All human beings have a natural negative bias. What this means is humans see situations in a negative light more than a positive one. It is the age-old discussion of the glass is half empty versus half full. Because of the negative bias we hold, individuals have to work to see the positive in every situation. The more negative experiences you have, the more you may struggle with the negative bias. It is no different for voting. No politician will please everyone. However, if you do not pay attention and work to see the positive, you will miss some positives.
In many cases, the negative bias leads people to not participate in the political process. In my opinion, that is a mistake. Anyone who believes Donald Trump’s election was a mistake should reflect on the 2016 election process. In part, Trump was elected because many progressive’s decided not to vote because they did not like the candidates. So instead, they sat out the process. Many rationalized that both candidates were no good instead of analyzing the situation in an objective way. The candidates were, in fact, much different. Would Hillary Clinton have cheered white nationalist groups or said they were good people? Do you believe Clinton would have held rallies that go against the public health recommendations during a pandemic?
Would Clinton have started a tariff war with China? Is it possible that Clinton would not admit systemic racism exists? If you answered no to any of these questions, then you acknowledge that the candidates are different. These were things that Trump did during his presidency. It is lazy thinking to believe that two candidates are the same based on one belief. By virtue of being a democrat and a republican, there are major differences in ideology. The purpose of writing this article is to get people to learn from their mistakes. Researching to recognize the differences is important and much easier than it once was because of the technology (i.e., google, internet). If you believe Trump was a mistake, then let’s fix that mistake this time. There was already damage done that may hurt regular people for years, including tax breaks for the richest 10 percent, attacking healthcare, labor laws, and 50 appointments of judges (district and supreme). Do your research on both candidates and vote.
Politics as Usual
Staying sane in a crazy world
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