Slicing and Dicing

That last post brought to mind another thought: the policy of exclusion vs. the policy of inclusion.

Americans have a history, intensified in the last 3 years, of setting up a fearsome Them to unite Us against. This competitive instinct drives Little League baseball teams, departments, churches, political parties, even whole nations to work as a team against The Other Side.

We LOVE to split ourselves into factions, no matter how artificial. I've seen ridiculous office events in which everyone gets divided into teams by drawing numbers or some equally random selection process. Within minutes, co-workers are screaming themselves hoarse, red faces bulging, fists pumping, goading "their side" to defeat the "losers" across the room. In the extreme, things get vicious, fights break out, feelings are hurt. All for what? Because of an arbitrary division and manufactured conflict.

With a policy of exclusion, the world is never small enough. If Myrtle, sitting in the 3rd row of the 1st Baptist Church, was to eliminate all the people who disagreed with her interpration of the Bible, she would eventually whittle down the world population to just her denomination, and eventually just her church. Then, looking around the church, she'd realize that Helen over there is divorced - out with her. And that whole choir pit is just too colorful - out with them. And so on and so on until no one was left but the 3rd row - hers. But Joyce here disagrees with Myrtle on whether Leviticus 19:19, the one about wearing clothing of mixed fibers, applies on Sundays. Outta there. And eventually, it's just Myrtle. Alone in the world.

I prefer a policy of inclusion, in which the world is never large enough. We've heard of the lone hero working against an enemy. Or a small team of misfits uniting against insurmountable odds. Or a whole community coming together in a time of need. Or the South fighting the North. Or Americans uniting against foreigners. Or "western" countries battling Middle Eastern blocs. Since we obviously need an external enemy before we'll set aside our differences and unite, how about an international coalition uniting against global problems? Such as weather change or famine or crushing poverty?

When we redefine our "community", then the Other becomes Our Own. "Them" becomes "Us". With a simple shift in mindset, helping the homeless guy down the street becomes no more repulsive than helping your brother or a childhood friend fallen on bad times. And sponsoring a child in El Salvador or sponsoring one right here at home becomes no more of a stretch than sponsoring your co-worker's kid for a field trip.

Focusing on distinctions requires a conscious choice. If we can slice and dice our own citizenry, then we can unslice it and undice it, all the way out until we embrace humanity itself. Will it take an alien invasion before we unite as a single community?