The Self-Perpetuating War for Nobility

This was supposed to be a Facebook status, but it just grew and grew.

And there's something ironic about expressing social media fatigue on social media. I mean, it doesn't matter if you bitch and whine about the content or the form, it's all just added negativity for everyone, isn't it? It's not making things better. I needed a more flexible and homey setting to express myself, because believe it or not, it doesn't always come easy for me.

Of course, this is about the potential reelection of Donald Trump and the mechanics of division that lead us here. Because our great planetary embarrassment is not the only reason why people are tearing each other apart on my various newsfeeds.

I consider myself a liberal. I believe that people of color are still being discriminated against and sometimes murdered by law enforcement. I also believe that transgender people should be able to pee in whatever toilet they choose and that there should be more psychological support for them in general. And I also have more generic, boring beliefs, like free healthcare and redistribution of wealth, yadda, yadda, What can I say? I'm Canadian. We're all working on this stuff here and it yielded amazing results. I assure you, society will not collapse if people don't have to mortgage their houses to receive medical treatment.

I believe in all the same things my fellow liberals are fighting for every day, but...

I'm fucking tired of you guys.

The Rhetorics of Division

When Donald Trump became president of the United States in 2016, it basically tore North America in two. I thought as disastrous as it was, it would confront liberals to an uncomfortable truth: they needed to change. Because they've been insufferably cocky and dismissive of red States people during the election and Donald Trump banked on that to win. No, there aren't only illiterate rednecks, KKK members, neo-Nazis and meth freaks who voted for him. There are people who don't wear their political allegiance on their forehead who voted for Trump. 

But you know that. 

We're approaching the mid-term election and nothing has changed. Here's a Facebook comment from Monday, on a Washington Post article:

This comment is not inherently false. After refusing to condemn neo-Nazis in Charlottesville, Donald Trump might as well put a KKK hood on his head and had sex with David Duke right on the podium. But I'm asking you: what are you hoping to achieve, Josh Hall?

Have you ever shamed someone into changing their political affiliation? Have you ever convinced someone they were wrong by treating them like idiots and pariahs? Political responsibility doesn't begin and end with your own individual vote. If you believe in something, you have embody your ideals to the best of your abilities, otherwise politics becomes just another team sport and right now, both sides are just repping their colors. This is how Donald Trump is able to survive and this is how he'll navigate that mid-term election. He's surfing the anger of his voters and every day, liberals are fueling that anger.

Is it possible that some people voted for Donald Trump because they wanted change? That they felt forgotten by the Obama administration and hoped to carve a better future for themselves. Is it selfish? Maybe a little, but when you're having a tough time making ends meet, you have to make decisions. The disappearance of the working class might not be the most pressing battle American people need to fight, but a lot of these families made what they believe to be the best decision for themselves. If you're bleeding out and your neighbor had a leg severed, your injury is not as important and you'll receive help second, but you might have to stop the bleeding yourself before you pass out and die. 

Where do we go from here?

So, I'm asking you, liberals: what are you hoping to achieve? Where do you think this confrontational and dismissive attitude will lead you? Unless Donald Trump makes the economy crash, you're not going to convince anyone that they were wrong by calling them uneducated and evil. So we're at a stalemate and there's only two ways you can go: either take arms and overthrow the government or give up. Either way, there's not a great track record of success for both choices. 

Don't get me wrong, the situation you're in is 100% unfair. I believe the issue of racism is way much more pressing than that and that people of color should stop getting mauled and killed by law enforcement for raising an eyebrow. I believe that women should be able to fucking walk at night without feeling terrified. But you'll have to choose your battles strategically if you're looking to build a better tomorrow. Nothing is gonna change otherwise. It's pleasant to think the Russians had Donald Trump elected, that we're all victims and it might be true, but why not exerting some control over the situation? Why not change what you're able to change, namely your own behavior? Become salesmen for liberalism. 

Because right now, you guys can't even agree with each other. Take Childish Gambino's This is America for example:

The man went out of his way to portray what I believe in an urgent problem in a haunting and creative way and he gets tidal waves of criticism from people ON THE SAME SIDE AS HIM: by portraying black people's death as spectacle, he's turning black people's death into spectacle; it's too cynical; why does Donald Glover care? He's dating a white woman, yadda, yadda. Why are we arguing about the validity of what Glover just did and aren't just celebrating the sheer amount of balls it took to take position without directly shaming anyone? Well, except maybe white establishment which both liberals and conservatives seem to hate. This is America portrays a problem. An important problem. Let's stop fucking bickering about it. 

Anyway, this is the prologue to another conversation. I know I'm cisgendered white man and that my opinion doesn't weight heavy in the balance because I've been wallowing in privilege all my life. This is not language I use normally, but I get that and this is why I have trouble speaking on the issue. But who are we kidding? If you can't convince me, you can't convince anyone. 

Do you want things to eventually get better or are you just addicted to waging your self-perpetuating war for nobiliy6