American politics is more contentious than ever in this country, with opinions divided across party lines, and Republican and Democratic leaders increasingly demanding that even something as simple as the sky be blue. One might logically infer that nothing could be agreed upon. . Simply put, we are at a boiling point.
our congress is effectively over deadlockpresidential candidates are calling each other.threat to democracy”, the majority of each voter said. I don’t want to accept the election results even if I loseMany people are tired of the tension felt in America today.
Perhaps this is why many Americans celebrated this day. Civility displayed at the vice presidential debate Held in October. Voters were surprised to find that Sen. J.D. Vance and Gov. Tim Walz showed mutual respect in the debate. The two agreed surprisingly often.
The post-debate conversation was less about each candidate’s “big moments” and more about chit-chat about the supposed victor’s supposed rebuke to the loser. It was a nostalgia for the old days, when candidates like Barack Obama and John McCain could disagree and still agree. Say kind things about each other. Many Americans want to go back to those days.
However, the conversation surrounding the vice presidential debate also turned sour. People on the left of the political aisle called Vance a liar on CNN References to fact-checking articles Vance’s name appears nearly four times more often than Waltz’s. The right-wing responded with name-calling and hurled nicknames such as “.tampon tim” And just like that, everyone is off to the races again.
Everyone says they want politics to be more civil, but what does that mean? Do we Americans really want a country where people from all sides of the political spectrum can come together and join forces, or do we just want our political opponents not to attack us? Or? I feel like it’s the latter. While the respect Vance and Waltz showed for each other was praised, the conversation quickly devolved into name-calling and cheap attacks.
Why does this happen? some alleges that Site However, social media websites are just a scapegoat. Across the country, both sides of the political spectrum are filled with hatred and contempt for their fellow citizens and their ideas.
A great example of this comes from our campus. article In 2019, an article published in Student Life magazine (yes, this Student Life magazine) titled “It’s okay if conservatives aren’t welcome” received some backlash, and the editor-in-chief at the time He wrote: response Defending the article.
“We believe it is our editorial duty to include as much of the variety of ideas submitted as possible,” Sam Seekings said in a response to Student Life.
The idea seems noble enough. Yes, diverse voices should be heard on campus. However, reading the original article supports the exact opposite idea:Some belief systems are unnecessary or harmful to serious discussion … Conservative ideas are not equivalent to liberal or left-wing ideas, and therefore do not deserve to be considered as equals to liberal or left-wing ideas. ”
This is about a political party that is one of the two prominent political parties in the United States. Approximately half of all Americans support it. If you are not willing to give this party respect and consideration, that says a lot about the value placed on it.A wide variety of ideas. ”
Neither side of the political aisle wants civility, they want you to shut up and let them have their way. They don’t respect you. The sooner we all learn that lesson, the sooner we can become realistic about American politics. Americans don’t want civil debate. Americans want to make fun of Tampon Tim. They want conservatives to feel unwelcome on college campuses.
The picture I just painted makes things look pretty bleak, but there is some good news. The solution to this problem is strong leadership, one that chooses not to degrade members of the opposing party. On Monday, October 14th, President Joe Biden warning to iran An assassination attempt against Trump would be an act of war. Yes, he admits that standards of civility in politics are low, but this is a far cry from him calling the former president a threat to democracy. Perhaps this is the first ray of sunlight breaking through a series of dark storm clouds.
Like Congress, we are at an impasse. We are at a boiling point, and we may end up boiling over. You cannot cover the pot. The only way to lower the temperature is if both parties agree to lower the temperature.
I have hope, but I am cautious.
