I’ve never been much on politics. It’s not that I don’t care who is in charge of making decisions for our country – I do care. But politics have just never been my cup of tea. As a kid, I didn’t have to think about government, although I did dress like Martin Van Buren for my 5th grade social studies project. I remember going to the voting precinct with my mom a few times and asking, “Ohhh, can I press the screen?” as she was trying to vote. Sometimes, she’d let me. And I remember thinking that I couldn’t wait until I was 18, so that I could vote on my own.
In the last presidential election, I had just turned 17 – too young to vote. Now, I’m finally going to get my chance this November. Except I’m not as excited about it as I should be. Despite not being a political junkie, I have watched the debates, which haven't really helped me decide anything. Personally, I’m not really excited about either candidate.
Also, I've seen the obnoxious statuses that flood social media. Every. Single. Day. Everyone seems to have an opinion, and some of them aren’t very nice. Actually, they’re often upsetting. I’ll see one friend post something about their candidate, only to be attacked by another friend who has different views. Viciously! And these articles that people post claiming "he did this", or "she did that" are mostly all hype, because most do not bother to verify the credibility of the articles before they post them. I guess as a journalism major, I’m easily irritated by people just believing everything they read on the internet. It’s on the internet; it must be true, right? Really people, Donald doesn’t kick puppies and Hillary doesn’t drive a broomstick.
Anyway, I get it. We are all entitled to our own opinions. And we have the luxury of being able to vote for whomever we want (I’m familiar with the Constitution). I’m glad that we live in a democracy where we the people choose our leaders; but this election season feels way too stressful. And I don’t think it’s just because it’s new to me – everyone seems high-strung and edgy. Most people have made up their minds about how they’ll vote in November, and some are really passionate about it. No changing their minds. But I’m actually okay with that…regardless of which side they’re on.
What I’m tired of is why one person with firm beliefs can’t respect another person with firm beliefs, simply because those beliefs are different. The competition seems more ferocious than an old college football rivalry (Iron Bowl, anyone?).
I’ll be glad when it’s all over. I hope that the people I’ve seen fighting and name-calling on social media can come out of this without their friendships being ruined.
The future of our country is important, but neither Donald nor Hillary are worth destroyed personal relationships. So, maybe we should just embrace our differences and try to show a little respect. At the end of the day, we are all still Americans.
