I hate election/voting/referendum season.
You’re probably thinking I’m one of those people who hates politics, hates discussions and hates conflict. None of those things could be further from the truth. In college I was very involved in Student Government, I’m at my happiest hanging out with people discussing issues/ideas/theories and I’ve been known to get in my share of heated debates/conflicts/bar fights.
I hate the political season because it brings out the worst in people. No longer do people engage in logical discussions of fact and theory. Instead they get upset and angry and throw bits of mud and sticks and stones and by the end of it I have no desire to be involved in ANY sort of politics. They fight dirty and ignorant and stupid.
I’m seeing this especially in my state (Maine) as we get ready to vote in a referendum regarding gay marriage. A law was passed (after it has been voted down twice by public vote) making Maine more progressive in terms of gay rights than San Francisco. Yes, gay marriage was legalized here. Before the ink had even dried on the new law it’s opponents had referendum paperwork flooding the State House.
Thus began the attacks and “truth benders” and various other depravities in the human spirit.
Here are some truths for everyone out there –
- When you refuse to comment on your stance as people ask you questions about it, it only shows that your stance has a lot of fluff and not very much substance. (By the by, a comment saying “The bottom line is, we see the pending law as a bad bill. Our contention is that if the legal definition of marriage is changed, there will be consequences” is not a comment of substance!)
- When you start to argue about a piece of information, know what you are talking about (I engaged in an all-together useless back and forth with a local newscaster that still baffles my mind, regarding a public school system entirely removed from the situation!)
- If you are going to use people in your campaign, make sure they are actually associated with your stance (or, in fact, you know their actual names.)
I’ve got to say I wish this post was not so one-sided. I wish that the Yes on 1 (cause the referendum is craftily worded as one of those “No is Yes and Yes is No” conundrums) had more substance and press-bytes and legitimate discussions and debate points. And it isn’t because I agree with their stance (oooh, it all comes out now!)
It is because the whole situation just perpetrates the ignorance of our society. Arguments based in emotion and pure opinion have no place in decision making – whether it is government, the board room or the family den. And I want to see this issue once and for all be discussed in the manner it deserves to be discussed in. We are talking about the rights of two people in love to publicly commit to each other in the same pure and “needs to be protected” way that such marriage rock-stars as Britney Spears and Warren Beatty have done before. This is NOT an issue that should be taken lightly.
No on 1 folks, I know this argument leaves you sitting pretty on a high and lofty seat knowing that YOU would never campaign like this. And while your campaign has involved more logic and fact and substance, I would like to point out that your supporters are becoming banana slugs. Yes, closed-mindedness goes both ways. And when you attack people for what they believe and try to turn it to thus be about their character and “stupid” ideas, well then you are no better than they are. While you don’t agree with what they say, they are JUST as free to say it as you are, too. And when you fight as dirty as your opponent no one wants to listen to your message any more.
Let’s try to make it through this political season by making it about the ISSUES and their merits and detriments. This is for ALL the votes, including health care reform which includes a commercial from which I literally wrote down the phrase “These insurance companies can’t be trusted – they profit by denying people care” from. (By the by, I work for an insurance company and I’m undecided. Way to sway my vote, see what happens when you make emotional statements?)
What do you say?
Photo Credit: Getty Images:Sam Bloomberg-Rissman
We have to accept the fact that most people are bigots. Ignorance has slowly been the norm in our modern times and people prefer affiliation over logic. How can we argue with this? 🙂
True, but I have to wonder how much ignorance and bigotry could be avoided if we took a stand and said that it wouldn’t be tolerated more FROM EITHER SIDE. The unfortunate thing with both is that they are ugly, and thus they bring out ugliness in others.
It’s far too idyllic for any realistic world, but how fantastic would life be if such things were not the norm or didn’t even exist?
Love this post. I agree. I hear people arguing about topics they have no knowledge on. When Im unfamiliar with a topic, I just listen or research from some information then I come to my personal conclusion. Politics, unfortunately, is on mayor “taboo” topic for some.
“Instead they get upset and angry and throw bits of mud and sticks and stones and by the end of it I have no desire to be involved in ANY sort of politics.” I wonder if this is going to get worse in the future or will there be anyway for us to make it better? Guess I’ll just have to sit and find out…
I think politics, like many other taboo topics, can become taboo because it is tainted with judgment and personal opinion rather than looking at the facts and logistics of the situation. Choosing sides does nothing to promote ANY topic, whether taboo or political.
I too wonder what the future holds. I hope for better, yet given the current denigrating of our society, I fear for worse.