In Our ClassroomHow do two sides with such different opinions come together to sing the political version of Kumbaya? Watching candidates and supporters of either side of the coin name call, finger point, or worse, spew verbal attacks about what should physically be done to another candidate is nothing new. It’s as old as the political process itself. So can anything really be done to close the gap and allow both sides to at least see eye-to-eye on the important issues?

Maybe.

That maybe depends on a few things, like going back to those basic, fundamental rules that we learned in kindergarten. Everything we learned about getting along with others, we learned in kindergarten. And if we implement those rules, then maybe we can begin to focus on the important issues and work together to achieve a common interest -- like better education and health care for our children.

So let’s review some of the rules.

Play fair. The first rule seems the most obvious but then again, it isn’t. A relevant issue is fair game for discussion and debate and, therefore, bringing it up is playing fair. For example, how a candidate voted in the past on important issues, or decisions they support, and positions he previously held, can impact how the candidate may serve our economic interest. Therefore, all those concerns are fair game. But going on fishing expedition to find President Obama's birth certificate, or questioning whether a candidate is Christian or not, is not playing fair.

Don't hit people. We can also include don’t threaten to hit people, suggest to a group of people to have someone else injured, or attacked, or throw acid on a women like Republican Jay Townsend, suggested just recently. Violence against someone because you disagree with their thoughts or opinions is a lack of control over your emotions. At this age, let’s hope that we manage to do that.  

Clean up your own mess. John Edwards is a good example of needing to clean up his own mess rather than subject the public, his deceased wife, and family to humiliation and disgrace. Although his issue was certainly a private matter, it reflects poorly on the party.  

Flush. Sometimes the parties should flush, or disassociate, themselves from certain individuals that don’t just straddle the line but cross the line. Rush Limbaugh is who comes to mind. As someone who often speaks on behalf of conservatives in ways that are inflammatory and divisive, he is certainly someone that the Republican Party should flush out of their system.

Keeping these rules in mind will help ensure that we can all reasonably get along so that we can focus on what is important instead of getting sidetracked on the irrelevant matters.  

This post is part of a weekly conversation with our Moms Matter 2012 political bloggers. To see the original question and see what all the bloggers had to say, read Can Moms Set a Higher Standard When It Comes to Talking Politics?

Image via KTVee/Flickr