Once again, I find myself living on an imaginary line. In ND, I lived close to the 100th meridian, the infamous, imaginary line that designates the change from being in the eastern to being in the western half of the US. Now, I am practically living on the Idaho/Washington border, on the Idaho side. All that separates me from WA is the Spokane River and the Cabela’s parking lot, geographically speaking.

The two states are dramatically different, culturally, and the divide is far deeper than the Spokane River. Here are some facts:

Idaho

Idaho is one of the most conservative states in the country. Furthermore, the panhandle, where I live now, is home to Ruby Ridge. Remember that 1992 incident? Aryan Nation (founded by Richard Butler) member Randy Weaver and the federal government staged a showdown and shootout that left a dog and three people dead, including a state trooper. The showdown began because of the white supremacists arms caches within their large compound.  A small group near here is trying to revive the movement, but resistance from residents in nearby small towns is causing problems for them. Some locals say that the state’s neo-Nazi image lingers

Ruby Ridge is not the only stain in recent Idaho history.  Members of a county Republican Party in Idaho tried to pass a measure that would declare the state “Christian.” The purpose was to give focus to the “Judeo-Christian bedrock of the founding of the United States.” The measure argued that the Christian faith is under “strident attack” in the United States, and cites as evidence the absence of Christian traditions and symbols in public institutions such as schools. Backers stated, “We’re a Christian community in a Christian state and the Republican Party is a Christian Party.”

Ah…separation of church and state? Anyone up here heard of that????

Washington

The Idaho/Washington border is about 40 miles from Ruby Ridge and 15 miles from Hayden, ID, where Butler lived and eventually died. Washington, according to a recent Gallup Poll is one of the most liberal states. We didn’t need that information to make the same assessment. After all, Washington is one of two states that legalized marijuana.

Kids are dying from malnutrition all over the world and we are drinking coffee with flowers created in the milk foam.

More precisely, it is Western Washington that is uber liberal. Seattle, for example,  is known for its thriving tech industry, vibrant music scene, and celebrated coffeehouses. Roughly two-thirds of Washington state residents live on the wealthier, urban west side of the state, which is home to Microsoft, Amazon, and the state’s largest public research university. With the exception of Spokane, the 10 largest cities in the state are all located in western Washington. Its residents have voted for the Democratic nominee in every presidential election since 1988.  Washington elected a Democratic governor again, as it has for most of the last 30 years.

What about Eastern Washington? When Republican state senator Bob Morton was elected in 1991, he had one goal: divide the state in two, and he sponsored a bill to that effect. The problem Morton referred to is the stark divide between conservative east Washington and the liberal west. The east side is rural, and its major industries are  farming and lumber.

So here I sit, on the banks of the Spokane River, on the imaginary border between over-caffeinated high-tech, pot smoking liberals, and scripture-twisting ultra-conservatives who still mourn Ruby Ridge. I could throw a match to the pot-smokers from this side. From the other bank of the Spokane, I could toss a few bullets to the Aryan folks. However, I don’t care much for either extreme. They are icons of the polarization in our country. Us vs. them. Set up more borders, more divides. Hold fast to the belief that you have the only opinion that matters in the grand scheme of life and liberty.

In this kind of divide, I like sitting on the line and not choosing either side. I believe in all things we can also choose a “middle way”. In this case, my middle way is to just climb down to the Spokane River and go fishing. Spend some time outdoors, maybe have a picnic. I might even invite people on both sides of the border. Imagine if we all got together on a beautiful day on the river, in nature, where differences can disappear, at least for a few hours. Maybe the beautiful setting would help us realize that the differences are nothing compared to the matter of a roasting planet that is home to eveyone.