Before you get unnecessarily agitated, rest assured, this article is not an attempt to bash any political party. Whether Republican, Democrat, Independent or otherwise, I hope we can all agree on one thing: rampant partisanship is doing nobody any good.

After the tumultuous 2016 election and all of the events and revelations that followed, we have become more and more divided. And I'm not saying that there is anything wrong with fighting for and supporting a certain set of values. If you believe in "liberal values," of course you have a right to defend them.

But to defend your views blindly, to the point at which you are not willing to hear anything from the other side, is when a healthy difference of opinion morphs into unneeded, rampant partisanship.

Our government should not run on blind loyalty to a political party or finding ways to avoid compromise in favor of a particular set of ideals. The Constitution was not written so that one political party can constantly have their way regardless of all else. It was written to protect and defend both the majority and minority opinion. No matter which political party holds the majority in either chamber of Congress, be it the Democrats or Republicans, the minority should be included in the political process.

If the political process is rushed to avoid discussion with the other side, then we compromise the integrity of the lawmaking process. If both sides contribute their ideas, their beliefs, their recommendations, then the result is a bill that has been crafted with care and concern for the American people. You know, the people they've been elected to represent.

It pains me that in order to advance a certain set of values with minimal risk of compromise and conversation, we've lost our ability to come together.

Don't get me wrong. To be able to identify with the platform of a particular party, to find a group of people who agree with and share your values, is incredible. But remember: one should stray from blind loyalty. To hear the other side, no matter how apart you stand on the political spectrum, is not something that should be abhorrent. Without it, the political process would not function efficiently and would not be able to able to protect the rights of the majority and minority.