When the battle of often misdirected political correctness, meets fearmongering, the results aren't pretty. One side incites racial and political unrest, and the other points at crime and says we need more guns to protect ourselves. The division keeps on widening.
People aren't interested in creative solutions to fix problems. They are interested in being right. They don't want to discuss issues and compromise; they want it their way. They don't want others to succeed, they want to prevent the opposition from gaining power. Society has spoken, and politics has answered. And now, we're stuck, and nobody wants to see the middle ground.
United States politics is interesting in so many ways. It's also quite dysfunctional. Being I'm a political moderate, people often become upset with me. I've come to the conclusion that oftentimes they do not know how else to react. Even if I dislike the same party that they dislike, the fact that I don't like the party that they do like, makes me the enemy. Yes, in the United States, most people consider someone who likes the opposite party that they do, to be the enemy. In my case, it's not that I like the opposite party, it's that I don't like the same party as the other person, or I don't like it as much as they do. They don't really know what to do with me, so they throw me in with the opposition. That means if they are debating (or more likely arguing), they keep accusing me of liking the opposite party, and even reinforce it by using that party's ideas, and falsely accusing me of believing in them. This is complete and total indoctrination to the American political system of late. You are required to choose one party or the other. Once you do, you vehemently detest the other side, and anyone affiliated with it. For me not to have chosen one side or the other, nearly always makes me the enemy because I don't like the same party as the individual I'm talking to.
For example, I was recently debating politics with a friend who is a Democrat. He kept on pointing out bad things about the Republicans and attributing that to my beliefs. Then I would agree with him on that issue (against the Republicans), but I couldn't agree with the Democrats' position either. But his argument was hinged on what the Republicans were doing wrong. What was really bothering him, was that I didn't like the Democrats. But he was unable to make his point by defending their positions. His argument kept going back to how bad the Republicans were, and why couldn't I see that? The reality is, that I could see that. And I could also see the shortcomings of the Democrats, which was something that he couldn't see; or at least he couldn't accept.
Any way you look at it, politics, like society in general, has become shortsighted, selfish and immature. Worst of all, it's not improving, because everyone believes they are right.
-KJC
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