If you're registered on Facebook, you've been a victim of the nonstop political posts storming your newsfeed. Personally, photos, articles and way-too-long status updates inflicting very strong political views have been extremely prominent in my Facebook experience as of late. Now I'm sure you're already bored of this, and assuming I'm going to try and convince you that my views are more correct or better than yours, but here's the catch: I can't.

I'm a waitress at a small, family-owned, delicious cafe in my Hometown of Troy, N.Y. My fifth table of the day consisted of two friendly men who both ordered sodas and sandwiches. When delivering their bill and participating in some dry small talk informing him that I'm a college student, he asked me where I attend school. When I mentioned SUNY New Paltz he responded with, "Oh, so you must be very left sided, very liberal." I then found myself in a conversation pertaining to my political beliefs, and listening to his. The problem was that I wanted to disagree, I wanted to make a point, I knew that I did indeed disagree with this man, but I just couldn't argue. When I think about it, honestly, he could have almost convinced me that he was correct if I were less stubborn. In front of me was a man who had held these ideals close to him and has gained knowledge about them for years. I'm only 19, and really only contain the knowledge I've absorbed from my parents and the basic research done myself throughout this election season. I realized that I simply do not know enough to argue for what I believe in, and how frustrating that feeling can be.

When it comes to politics, most people that voice their opinions loudly just want to be viewed as correct. They want you to believe they're right and know everything there is to know on whatever issue it may be. This is understandable, seeing as the policies discussed directly affect our country's people. After a long conversation with my dad in the car on the subject, I realized: it is OK to not know. Not in the sense that it is OK to be dumb, but in the sense that it's acceptable to simply admit your lack of knowledge regarding a subject. We're so afraid of the statement, "I don't know." My realization is that it's that feeling of not knowing -- of disagreeing but not being able to back up why you disagree with any knowledge -- that pushes us to want to learn. Feeling dumb is something few can enjoy or settle with, so it drives us to research and create firm platforms in which we can form our beliefs and opinions. After my conversation with the man at the cafe, I came home wanting to research. I asked my dad questions, and began researching online for different opinions on a few of the problems that face us today. While learning, I've noticed it's also extremely important to keep an open mind. There are over seven billion people in the world, all with different ideas, problems and stories. All of these people with things to say, and all of it has worth in expanding your knowledge as a human being. This realization amazed me and so, out of the frustration of not knowing, I learned and am still not done.

So, relating back to the Facebook thing, which is oh so popular as of right now, when you come across a rant or an argument, keep an open mind. If there are things you're seeing and disagree with but can't knowledgeably explain why, go learn about it. The internet is home to many of these debates between people who may or may not actually know what they're talking about. Before joining in on these rants, embrace that feeling of not having enough knowledge and use that feeling as drive to go and learn. As of now, I would go back and thank the old man I encountered at work for initiating the domino affect that lead me to this realization, because now, I see the phrase, "I don't know" in a promising light.