The 2016 election has been a historical one, to say the least. This election was special to me because it was the first presidential election that I and many of my generation had the privilege to vote in. I am proud to say that I did cast a vote in this election and exercised my right as an American to do so. However, unlike many of my friends, family and acquaintances, I do not post my political views on social media. It's a personal choice that I stand by and I do not think that I will ever post my views on social media. Don't get me wrong, I am not bashing those who do post their opinions on social media, I am simply saying that I personally do not see the draw in posting things like this on social media. I do not believe that's what it was meant to do.
The main reason that I do not post what I think in regards to politics and the recent election is because I don't think that anyone really cares about my opinion. There have been many studies done on sharing political opinions on social media and very rarely did they have an effect on how the individual looked at the candidate. There are so many reporters and news agencies that can twist things that both candidates have said and turn it into something that did not start out the way they are portraying it. If I want to know where my candidate stands, I go directly to the source: their website. It gives me all of the information I need to know where they stand on certain issues and if I see something that a writer claims that they did, I look more in depth. You cannot take things at simply face value, you need to do your own research to develop an educated opinion on politics. Social media has never changed my decision on who I voted for this election year.
Also, I know what I think, and I know what my friends and family members think. Sometimes, these opinions are starkly opposite. Depending on the people, this can lead to large disagreements and extreme animosity towards one another, no matter how close you may be. I cannot tell you how many relationships I watched fall apart on the screen of a computer and all I could do was watch. Why would you want to drive the wedge between you and someone you love or have a relationship with, whatever it may be? Since when have we as the American people put politics over our own personal lives? I cannot bear the thought of losing touch with someone over something as trivial as a Facebook post that went wrong and I don't understand how others can either. I cannot stress enough that people are more than their political opinions, so why make a judgement on this one factor?
I respect each and every person who is willing to share their opinion, and if that is different than mine, so be it. What I do not respect is the people who cannot agree to disagree or speak about the difference of opinion in a calm manner. Politics is not worth losing your family and friends over, so why greaten the chance?
