Why no politics?

You have probably noticed by now that throughout this entire cycle, I have refrained from talking about politics. It's not that I don't have opinions, not that I don't want to shape the opinions of others. It's that there's no point.

Think about it. On a social media site, you are posting something for your friends to see. Your friends likely have similar views and opinions to you; that's why you're friends. So when you post something angry about one campaign or the other, you're just yelling at a group of people who feel the same outrage. You're preaching to the choir.



But, you ask, what if there are friends who DON'T feel that way? Well, chances are you either already have at some point agreed to disagree or you will stop being their friend. and is that fair?

Politics aren't as simple as people seem to think they are. The best argument doesn't always win. The best ideas aren't always the ones that last the longest. The good guy sometimes loses, and sometimes, there IS no good guy. The only simple thing about politics is that most people have their minds made up way before the campaign starts, and there's only so much shifting that can really happen.

It's the same reason I don't talk about religion. If someone is truly open minded and wants to talk about it, then MAYBE we can. But more likely, they're just saying that so they can try to convert me. If you're a republican and want to have a open conversation with me, make sure you're doing it with the understanding that I might convince you, and the willingness to be so convinced. If you're a democrat, same deal. The problem is, we all THINK we can be fair, but we usually can't.

It's just too important.

So either you're trying to convince those who already agree with you, or you're trying to convince people who will NEVER agree with you, and will dismiss your arguments as being misguided, ill informed, ignorant, or willfully malicious. There's no winning at the politics game.

At least, not in conversation.