As it stands, the United States is stuck at an awkward middle school dance; the Democrats are at the left side of the gym while the Republicans are at the right. Both sides know that the only way to cut the tension is to walk over and dance, but egos larger than the national deficit have put everything on hold.

Opinions are great. They are the crux of American democracy, the idea that we can articulate our thoughts and ideas and that they will be heard with equal consideration. However, what happens when you factor the objectivity and consideration out of the equation? A mess called hyperpartisanship occurs.

Right now, people in America look at politics through an absolutist and hostile lens. The battle has shifted from issues such as how to heal the ailing economy or address our military occupation abroad to Republicans and Democrats duking it out for party prominence, and nothing more.

If the United States is going to pick itself up out of its slump, it has got to start in the way that politicians portray the policies and players in our government. When Republicans constantly dub Obamacare and any economic measure that comes from the left as socialism, it negatively sensationalizes liberal proposals. Similarly, Democratic labeling of the right as elitists bent on preserving the current inequity of wealth among classes misconstrues any message the party tries to communicate.

We are stuck in a stalemate, a tug-of-war where each party refuses to concede an inch of ground. People need to slap the elephant and the donkey in the face, forcing them to turn around and meet in the middle. Compromise is tough, sure, and we all know that giving up some of the glory to the other party is essentially treason, but that is the remedy that America so desperately requires.

Perhaps the part that is most alarming is how effectively hyperpartisanship has become ingrained in younger Americans’ minds. The way conservative teenagers are calling Obama and other Democrats communists eerily resonates of Joe McCarthy’s gross generalizations during the Red Scare. Young liberals throw around the phrase ‘conservative intolerance’ reminiscent of the way Nixon coined “I am not a crook” as a defense. The fact of the matter is that both sides are wrong.

It is imperative that each generation be full of freethinking, impartial individuals. As media outlets and news sources modernize and continue to spit out the hyperpartisan sentiment everywhere, younger Americans all over are exposed to the wrong types of arguments. They need to hear the voice of reason and debate, not party bashing and radical standoffs.

The responsibility of a political ideology overhaul should rest on shoulders from every level of our democracy. From high-ranking politicians to the 18-year-old voters, people need to take their part in cutting out the polarization, and heading back cooperation.

However, if politicians continue to tread down the path they have brought to prominence, it will rest on the people, especially the youth, to end the standoff and get everyone on the same page.

The United States is stuck at an awkward middle school dance; the Republicans are at the right side of the gym while the Democrats are at the left. Both sides need to pluck up the courage to walk on over and ask the other party to dance. It may be painful at first, but it will be a whole lot better in the long run. #