EDITORIAL - The value of still respecting the opinion of others

It has been a dramatic few days since the arrest of former president Rodrigo Duterte and his subsequent transport to The Hague for alleged crimes against humanity, and anyone can see that it is one of the most polarizing events that happened in the Philippines recently.

Almost everyone has taken a side. Almost everyone, even if they aren’t for or against Duterte in particular, has an opinion regarding either extrajudicial killings, his controversial arrest, the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court, or all of the above, if not even more.

The situation in social media is particularly telling. Duterte supporters are all-out in their indignation while those on the other side are practically praising the development. Some posts on both sides are so vitriolic that they seem born out of pure spite, while other posts are so stupid that they don’t make any sense at all.

Harsh, hateful, and even threatening words were exchanged between strangers and even the best of friends or the closest of relatives. As one observer on social media put it, it has become so toxic that he has never unfriended or unfollowed so many friends in one day.

It’s unavoidable even for strangers, the best of friends, or even the closest of relatives to have different or even downright opposing political views. Like they say, no two people have the exact same view when it comes to two things; religion and politics.

But is it really worth harassing someone, ending a friendship, or disowning a relative just because they don’t agree with what you think?

At the end of the day, people must remember that others are looking at the same things they are, but from another point of view, another background, and another set of influencing experiences.

We must learn to still respect the opinion of others.

We must also remember that while political preferences and loyalties are temporary, unless they happen to be the most rabid of supporters, the “lunod-patay some call them, some things are more permanent like friendships and relationships --and also the outbursts and stupid things some have posted on the internet.