The Illusion of Politics

I love politics. In fact that’s why I dedicated 3 years of my undergraduate degree towards studying and researching contemporary social/political issues in the global spectrum. As I concluded my studies I came to the self-realization that people are not politically educated.

Now, don't get me wrong, I already knew this. In fact, I just did not accept it until I understood how much dedication and reading one must engage in before they can be informed about domestic/foreign policies.

Watching political shows is not like watching your favorite sports team. I am sorry but it isn't that simplistic. Now hear me out, because most folks out there will assume that I am talking about them. In fact, in the contrary I am not. Anyone that is dedicated to following the political scene and know each players stats is fair game. I am talking about the masses that like to tune into their favorite talk show host that spits rhetoric that these parrots seem to pick up and regurgitate. Stop repeating the talking points of your favorite show!

I love baseball and I follow it as closely as I follow politics. I know the roles of each team member and who is who. I know stats of the superstars and know who to put in the cleanup spot or at least who is more appropriate. When it comes to basketball, I love to watch it but I am not as polish as I am in baseball.

The same principles apply to politics. Half the people that think they know what the best strategy is to conduct the war in Iraq do not have a clue who the Secretary of Defense is or perhaps just the Press Secretary. They think they know what we should do at the borders but they don't even know what district they live in. They think they know how are health care system should be like or in most cases not be like but they have no clue what "socialized" or "socialized medicine" means. People think they know politics but they do not.

I dislike when people claim to be [insert political identification] but they do not know why. At least tell me you like the person's tie; because your family has voted along this party does not justify your reasoning. And if for some reason you are proud to boast this reason . . . I feel bad for you and our society.

The real sad thing though is that my vote counts the same as that ignorant person. Even though I dedicate countless hours to research and inform myself about our political situations . . . it can all be sabotaged by a majority of ignorant voters. All it takes is a few demagogues placed in the right regions to stir up the pot and get the blissful masses to make their vote count. Thus, folks there goes the illusion of politics . . . change can only truly occur if it is not undermined by a select few.