I agree that rational discussion and open minds regarding different points of views are more likely to result in acceptable compromises. However I don't see this often, instead it's rants and hissy fits as if what the government is doing or what someone is suggesting is the stupidest thing meanwhile pretending that their viewpoint is the intelligent, rational thing to do. Personally, particularly when it comes to this crises, I don't think that the choices people make have anything to do with intelligence, they are value based and often relate to the convenience of the person in question and all have advantages and downsides. The difference is that I think their choices are neither objectively right nor wrong and I find it annoying and arrogant when some pretend their choices are objectively "better".
In any case, mankind is definitely not getting much out of the inane posts of people that have too much time on their hands on an internet forum and before you declare this as a personal insult, I have no problems including myself in this statement.