Dear Editor:
Don’t get me wrong, I have my own political beliefs. This is about those who are way too obsessed with politics, to the point that they fall for the most ridiculous things.
Let’s start with hero worship. Way too many people treat their favored political candidate like an angel sent from heaven to save us all. This is an accusation commonly used against Trump supporters, which is often true, but Harris supports are equally guilty of the same thing. They often make Harris out to be a “courageous and honorable” figure, or something akin to Xena the Warrior Princess. This level of hero worship is unhealthy for both individualism and as a whole.
Next we’ll look at the blatant hypocrisy on both sides, which each side is usually oblivious to. A good example to start with would be political conspiracy theories. Both sides are often guilty of touting the same basic conspiracy theories, but adjusted to fit their narratives. For example, in 2016, many Democrats believed in the conspiracy theory that Donald Trump deliberately colluded with Russian intelligence to impact the 2016 election, with Republicans labeling them “nutjobs” and conspiracy theorists. Flash forward to 2020, and many Republicans believe in the same basic conspiracy theory: that Joe Biden stole the 2020 election, with Democrats giving Republicans the same labels. Both sides seem to be completely oblivious to the fact that they each touted the same conspiracy theories and gave each other the same harsh reactions.
Then there’s the way ego blinds intelligence in politics. Politically obsessive people often refuse to read between the lines, instead choosing to accept whatever their preferred news outlet tells them. It should be more well known that media outlets on both sides misrepresent information, manipulate data, and blatantly lie to strengthen their narrative. Whether you’re watching Fox/CNN, or reading articles on the intern from certain sites, just because someone wrote it and made a few quotes, it doesn’t mean it’s a reliable source. Graphs, numbers, and quotes from other people are constantly fabricated by the two sides.
Then there’s the unintelligent fashion in which political fanatics people maliciously view each other as stereotypes, as well as exaggerate the truth in order to create negative associations. The truth is, the average democrat isn’t a cat lady who indoctrinates children, and the average conservative isn’t a swastika-sporting fascist who hates people of other ethnicities. There’s a real lack of clarity in people who are this fixated on politics.
Then there’s the plain and simple fact that so many people are wasting precious time on arguing politics, or doing ridiculous things for the sake of politics. When Mike Lindell “infiltrated” the Democratic National Convention, he could’ve been doing anything else. Spending time with family, attending a concert with friends, pizza and beer, etc. How many hours do people waste by senselessly trying to impose their views on others? Why even care?
It’s not like majority of what these people bicker about even has an effect on their personal lives, most of it doesn’t. If you’re reading this, chances are you’ve never had your job taken by an illegal immigrant, and you’ve likely never had your rights as an immigrant or an LGBT disrupted. All the fuss just seems like a facade induced by ego and outrage that was provoked by politicians.
This is why people who are obsessed with politics, are suckers.
Matt Andrew
