Politics /ˈpɒlɪtɪks/ as defined by the online Oxford English Dictionary is as follows:
The activities associated with the governance of a country or area, especially the debate between parties having power.
I’d like to focus on the word debate in particular.
If you ask the average person, they’ll agree: debating is not a fun activity because it breeds conflict. Conflict is uncomfortable, exhausting and often doesn’t resolve anything. Plus, nobody likes the moment where they realize they were wrong the entire time. Whether it be by making an error in their proclamation, or fear of your thoughts not being coherent enough to provide a logical explanation in support of your belief. Being proven wrong is embarrassing, so nobody likes to place themselves in situations that will increase the likelihood of it.
This innate hatred of being proved wrong is the prime motivator to avoid conflict. Conflict is the root of politics. Therefore, people hate politics.
But guess what? That’s just too bad.
You hate being wrong? Too bad.
You hate conflict? Too bad.
You hate politics?
Too.
Freaking.
Bad.
Learn to like it.
Because if you don’t talk about politics, and be an active participant in it, then you are nothing more than an individual standing in the way of progress. Nothing more than a non-functional member of society. Nothing more than a free-rider who is ignorant and unaware of their surroundings.
Get your head out of the clouds and realize that we need to be political agents. Don’t complain about kids not going out and voting if you’re not teaching them about why they need to vote.
18-year-olds don’t vote because they don’t understand why they need to. We have this assumption that other people are just going to do it for us, and this is a problem. We figure: “Hey, I don’t need to participate. The general public obviously thinks the same way I do. My vote won’t mean anything so why should I waste my time?”
This toxic manner of thought is what is keeping our society from progression. And it is something that can be easily fixed if we normalize the discomfort political conflict brings us.
The more you immerse yourself into it, the more you understand. The more you understand, the more it peaks your interest and the more likely you will realize the importance behind political debates.
When I was in high school, I was privileged enough to not need to care about politics. I had the same manner of thinking as most kids. But it wasn’t until I came to college, that I became politically minded. After that, I finally understood how ridiculous it was that my family didn’t talk about the state of our nation at the dinner table. I finally understood what the actual problem in our society is.
The notion that “we shouldn’t talk about politics because we don’t need a screaming match at the dinner table.” And yes, we don’t need a screaming match at the dinner table.
But we do need to learn to communicate our beliefs in a healthy debate. We do need to teach the next generation to be respectful of other’s beliefs, and that you can’t change everyone’s opinion. It is OK to not reach a conclusion within a debate.
If we don’t we are simply enforcing a false pretense that a vote doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of like. But in actuality, it’s your lack of a vote that matters more. Because when you do not vote, you are preventing the progression we as a society need. The progression for POC, LGBTQ, and other minority participants that have been calling for action for decades. Not voting is a disservice to them and this country. The voting rights people fought so hard to give you.
You need to be an agent of progression in our a completely and utterly broken society. Lack of understanding politics and being involved is a key factor that allowed us to get to this state in the first place.
So, if you don’t like politics. I’m so, so, sorry about your discomfort. But I need you to get over that so you can be a functional member of society.