Opinions. Everybody has one.

DC comics against Marvel. PC versus console. Playstation or XBOX? Republican or Democrat? Fiction or Nonfiction? Star Wars or Star Trek? Rap versus Country. Your sports team against my sports team. The vast number of options we have to choose between is almost endless. What one person enjoys another person may not enjoy. This is what helps us and allows us to form our own identity, our own way of life, make our own choices and form our own opinions. The options we are given allow to us to form our own opinions, but everyone has an opinion and no one (literally no one) has the same opinion as another person. Differing opinions allow room for separation in all kinds of personal relationships, so there lies our problem.

Everyone has an opinion and yours doesn’t matter, but then again, neither does mine.

Allow me to explain what I mean before I offend you too many times. If we can (and should) agree that everyone is different at least in some way we must also be okay with admitting that differences in opinion should be looked over and accepted rather than argued over in a bitter and heated fashion. We should realize that a disagreement in a matter as small and trivial as say comic books should not be something that has the power to push two people apart. I for one absolutely love the Green Arrow and I find Batman to be a dull and boring character, but should my preference of the Green Arrow keep me from befriending a die-hard Batman fan? Surely not! I should be able to have a calm and civil conversation with the Batman fan about why I believe the way I do and in a courteous return I should also hear him out on why he believes Batman to be the superior hero. By lowering my walls and talking to a person who thinks differently than me I not only have learned why another person likes Batman but I have also hopefully began a conversation which will lead to a friendship in which we can later find a place of common ground. I’m not changing my opinion, I am being relational.

It all seems fairly simple when you use the example of something as trivial as comic books, but what about when you disagree on a big juicy topic in which everyone with an opinion is an unabashed expert? Everyone loves their right to free speech until someone they disagree with uses theirs, so what if we disagree on politics? Even more specifically, what if we disagree about the upcoming presidential election? Sorry if I anger you, but it’s time to start stepping on toes.

The year is 2016. It is election year and we all know the candidates too well. As a Millennial (1996 represent!) I am categorized and expected to view the candidates like other Millennials, so here it is. Donald Trump is a filthy Republican. He is Pro-life, Anti-immigration, speaks his mind, supported by white Americans in the south, wants to build a wall, he is super racist, closest thing to Hitler that Democrats have seen since Barry Goldwater, and he is the absolute worst person to ever run for president (Goldwater pushed for re-segregation, just saying). Hillary Clinton is a terrible person. She “accidentally” deleted some very incriminating emails, she is responsible for the Benghazi incident, she is a liar, she is a monster, she needs to be in prison, she is the closest thing to Hitler that Republicans have seen since Hitler, and she should be disqualified from the presidential race. Both Hillary and Trump are pure train wrecks for America, but let’s not forget about good old Bernie. Bernie is for the people, he is a self-described democratic socialist, and he says college should be free, we all deserve more money, and he is literally the greatest candidate in American history! Feel the Bern!

Before I continue I must apologize as I am a truly old soul in the millennial age and very little of the previous paragraph actually represents my political views. I identify as a Republican but I cannot morally support Trump, Clinton or Bernie, but just because I don’t support them doesn’t mean I feel the need to have a heated debate with someone who supports them. Everybody is allowed to have their own opinion about everything so why would anybody hate somebody else for having their own opinion? I know people who support certain people and absolutely detest others but if you hate someone for being and thinking differently than you then you are not fixing anything, you are only contributing to the problem.

Instead of posting “If you support Donald Trump you can go ahead and unfriend me” on Facebook or calling out a die-hard Batman fan for liking the wrong hero think about and consider all of the things you may actually agree with that person on and be friendly. Though you may disagree on certain subjects you will get your point across much better with a friendly conversation than with a heated argument.

Find common ground, be relational and remember your opinion doesn’t matter but how you present it is very important.