Politics and religion can be at odds, separating the public on so many different issues, yet they have one thing in common: they cause conflict. Every day Americans and are exposed to some form of political or religious opinion.

This isn’t always a bad thing, but it has a potential to be a big problem. Worshippers go wherever they go to find like-minded people with whom they may share a common opinion.

Step outside and they run into millions of others with different ideas. This is where issues arise. People can persecute or hate because of a belief. This could be as simple as heated words exchanged or it can come to blows. It can even cause people to kill one another. This has been happening since religion was formed.

According to the defense department’s website 4,410 American military personnel were killed during Operation Iraqi Freedom, a war tainted in politics and religious issues. America was fighting a political war against religious extremists who wanted to see the United States burn.

Politics are no better. Just recently the United States and Russia were at odds over how to deal with Syria’s chemical weapons and words were exchanged. If this had been 50 years earlier nukes could have been launched and we wouldn’t be here.

The difficulty with politics in the news is that it is so often presented in a biased manner, supposing opinion for fact, that the consumer rarely has an opportunity for form his own ideas. He may become desensitized to what he sees as a result, but the extreme viewpoints presented may also cause conflict.

We all have a right to free speech, but we also have the right to keep our mouths shut. It’s not as hard as it sounds.

It must be understood that others are entitled to their own opinions and that others have a right to not hear that opinion. Often times students are bombarded with political and religious literature and rhetoric on campus, but these students have a right not to hear that they are all going to hell unless they repent for their sins and pray for salvation.

We all have different opinions here on campus. Let’s keep them to ourselves and focus on what we are actually here to do: to learn.