But you know you can’t invite a Republican to my house, and expect me not to try and talk some sense into him

The other day, on my hike to work (because I’m miserly, I’d rather walk 3.2 miles each day than pay for parking!), I vaguely noticed that my footsteps were crunchier than usual, and thought in the back of my head, “what are all these leaves doing on this ground.” I thought nothing of it until a few days later — oh my god, it’s already FALL.

Where did summertime go? My tall friend, who’d been bumming it on our couch for seemingly ever, hopped town yesterday and now we’re going through a light sense of Empty Couch Syndrome. When people refer to “last summer” I automatically think of my last real summer, of ‘07, the best summer ever - packed with trips to alpaca farms and nutty Art Barbie houses, fun times being blown away by twister-like winds in tents with friends.

But it’s like this summer never happened. Maybe I’ve been wrapped up too much in following campaign news, and what seems like eons in presidential politics (can you believe Obama won the nomination only four months ago?). Or perhaps I’ve been playing too much Scramble online (boggle for those of you who aren’t facebook slaves), and have scrambled my memories. All I recall are ants and mosquito bites, but no picnics or green grass or wildly fun nights by campfire.

And now Fall is rumbling fast towards completion as well. Pretty soon, next week I’ll look up and all the trees are bare. Time to go jump in some leaf piles before those disappear in the falling snow!