I quit political parties and so should you
Posted: Wed May 05, 2021 2:11 pm
[Cross posted from my Facebook page, but I know I'll get better conversation here]
While both parties want to be known for “integrity” and “compassion,” I see both failing to show either. As an example, Republicans are moving to greatly restrict voting, predominantly against people of color, while justifying it with a lie of “integrity” and “voter fraud”—even though there was no wide-spread fraud in the last election. As another example, Democrats want to be the “big tent” to include everyone and fight for all our rights, while the most liberal place in Texas—Austin—has decided to criminalize homelessness and offer no solutions for the unhoused other than to live in jail. Both parties are using gun control as a fake issue to irrationally scare their voters into thinking their lives are in constant danger. Gun control is only an issue because both democrats and republicans can use it to “rile up” their base and divide our country further.
What neither party is focused on is showing compassion and understanding for our fellow human beings. People from both sides of the political spectrum will agree to a lot of our overlapping goals—improving living conditions, ensuring security from both domestic and foreign threats, and not having basic rights unreasonably infringed upon. We should be able to discuss and define what those goals are. We should be able to discuss and disagree on what methods and measures are necessary to reach those goals. We should be able to be civil with each other about how to approach these problems as well as others.
But we cannot be civil anymore because these parties have pitted us against each other. If you do not agree with Trump that the last election was stolen (it was not) then you are a traitor to the republicans and you are nothing but a socialist communist. If you do not agree that everyone must wear a mask and social distance at all times, even if they’re fully vaccinated and not able to catch or transmit the Covid virus (which is unnecessary and alarmist) then you’re an anti-science Trumpist that has no place in the democratic party.
When we stop speaking to each other and instead just hurl insults over “bright line” issues, we are doing exactly what the two parties want—letting them tell us what to think and not actually thinking for ourselves. These are not easy issues. And there are no easy answers. But politicians are not interested in finding the answers to those problems- they are only interested in keeping us fighting each other to justify why they must be re-elected. It is a con and we are all falling for it.
Stop participating in this fraud. Stop donating money to these panderers that are only motivated by their own self-interest and quest for personal power. Let’s focus instead on having discussions, discovering common ground and reasonable compromises to tackle real problems we’re faced with in this country. Think for yourself. Most importantly, show the respect and decency to everyone else to which you believe you are entitled.
While both parties want to be known for “integrity” and “compassion,” I see both failing to show either. As an example, Republicans are moving to greatly restrict voting, predominantly against people of color, while justifying it with a lie of “integrity” and “voter fraud”—even though there was no wide-spread fraud in the last election. As another example, Democrats want to be the “big tent” to include everyone and fight for all our rights, while the most liberal place in Texas—Austin—has decided to criminalize homelessness and offer no solutions for the unhoused other than to live in jail. Both parties are using gun control as a fake issue to irrationally scare their voters into thinking their lives are in constant danger. Gun control is only an issue because both democrats and republicans can use it to “rile up” their base and divide our country further.
What neither party is focused on is showing compassion and understanding for our fellow human beings. People from both sides of the political spectrum will agree to a lot of our overlapping goals—improving living conditions, ensuring security from both domestic and foreign threats, and not having basic rights unreasonably infringed upon. We should be able to discuss and define what those goals are. We should be able to discuss and disagree on what methods and measures are necessary to reach those goals. We should be able to be civil with each other about how to approach these problems as well as others.
But we cannot be civil anymore because these parties have pitted us against each other. If you do not agree with Trump that the last election was stolen (it was not) then you are a traitor to the republicans and you are nothing but a socialist communist. If you do not agree that everyone must wear a mask and social distance at all times, even if they’re fully vaccinated and not able to catch or transmit the Covid virus (which is unnecessary and alarmist) then you’re an anti-science Trumpist that has no place in the democratic party.
When we stop speaking to each other and instead just hurl insults over “bright line” issues, we are doing exactly what the two parties want—letting them tell us what to think and not actually thinking for ourselves. These are not easy issues. And there are no easy answers. But politicians are not interested in finding the answers to those problems- they are only interested in keeping us fighting each other to justify why they must be re-elected. It is a con and we are all falling for it.
Stop participating in this fraud. Stop donating money to these panderers that are only motivated by their own self-interest and quest for personal power. Let’s focus instead on having discussions, discovering common ground and reasonable compromises to tackle real problems we’re faced with in this country. Think for yourself. Most importantly, show the respect and decency to everyone else to which you believe you are entitled.