Why I Will No Longer Discuss Politics on Social Media

I am an opinionated guy. I've been on this planet for nearly 50 years, raised two daughters and have been a member of the workforce since I was a teenager. I think I have the right to be. However, today I am taking a vow to keep my opinions to myself, at least when it comes to politics and social media.

Image courtesy of Pixabay

This actually isn't the first time I've taken this vow. I did it once before, several years ago, but recently began breaking that vow. It didn't take me long to remember why I made it in the first place.

First, when it comes to politics, nobody cares about my opinion or anyone else's. They just want to hear their opinion being parroted by someone else. 

The thing with that is as an independent, I can appreciate both sides to every argument. I may not agree with one side but can still see where they are coming from. Unfortunately, that balanced view is clearly unwanted in such a divided country.

The victim culture is prevalent for both liberals and conservatives. According to the liberals, Trump needed to cheat to beat Hillary Clinton and Kamala Harris and there is "clear evidence" of this. According to the conservatives, Joe Biden cheated to beat Trump in 2020 and there is "clear evidence" of this. Trump is a wannabe dictator and, amazingly enough, so was Joe Biden, at least according to who you talk to. 

Oh, and for "victims" they sure can be mean. I hear a lot of people talking about the MAGA element on X, but my personal experience is liberals are just as bad and, at times, even worse.

I'll give you an example of this. A few months ago, I made a comment on Threads about how I wasn't convinced Kamala Harris was doing enough to win the election (a thought that proved to be correct, by the way). Within thirty minutes, I was accused of being brainwashed by MAGA, a misogynist, a racist and, in one case, was told to "shut the f*ck up." I ended up deleting the post before it escalated any more than that. Fortunately, I have thick skin, but I can see why that kind of thing could drive some people to suicide.

So, to summarize, here's what I learned from the experience - discussing my political views with others is a waste of my time. I won't change their minds and only face the wrath of others for not being in full agreement with their side. 

I still have my opinions, and I still will express them. However, I am going to do it in a much more productive way, such as writing my congressman or supporting non-profit groups that share my views because social media (or at least the people who are on it) is doing more to destroy this country than help it.