When Compromise is Not the Answer

Basic Human Rights Can Never Be Sacrificed

I’m publishing this series of articles to share and discuss my ruminations on coping with a troubled and messy world. You can “follow” me to never miss an article.

As readers of my blogs know, I’m a staunch supporter of Compromise which I view as essential to the functioning of Democracy. Thus, surprisingly, I find myself in strong agreement with New York Times columnist Pamela Paul who when it comes to Same-Sex Marriage is arguing against it[i].

Her argument is basically as follows. Why do Democrats always cave in and seek Compromise when Republicans are always willing to fight for their basic principles? Why are Democrats naïve enough to believe that by postponing a vote on Same-Sex Marriage until after the Mid-Terms, Republicans will be more willing to go along? After all, majority of Americans in both Parties support Same-Sex Marriage so why not stand up and push for it? In other words, if ever there were a clear-cut case, Democrats need to stand up and play Hard-Ball!

I agree. While always desirable and thereby to be sought, Compromise is not always warranted. When it comes to fundamental Human Rights, Compromise is in fact an abomination. It’s to abandon all sense of Human Decency, and thereby to commit a grave Moral Injustice.

Force Republicans to declare where they stand.

[i] Pamela Paul, “Don’t Let Republicans Off the Hook on Same-Sex Marriage,” The New York Times, Thursday, September 22,2022, P A20.

Ian I. Mitroff is credited as being one of the principal founders of the modern field of Crisis Management. He has a BS, MS, and a PhD in Engineering and the Philosophy of Social Systems Science from UC Berkeley. He Is Professor Emeritus from the Marshall School of Business and the Annenberg School of Communication at USC. Currently, he is a Senior Research Affiliate in the Center for Catastrophic Risk Management, UC Berkeley. He is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the American Academy of Management. He has published 41 books. His latest is: The Socially Responsible Organization: Lessons from Covid, Springer, New York, 2022.

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