I'm Always Torn...

Today's segment is on "stickin' yer neck where it don't belong."

When I say I'm always torn, it's because I'm a naturally argumentative person. I like discussions, and I think humans can learn from each other, both through calm discussion and through debate.

However, I also don't like the cognitive dissonance of knowing that I'm speaking when people don't want me to. I realize many people don't like debate and many people, even further, don't see value in debate, so my presence in an opinion they've shared is nothing but an unwanted burden to them.

Clearly, (if you know me through this medium, anyway) I'm talking about Facebook more than anything else. Someone will share an opinion through the public forum that is Facebook, and then I'm faced with the choice of chiming in or leaving well enough alone. This decision isn't as hard if the person is an actual friend of mine (as most of my Facebook friends are), but when it's, say, someone I don't know speaking on a friend's status, the field gets murkier. I don't know their relation to my friend, and I don't know whether or not I may offend them by debating. Is it still worth it?

Ultimately, one of the few things that makes me happy is to help people understand things. If someone comes to me seeking insight into a personal situation or asking for a third-party perspective, I feel relatively at ease, knowing that I have a good grasp of general human psyche and I have a very strong analytical mindset, so I can usually shed some understanding onto a situation if I know enough about it. Similarly, I understand of a lot of the politics going on in America, and it feels good to have someone turn to me for help in understanding some of the jargon.

This alone would be great... except I also hate willful ignorance and stubborn misconceptions (which I admit to having myself). So, a debate can be just as much about combating "evil" as it is providing guidance and understanding. [I really should learn to focus on the latter...]

Some days, I feel nothing but scornful eyes and tired sighs when I express my opinions, since many of them are nothing more than repeats with new evidence, and it does get somewhat old. I assure you though, I do this because humans are forgetful, and if we do not press an issue and beat it like a generic sexual innuendo, then it will slip our minds.

There is a rare day, once in a blue moon, that someone will come to me with no question and no situation to analyze- simply gratitude for speaking. This is the thing that keeps me from quitting outright.


Personal backstory time-

I went through a bought of depression senior year of college. Mostly because growing up scares the bejeezus outta' me. I'm terrified of the idea of getting a big boy job and working 9-5 every day for the next forty years. That shit is nerve wracking to me. In therapy, the other main issue that kept coming up is how depressing and scary politics is. Granted, this was during the search for a nominee, so we had the likes of Rick Santorum and Michelle Bachmann and Newt Gingrich polluting the airwaves with vitriolic and sometimes simply stupid messages. The part that scared me is that they had vehement supporters.

Side story- as an avid internet user, in the past five years, I've never seen the internet so collectively attack an issue like SOPA/PIPA. It took months of constant attacks from the public to get congress to throw it away, but they still did it begrudgingly. They did it while referring to internet experts as "nerds." They did and said everything so casually, it was clear they had no clue what powers they were tampering with. Despite that, they kept going because the likes of the MPAA were paying them gobs of money to pursue it. This is TERRIFYING to me. It took us months and an enormous amount of energy to beat it, but they can bring it back up with a few days' worth of work and some new wording. How can we keep this fight up forever? Especially when most people can't come together on most issues.
This is why we're losing the fight for cleaner, renewable energy sources. This is why we're losing the fight against pollution and fracking. This is why we're losing the fight against Monsanto. This is why Occupy Wallstreet basically died.
It's not just an uphill battle- it's a battle on a damn ninety degree wall. They hold the high ground and it feels helpless to oppose them. Largely because in our lifetimes, we see very little demonstrable change away from the status quo.

When we make so little difference, I have to wonder what the point is. So yes, I went through a bad bout of depression because of this stark realism. A professor of mine for whom I have more respect than I can express in words once said something I try to keep in mind. To paraphrase, "As a professor, my job is to impart wisdom and make students re-examine themselves. Most won't do it, but if I can make a single student do it each year, I'm changing those people and the people they touch." (I butchered this to hell and a half, so I apologize if you're reading this, Mel)

That's the only thing I can do to justify living in this world.
So, when my choice is between not gettin' all up in someone's business on Facebook or maybe changing how someone perceives the world or politics, then I try to choose the latter. I'm getting better at differentiating between a battle that cannot be won and an uphill battle.

I hope this gives you some idea of why I'm an annoying pest about politics.
And the offer to help anyone who needs it on any subject is basically always there. I'm confidential and I like to think I have a decent track record for helping people when they come to me.

-
Waddles