I’d like to address the angry criticism of Democrats in Congress for not standing to applaud and honor well-deserving folks during the SOTUA.

As someone who freezes when stressed and uncertain, I thought, “I get it—that would be me.” Because I would have felt goaded—it was political theater, after all. Some of the Either-Or questions our politicians ask are slanted, which also happened in the speech. For instance, “Do you support removing illegal immigrants—yes or no?” Do you see the problem here? I do not support removal as it is currently being done. However saying “no” casts me as unpatriotic, perhaps a lawbreaker. In logic, this is known as the Either-Or Fallacy. It’s an error in reasoning because it offers a false dilemma and is manipulative. This is what happened at the SOTUA.

While this may explain why people did not stand, there is actually a perspective and choice that could have elevated the situation. When teaching middle schoolers on handling bullies, one strategy is to agree with them. “Yeah, you’re right—my hair is totally ugly today, haha!” This de-escalates the tension and diminishes the power of the taunt.

In the case of the invitations to stand and applaud the honorees, we could just stand, look directly at THEM, and applaud. Make it 100% about them. This could have shifted the conversation and attention away from any intentions from the President to provoke his political opponents. In other words, ignore and rise above that game.

The question asked at the SOTUA, “Do you agree that the primary duty of government is to protect American citizens, not illegal aliens?” contains a false dilemma AND a squishy presupposition by assuming a “primary duty” of government. Is it to protect? Not for me. I believe the primary duty of government is to provide services and infrastructure, which includes protection.

So would I stand for that one? Nope. And I would be judged incorrectly.

If you don’t like how your representative responded, ask them. Let’s not assume that they are unpatriotic, evil, or wrong, as I have seen in social media. Let’s talk to each other instead of leveling accusations. There is way more power in curiosity than denigration.