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Author Topic: A Shade of Gray
Johivin
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I continuously hear of people declaring that there are only ever two options in the world.
You are either for or against a topic.
Sad as it may seem, many seem to deny the gray areas that lie between them.

I read of people arguing the 'stay the course'( which will no longer be used) or 'cut and run' as has been described. All other points become moot in these debates. No other points are listened to or cared of, and those who may suggest them are concidered wishy-washy or face brutal punishment from those who wear blinders to the world.

Perhaps this is one of the reasons we have lethargic voters in the United States. If you have any belief other than the "party's" you are the enemy.

What will it take for people to see themselves as human beings rather than continue to create divisions for themselves?

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ricree101
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quote:
Originally posted by Johivin:

I read of people arguing the 'stay the course'( which will no longer be used)

No one ever urged a "stay the course strategy". Didn't you get the memo?


-This message brought to you by your local Ministry of Truth.

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Dan_raven
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This is why I am thinking of starting my own political party--The Party of the Third Way.

Or perhaps a religion.

Or maybe a philosophy.

I don't have all the details worked out, but its primary statement is "Whenever forced to choose between A or B, always, always, always choose C.

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Lisa
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quote:
Originally posted by Johivin:
I continuously hear of people declaring that there are only ever two options in the world.
You are either for or against a topic.
Sad as it may seem, many seem to deny the gray areas that lie between them.

I continually hear people claiming that there are no absolutes. That black and white don't exist, and there are only shades of grey. Taking a stand on an issue is viewed as "extreme", and as inherently suspect.

The reality is that the world is made up of blacks and whites and greys. And a whole bloody spectrum of color, besides. And denying the existence of black and white is no better than denying the existence of shades of grey.

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BlackBlade
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Not only that its SHADES of grey not just GREY. People forget that sometimes the best approach still more closely approaches black then white and vice versa. Trying to get the exact middle of an issue is not usually the best solution.
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TheGrimace
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I prefer a nice forest green... or when I'm feeling confrontational perhaps Puce
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Eduardo St. Elmo
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I'll agree that the truth is most usually found somewhere in the grey area. And hardly ever exactly in the middle. But remember that in the end we all fade to black.

Anyway, in most cases neither one of the extremes (black or white) is the best way to go. IMO it has something to do with to interdependant oppositional forces (order and chaos, if you will). The yin-yang sign is obviously a very good representation of this (or for you Jordanites; the Flame of Tar Valon and the Dragon's Fang).

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Orincoro
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quote:
Originally posted by BlackBlade:
Not only that its SHADES of grey not just GREY. People forget that sometimes the best approach still more closely approaches black then white and vice versa. Trying to get the exact middle of an issue is not usually the best solution.

As if this is what they were trying to do. Silly, silly, just because grey is a mix of black and white doesn't mean that "grey area" is a term that functions in the same way. People that use it (like me) don't mean "exact middle," that would just be stupid. I agree with you, but you are wrong. hehe.

edit to add: It seems this thread is wandering dangerously closed to the prosaic/mystic method of investigation: find out what ELSE the words mean, and there you have found a valid argument about truth and falsehood? I don't know about that. Aphorisms are nice, but they hardly prove anything of importance.

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KarlEd
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quote:
The reality is that the world is made up of blacks and whites and greys.
Very true. But the greys FAR outnumber the blacks and whites. On the spectrum, black and white are infinitesimally small sections at the two extremes. Everything else - the whole of the rest of infinity - is grey.
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Johivin
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My point is simply that there are many other options that exist in an arena, yet those who recommend options other than the usual are ignored or worse mocked as being undecisive.

At what time, starLisa, did I deny the blacks and whites? My point is that we oftimes spend times ignoring the other possibilities in favor of the two major thoughts on a matter. There are many options to every situation, not only just two.

It comes to the point wherein the people believe that they have only two options in a situation, that no other possible outcomes exist. This is a serious issue that needs to be looked at. Mock the topic as you will, but this is a cause of great concern.

Human beings create so many ways to divide themselves that it becomes hard to find common ground. The only time we seem to be able to find commonality is when there is great fear. Why are we only able to gather as a 'whole' (I do not deny that there are always some who do not agree) when their is a great threat to be opposed? Why can we not join together on those points that make us human?

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Dagonee
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My problem with the shades of gray analogy is that it still presents the alternatives as mixtures of the two endpoints.

"Moderate" should not mean "taking the least offensive part of both sides of the spectrum."

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Johivin
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You make a good point, Dagonee. Shade of gray isn't an expression that totally makes complete sense in this case; though there are times when a shade of gray is appropriate.

The point I have been trying to make that there are always a multitude of alternatives. I find it annoying that we so frequently hear the two-sided efforts and so few of the others.

I'm concerned that it is becoming part of the U.S. system now that we are limiting ourselves to only two viewpoints.

I find this evident in the current political realm, wherein only the two 'primary' candidates are allowed to participate in the debates, and those who are considered 'third party' candidates are not invited to participate. This limits the scope of the 'democracy' that is believed to be present in the United States.

I have always felt that equality suffers in the face of the philosophy that 'some people are more equal than others'.

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