Know Why You Disagree

When I was a kid, it was fashionable to wear those Che Guevara T-shirts. Some rock star did it so it must be cool, right? At some point, I got curious about who Che was so I got a book about him and read up on it. At first, I was interested to learn about the social and guerrilla tactics that he employed in his successful revolution in Cuba, but then I began to learn more and more about his ideology and political beliefs. That's when I learned who Che was.

Years later, while I was stationed in Germany with the US Army, I visited Checkpoint Charlie which was a flash point between the forces of Communism and Capitalism during the Cold War. There, on what was once the Eastern side of the border, was a small shop selling Communist paraphernalia and prominently featured the famous Che T-Shirts of my childhood. Naturally, I bought one, however not for the reason that many of my contemporaries did.

My oldest son is starting to get to the age where he's asking the sorts of questions that kids ask when they're starting to try to figure out who they are and what they think and believe. Some of the assumptions that they've made in life are starting to be reexamined and reevaluated. He's also starting to hold or voice opinions that are different than my own.

As much as I want him to see the world the way I do, I know that I can't make him do that. If I were to try to force or compel him to hold my opinions, then I'm sure he'd end up rejecting them as a matter of course. Instead, the route I'm taking is to encourage him to form his own opinions and ideas about the world and to view me and my input as one more source of information that he can draw on to help shape those ideas.

There's one requirement that I hold him to. I require that he be informed about his opinions and that he be able to intelligently defend his position. Should my son decide that Che was a good guy and that the Communist cause is a good and just and should be advanced in the world, I'd love to have a discussion where I hear why he thinks that. If the reason my son thinks Che is a cool guy is because some famous rock star wore a T-shirt with Che's face on it, then I'll continue to challenge that opinion as uninformed. If, however, there's a well-reasoned and well-defended argument for the merits of Che and Communism, I'd like to hear it. Maybe I've overlooked something and in discussing it I'll be able to form a more correct and solid opinion for myself, all thanks to my son's own inquiry.

​Hey, I might be wrong.