I cannot just agree to disagree

 WARNING: Political/social commentary
I saw this survey today (below). 

Recently(post-election) I have seen several comments from people who just want the nation to be healed and WISH that people could just agree to disagree.
I GET that, and I also want the nation to be healed, but...I'm going to take another view.

 
This presidential election (2024) was different than ANY previous election in the U.S.. There were several distinguishing differences, to wit:
One candidate was not selected for the ballot through the normal primary process.
Both parties advanced candidates with a track record after having held the highest, or second-highest office in the land.
There were four years worth of metrics by which to quantify the previous performance of each candidate and the differences were more starkly contrasted than between any two presidential candidates ever in our history.
Each candidate, and the parties they represented, offered a very clear path towards achieving their party's agenda.
Neither candidate was considered a 'prime pick' by most of the voters in America.
Each party's agenda could be clearly judged as to its consistency with national history, tradition, and the U.S. Constitution.
Every voter cast their vote as a reflection of THEIR values, traditions, and their understanding of and support of the U.S. Constitution as the Supreme law of the land.

Given all of that, at the end of the day, the voters picked the ground upon which they staked their future. I believe that most voted their conscience, selecting the candidate which best reflected their values.

This is quite clarifying for me. And, also quite troubling.

As illustrated in the graph below, based upon a survey, there are people (mostly young, as this survey was done by college students) who are so committed to their beliefs and values, that they cannot, or will not seek, or try to maintain a relationship with anyone who has a strongly divergent view.

I'm OK with that. Actually, I LIKE that, in some sense, because any meaningful relationship is rooted in shared values, beliefs, goals, and experiences. In this present example, those all point the future of our country: either further away from our constitutional foundations and moral values, or returning back to those roots. Personally, I do not want to invest the emotional energy or resources to have a relationship with any person who so despises those fundamental values. This is much too important.

While I can appreciate the spirit of "let's just agree to disagree", I cannot join myself to someone I consider to be an enemy of my most sacred values and beliefs. This is not merely a disagreement about some superficial issue, or some tertiary sentiment. This division of America is central to our fundamental values. It is the core of our system of laws and governance. It is the heartbeat of our national unity-what makes us the UNITED States of America.

People who cannot support the U.S. Constitution, or America's founding principles, are not going to be part of healing America. There can be no peaceful coexistence with someone whose fundamental values are hostile to our healthy, sustainable, regeneration as a beacon of hope for the world.

I am a man of peace. I choose to try to live in peace, as much as possible with my fellow man. I am tolerant of superficial differences. But there is a line between good and evil that none of us should be willing to compromise. I am willing to fight for 'truth, justice, and the American way'.

It is my opinion that this will be the point of the spear that produces, not only civil war in America, but ultimately, World War III.

And this, my friends, is why no one invites me to parties.
JAS 2024