Freedom.  It can be a powerful word, especially in the democracy that we are fortunate enough to live in today. 

Tolerance of people’s beliefs should go hand in hand with the rights that we all share as American citizens, yet the line between being argumentative and tolerant seems to have been muddled as of late. 

The first amendment states that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.” This also goes hand in hand with how people should view others. 

Hot-button issues such as gay marriage, abortion, the economy, and health care can set people off in an argument, but before arguing about this people should understand where both sides are coming from morally.

If one person takes one side and follows a certain religious belief as their background, and another student takes a stand with the law as their moral compass, what’s really going to get accomplished by arguing a certain topic?

Everyone has their own personal values they were brought up by their whole life.  One should be able to speak their opinion and not feel judged based off of it.  Even if someone has a strong opinion about a certain topic, they need to respect the belief system and moral values that a person is coming from.

It’s ironic that one can say that another is intolerant of something when they are arguing that what they believe is right.  There is a reason why our amendments are there in the first place, it’s so that people can have the ability to speak their opinions without fear of feeling judged by them.

People are tolerant of beliefs today, but sometimes are judgmental when they hear something they don’t agree with, it’s just a fact of human nature.  What we need to do is make sure people can speak freely without the feeling that others are judging them, or simply try to avoid talking causally about politics with friends.

Junior Joe Marotto said he feels he can be treated differently at times, simply because he has conservative views.

“I’m a Republican, and when I speak my mind on issues like gay marriage and abortion, people sometimes freak out and act like I’m a racist,” Marotto said. The problem at the moment is especially heated and magnified whenever there is a presidential election. 

Conservatives and Liberals share different views, and arguments can get heated.  However, it should be a point to not judge someone else just because they might have a different opinion of what others think.