What Happened to Discussion?

To the Editor: 
It has been five months since our 2016 election happened, three months since the inauguration of our president and vice president, and yet the wounds of a bitter campaign are still fresh in the minds of many. 
Americans on both sides of the aisle continue to mock, harass, and fight amongst each other for their beliefs, especially within the confines of social media. We have seen the nasty and reprehensible language used against one another, friends and family alike. But regardless of where we stand in our beliefs, whether you are a staunch Reagan Republican or a Socialist Bernie Sanders supporter, at the end of the day we are all Americans just trying to get by and who have their own beliefs.
With that being said, there is one question I wonder when politics is discussed. What happened to just talking? What happened to discussion? I heard there was a time, before the use of social media, that people would speak and more importantly listen to ideas. That a man or women wouldn’t be berated for their beliefs but would be given the courtesy of being heard regardless of what was said.
Today, as I’ve come to see, discussion has turned from a “let’s hear each other out” to an “I’m right, you’re wrong, let me tell you why” fiasco. Discussion has devolved from a two or more person experience to a single-style lecture, where opposite opinions are shut down as inferior. In talking politics, this type of “discussion” leads absolutely nowhere. In fact, “discussion” about politics usually cements larger barriers to those of opposite fault. In lack of a better phrase, those who talk politics with others of the opposite party end up “retreating farther down the rabbit whole.”
This is why our world has become so bitter. Our ability to communicate has diminished, even though our abilities of how to communicate have greatly increased with technology. It seems that it is easier now to avoid talking about things than to face opposite views, yet what does this accomplish? In a world of differing opinions, is it wise to only seclude yourself to one viewpoint and thus limit your human potential?
At the end of the day, we are all just Americans. It is time to mend our wounds not by ignoring what caused them, but by speaking to one another as equals. Listen to someone different and experience new things! Don’t lecture, but openly converse. I challenge everyone who reads this, re-friend your “crazy” Facebook friend, talk to your aunt or uncle who supports someone else, and just ask someone why and honestly listen to them. Maybe we can start talking again? Only this time, let’s listen to what we both have to say.