It is no secret that this year’s presidential race is intense. The 2016 presidential nominees are loud, take up all available media formats, and are extreme representatives of their political parties. It is the first time in a long time when an individual’s values and the person is defined by who they are voting for. This is the first year that I can legally vote for president, and so, the first year that I am truly taking note of American politics in action. As a voting-aged citizen, I am a liberal. I know what my values are and will readily vote for the individual who stands for my beliefs. I am just like any other voter. With this in mind, I can see how easy it is to make assumptions about a person just from their political views.
I have made my own assumptions about other people and their views. In politics, the worst comes out of people, especially during this election. It is assumed that Clinton supporters are political, liberal cronies that simply accept corruption. While Trump supporters are seen as angry bigots who look to release madness. Both of America’s major options are corrupt, but the people voting for Clinton and Trump not necessarily are. Surprisingly, even the most corrupt and bigoted politicians are supported by people who are both educated and have the ability to rationally think. There is danger in this. There is danger in the fact that people can rationalize an obviously demented choice.
This is an opinion piece, but the opinion I will write about will not be about who I will or will not be voting for. I am more interested in why people vote for certain people. I thought about this for a while and concluded that every vote and political view is rooted in fear. American citizens are consistently afraid. And though it seems like our country is divided in half by a big red-versus-blue line, our fears are all the same. The entire country is afraid of the same basic things. We fear for the economy, the safety of our citizens, and the rights and representation of our beliefs. We look to our elected officials to soften these fears and fix the problems created by them. Liberals and conservatives are much more alike once you look past the surface. Their supporters have the same fears, what makes them different is the way these political fears are visualized and discussed. We all have the same fears, but what makes us either a liberal or conservative lies in how we want our problems dealt with. When it comes time to vote, citizens vote for those who not only present their beliefs but those who also promise an acceptable solution to society’s problems.
Looking at the differences between one politician’s and another politician’s agenda, you can see that there is the common theme of fearful blaming. When there is fear, it is only natural for there to be a hypothetic blame. In the 2016 election, blame has been thrown onto to many groups of people, most of them innocent of what some people claim to them. Scapegoats are usually made from individuals who are already seen as a threat by a represented group. Political solutions involve blame, scapegoats, and promises.
No matter how unethical, delusional, and nonsensical the promise sounds, followers will rationalize it as long as their fears are eased and their beliefs are made a priority. But, as seen in countless examples through history, when blame is placed wrongly, fear can manifest into unintended consequences. It can hurt individual people and society as a whole. Much of the time, people in politics do not think about who gets hurt in this process. They play off of people’s fears in order to buy power. It does not matter who gets hurt along the way.
Politics are difficult to think about, especially when you try to understand an opposite opinion. I am one of those people who has a firm belief in their opinion. Certain beliefs are unshakable, but I am also able to explore the viewpoints of others. Although I could never rationalize the opinions from the rightwing, conservative perspective, I can understand where those views come from. My views and their radically different views all come from the same place; we are all ruled by fear. We have the same fears, the only thing that divides our nation is how those fears are dealt with. Where I believe that our problems should be solved with education, kindness, and innovation, there is someone else in the country who believes that the same problem can be solved with a cold, brick wall. I am not going to argue over who is right or wrong, but I will say that fear makes people believe in radical, nonsensical things that root from years of anger and prejudice. 2016’s presidential election is dangerous.
Voters need to learn how to not only recognize their fears and prejudices but to also recognize where those fears and prejudices come from. If we refuse to explore them, we risk leading our country down a dangerous, dark path. It is late in the election season and most already know who they are voting for in November. Most are also aware of how corrupt our options are. Clinton represents everything that is wrong with the political system while Trump represents everything that is wrong with American society. Each has visible flaws, but it is important to vote for the person who lifts our country up without tearing our country apart. We need a leader who will represent all people so that no one has to live in fear.
