I’m often frustrated by people who don’t like to talk politics. I understand everyone has their own interests and hobbies and prefers to talk about those but if one votes in elections it is their responsibility to be knowledgeable about the issues so they can vote wisely. It seems that people don’t like discussing politics because they either don’t know much about the issues or they don’t want to discuss something that could challenge their current views. If this is their reasons should they really be voting in the first place?
The whole point of government and politics is to protect and lead the country to make it a better place to live. Think of the country as a country club, American citizens are all members of the club and the government is the board of directors who make decisions about what kind of club it will be. Our taxes are the dues we pay to enjoy the services the club provides us. Since we are all members of this club, we all have our own ideas of what kind of club we want to belong too and this is where all of our ideas and views come in when talking politics.
We should all care about what kind of country we live in, and it shouldn’t be a topic that is upsetting to talk about. If an engineer didn’t discuss plans for a bridge he was building it would put the strength of the bridge in jeopardy and lives would be at risk. It is in the engineer’s best interest to want to be proven wrong that his bridge will not be strong enough to support the weight. If he was to be against discussing the plans for fear of being shown they wouldn’t work then the bridge is likely to have some weaknesses and could have been designed stronger if his ego did not get in the way.
We should want our ideas and views to be proven wrong because it is a great way to discover better ideas and that is good for everyone. People should stop taking things so personal because it keeps them from discussing important issues in our country. It is okay to be wrong, we are all wrong about many issues but it is not okay to hold strong to ideas that we are not willing to discuss.
Just as discussing plans for a bridge makes for a better bridge discussing politics makes for a better country. If we live in this country and vote it is our responsibility to know the issues and discussing them is productive way to learn more so we can better decide how to vote. It is often said that it is our duty to vote but that is only half of it. It is also our duty to know the issues, voting alone does not move the country forward. Voting should only be encouraged if knowledgeable about the issues; it is not okay to be ignorant about issues yet still vote.
Sports is such a big part of our society it can be hard at times to not keep score of how many views one person has that are best and how many the other person has which are wrong. We might not be keeping score out loud but subconsciously many do and this is a big deterrent for people to want to engage in discussing politics because it can turn competitive very easily. When discussing these issues it is important to remember not to put it in people’s face when demonstrating that their view is wrong and yours is right, otherwise they won’t want to have any more discussions with you in the future.
If we want to see real change in this country we need to put our egos aside and be open to having our own views challenged. It is ignorant and arrogant for people to think they are right and everyone who disagrees with them is wrong if they aren’t willing to put those ideas up for discussion. People should want to discuss their political views in order to promote what they think is best for the country. It should not be about who is right or wrong, but instead about figuring out what policies are best for the country as a whole. If we want a better country people are going to have to stop looking at it as a competition and be humble enough to admit that maybe other policies would be better than they had previously thought. This is what we should strive for when discussing politics if we want what is best for the people and the country.