Opinion: Not Everyone that Disagrees with You is a Stupid Doofus

I don't enjoy discussing controversial subjects and I'm not about to start now. However, there seems to be a growing roar that I feel like I need to address. It's the idea that anyone that disagrees with you must be a stupid doofus.

It's not exactly rocket science to understand the hot topic I'm talking about. But, let's pretend it's coffee. Coffee is much safer to talk about than that other thing. Let's say that I believe the coffee I drink is the only viable coffee and the one you like sucks.

I'll start. Let's say my coffee of choice is Columbian coffee. I have found multiple websites that back up my view that Columbian is the world's favorite coffee. When I share so many sources backing up my claim, surely my view is correct cause my data backs it up, right?

Let's say you're of the viewpoint that Brazilian coffee is superior. You also have multiple sites with data that say you're correct and Brazilian java is the way to go.

But, you say that your coffee preference is supported by your government. What if I don't trust your government? If I'm really free, that should be up to me to decide, right?

In previous eras, it was possible to agree to disagree. You have your viewpoint and your data and I have have mine and let's just be civil and maybe not talk about coffee?

I had a person who will remain nameless tell me a few months ago that they didn't look down upon people that disagreed with them since they weren't as educated as them. That's practically an exact quote, by the way. It sounds innocent, but think about what that's really declaring:

If you disagree with me, you're a stupid doofus. 

How arrogant. Just because someone has a different viewpoint and data than you do, they must be ignorant. That's a terrible way to live your life in my opinion.

For the record, I've supported family members who made completely different "coffee" decisions and know that they did what they did based on what they believed was right.

In regards to that other subject, you say that it's a life and death situation, so it's different. I disagree. It still comes down to people who are trusting different data and different convictions (or maybe no convictions?) and have to find a way to co-exist.

In my less-serious world of coffee, it means that I should just respect the Brazilian coffee fan's viewpoint and embrace my own. I take the same approach to the much more important topics of life. Just because I've come to a different conclusion because I trust different data and convictions should not make me a stupid idiot.

Or, is my whole theory and approach that of a stupid doofus? As with everything in life, it's up to you to decide.

Now, back to my coffee.