A Political Divergence

Lloenflys

"Certainty is an illusion ..."
Honoured Citizen
Citizen
The following is a piece that I posted on Facebook this morning in exasperation at the nature of the political battles between Bernie and Biden supporters that I've been seeing since Super Tuesday. In reality, it be applied more generally, and I wanted to share it here. This is a departure from the usual content of Lloenflys's Gavel, but I think a worthwhile one. This is quite long, so thanks in advance if you take the time to read it. I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts, if you have any!

*** Original Post ***

As I have sat here watching people who I love and respect tear one another apart over which politician is best suited to nominally lead the good ship America over the next 4 years, I've wondered what, if anything, I could add to the conversation that was of any use. I could advocate for my chosen candidate (and with a limited number of you who have sought out such conversations I have done so via more personal means of communication), but from the comments I've seen on such posts from others, this is neither welcome nor effective. I could offer prognostications, but what is the point of that other than seeking some sort of weird "glory" if I "get it right?" Such things are better suited for a personal journal or for late night conversations with friends over a scotch.

There is, however, one thing I can perhaps offer that might, be of some general use - not just in this discussion but in many discussions. Far be it from me to think that I'll change anyone's mind, but if you happen to somehow read this and find that you are engaging in one or more of the behaviors I mention below, at least understand why many of those around you - including me - aren't taking you especially seriously. First, the short version. If you want more context, keep reading:

(1) You don't know the future.
(2) Your political opponents are probably not Hitler.
(3) Life is complicated, and people who come to different conclusions than you can't be dismissed casually as fools.

And now, the long versions, should you care for some more in -depth reading:

(1) Sorry Nostradamus, you don't know the future. Most of us who are politically attuned can do a combination of poll reading and basic analysis about the composition of the electorate to come to a conclusion about which candidate in any given race is more electable. We all think we're right, and this is a perfectly appropriate thing to discuss. But when you're argument is that YOUR CANDIDATE IS THE ONLY ONE WHO CAN WIN PERIOD AND IF YOU THINK I'M WRONG YOU'RE AN IDIOT ... well, frankly you look ridiculous. There are no sure things in the world, and picking winners is more complicated than such certainty recognizes. Not to mention the election is 8 months away - Eight months! - and as we just saw races can change dramatically in much, much less time without even having major events occur. So no, you don't know your preferred candidate is going to win. Have some humility and recognize you could be wrong and the other side could be right.

(2) Your political opponents are probably not Hitler. I don't care who started this trend, but it's exhausting. Bernie Sanders doesn't want to turn the United States into Soviet West, and Joe Biden isn't a racist serial predator. I'm not going to say politicians are blameless - there are bad ones, and there are good ones, and I'll grant more are at least leaning bad than are leaning good. Nonetheless, most of them are not quite as cynical as we make them out to be. Pro-life politicians for the most part aren't out to control women - they're out to save what they see as human life. Pro-choice politicians aren't out to kill babies indiscriminately - they're out to ensure that women have bodily autonomy and safe, secure access to appropriate medical care. Further, when politicians take votes on legislation they are engaging in a trade off exercise - there is rarely going to be a perfect bill, and oftentimes to get something that can pass both chambers and be signed by the President, it is necessary to *gasp* compromise. Making a decision to accept incremental progress instead of pushing for an entire win may the the only way to make any progress at all. These votes can then be twisted to make someone look like something they are not - in Bernie's case, for instance, his vote on the exempting gun manufacturers from lawsuits. In Biden's case, for instance, look to the 1994 Crime Bill. That bill - which was massive - had a lot of effects, some of which were foreseen and intentional, others of which were not. Picking and choosing portions of the bill that 25 years later don't look very good misses the point that there were positive elements (violence against women and assault weapons ban provisiosn, for instance) as well.

(3) Remember that comment about having some humility and recognizing you could be wrong about the future? That applies equally to recognizing that you don't have all the necessary information to analyze someone else's decision-making. You have only your own personal perspective in this world. As much as you can try to empathize and understand what someone else's life is like, the bottom line is you can't. When I see posts about how "low information voters" just settled on Biden because it's the only name they recognized, or about how younger people support Bernie only because they don't have the life experience to know any better, I cringe. In one fell swoop, such generalizations have denied the humanity of the individuals who have made complicated decision that you happen to disagree with. If you're a member of the "woke left" there is something particularly ironic about denying the agency of African American voters throughout the south who supported Biden over Bernie by arguing that they just don't realize how racist Joe Biden is. Perhaps taking a step back and recognizing that people are capable of making their own choices, and that you are unable to make that choice for others appropriately, would be a good idea. If you're 60 and find yourself scoffing at all the "Kids" who are supporting Bernie for "Free stuff," and how you didn't have any problem paying off your college loans, maybe you should recognize that the cost of a college education has gone from roughly $1000/year in the early 1960's to about $22500/year now - more than double the inflation rate. And yet, this is sold to workers as a requirement. "Can't get a job without a college degree!" is a pretty constant refrain in high schools. "Don't want to get stuck working a retail job somewhere!". In other words, people have reasons for making the decisions they are making, and when you suggest that they are idiots for not seeing how perfect your candidate is, you are denying them their agency to make the decision that is appropriate for them. By all means, advocate for your choice - that 100% SHOULD be something you do - but it's frankly tremendously presumptive to think that you can better choose the best candidate for someone else or to dismiss their choice as simply being ill-informed.

So there it is. This is all I have to offer. Don't take yourself so seriously. Be humble. Recognize you aren't as brilliant or knowledgeable as you think you are. Perhaps if people followed these rules, we wouldn't all dread coming on Facebook and seeing all of the political stuff.
 
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