GYC 7: Let’s Talk (About) Politics
I hope this viral picture was not the reason why you heard about the politician Bernie Sanders for the first time. And even if it is, the rest of this article would be very relevant.
Politics and current affairs have always been an interest of mine and I regularly enjoy conversations about those topics. So far, within the Glad You Called series, I have not engaged in any political discussions. And rightfully so: expressing my political views is hardly the purpose of this blog. Giving an outlet to my thoughts is, however, one of the main goals of Glad You Called. That is how I still arrived at the topic of politics for this particular article, just a week after Joe Biden was inaugurated as the new President of the U.S., a result of a turbulent election in an even more turbulent year, 2020.
Before you stop reading because you feel like your educated views and strong opinions are about to be infringed on, I have to make it clear once and for all: I would not be discussing political positions, what is right and wrong, or what is left and wrong… This is a tempting direction though, and I have to admit I have sometimes considered taking a stand on some of the (political) issues our world is facing today.
For now, however, I would like to talk about the sole need to have a discussion about politics and our different viewpoints. I think this blog’s target audience is exactly who needs to read this piece and whom I hope to encourage to have an opinion and talk about politics. I believe that young people have both an obligation and a right to a political position, especially in an ever more polarized world. In many ways, we are the ones responsible for “tomorrow” and whether we like it or not, participating in the political process (by voting, protesting, running for public positions) is one of the best ways in which we can influence this future world.
Now, I realize there are many challenges to learning and talking about politics. We, the young people of today, are “international”, we come from different countries, each country having its pros and cons when it comes to politics, voting, government, etc. For some, it is not that easy to read more, be informed and participate in the process. More importantly, I realize that many of you have absolutely no clue what is happening in domestic politics, European politics, let alone world affairs. Also, forming an opinion and talking about it would require additional time that you don’t necessarily want to invest into this direction. And perhaps most crucially, I know that some of you simply don’t give a s**t about politics and want to stay as far as possible from the topic in the news, and even further from political discussions with other people, be it friends or strangers.
But look, I still think you should read on. I am not telling anyone to go vote, or for whom to vote to, or what to spend your free time doing, nothing like that. What I think though, is that we can try reading more and learning more about how politics work, what are the contrasting viewpoints, why are they clashing, why is our world so divided lately. Denying that political polarization is something that does not affect us is equivalent to being ignorant. I have seen and continue to see it everywhere — in Eastern Europe, in Central Europe, in Western Europe. Politics affect us and ignoring a conversation about it would not lead to anything different than more division.
And while I am not encouraging a support for a certain party or ideology, I am inviting us, young people, to stay informed about current (political) affairs. It is too late to be ignorant and the times today are too crucial to remain uninformed. That is why I am glad to see more and more of my friends raise awareness or express positions and opinions. What’s more, I see people around me being able to look at the other side of the political spectrum and understand the opposing views.
Much more often than before I find myself in a conversation where people express their political views, the reasons behind them and they go on to defend their position against others with differing arguments. It is this kind of seeming “conflict” that actually helps us understand each other better. It helps us to come closer in a world which seems to constantly pull us apart. So, I do encourage more serious conversations about politics, provided that people have informed themselves first. Of course, the issue of information and misinformation in today’s world immediately comes to mind. When we are bombarded, on a daily basis, with hundreds of articles and suspense titles online, how can we even form an honest opinion about any topic, let alone politics?
The answer we find in our own common sense. Because we are lucky enough to be educated and aware, we have the power to filter bullshit. With all the information stuffed in our smartphone or laptop, we can easily fact-check nonsense or even peak at the sources which the “other” side uses. It is not even that time-consuming since these days everything is one click or one type away for us. For example, since I lean center-left, during the 2020 U.S. election, I closely followed the “opposite” coverage of FOX News. Moreover, I read more about the right-wing ideology and the motives and views of its supporters. Does that mean I was convinced by the opposing viewpoints? No, but at least I was more informed. I became aware of other political narratives, which I had no clue about in the past, for example the run-up to the 2016 U.S. election, or the 2016 Brexit vote.
Lastly, despite the fact that I try to stay up to date, I would not say that I have become very knowledgeable about politics. Quite the opposite, I still consider myself relatively ignorant, especially when it comes to politics and current affairs of countries beyond Europe and the U.S. That’s the thing, even though we can be informed and converse about politics, we still remain privileged, level-4 (see Factfulness), young people with a limited political understanding and awareness. However, I do believe that reading more and forming an informed opinion are the right first steps on the journey to bringing opposing worldviews together, or at least a contributing piece to halting the strong division in recent years. So, we should start reading, be more curious about what is happening beyond our bubbles and allow more place for politics in our conversations.
No doubt this article, more than other Glad You Called pieces, provokes some of your own thoughts and opinions. You don’t care about politics at all? Why? You think politics is important, but you feel that you are too powerless to able to change anything? Let me and other people know about it.
Let’s talk politics and talk about politics.
Yours truly,
Glad You Called.
