Agreeing to Disagree

"May we never confuse honest dissent with disloyal subversion."- Dwight D. Eisenhower

If anyone has been keeping up with any of my previous posts, you will remember I am very much a supporter of free speech as a necessary part of any human culture. This means that sometimes we are going to have to listen to those we don't agree with. We may not like it, we may try to avoid it, but it has to happen. To listen to another persons opinion is the only way one can grow and gain wisdom not available to us in our own life. To close out other people is to be limited, as you only see things from one perspective, and you won't ever know the whole story, or what was going on behind the scenes.
If four different people standing on the four street corners of the same intersection watch the exact same car accident at the same time, They will most likely describe four completely different car accidents. It isn't until later that the different stories must come together and looked at logically in order to reach a consensus on what really happened. Governments. industries, and other organizations are often set up in using the same strategy. We have two or more people with equal power, not always agreeing with each other, working together to make a decision on what to do. In this way we better account for all points of view, even those that don't agree with our ideas.
I was particularly inspired by the "Good Atheist" Loeb discusses, Hazel White. She was an atheist back in the 20's and 30's, when religion was a big part of every day society, and not being religious could have adverse side effects. Through her childhood she saw and was inspired by the difficult situation people around her were in, yet how they could still show compassion. She would later go on to join and organize several social movements. Her actions were particularly inspiring because she wasn't doing good just so she could please god and get into heaven herself, as I've sometimes seen as the motivation for a few religious people. Instead she was doing good for the sake of doing good. But she was always willing to accept others views and was able to bring together many people to help with a cause that might not have otherwise.