I find that it is best for my career and my blood pressure if I stay out of political arguments. I know what I know, I believe what I believe, and I generally spend an inordinate amount of time researching details and taking the time to fact check news as it relates to the circus that is coming in November.
I, for one, am heartily tired of the half- truths and exaggerations that the various parties are lobbing at each other through the media.
A media that is all about ratings and money – not truth.
Have you ever heard of yellow journalism? Many of us learned about it in a Jr. High history class. The term was coined in the late 1800s when Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst vied to have the most read newspapers in New York. They sensationalized headlines, told half-truths, and generally created discord between people by playing their emotions.
You know what? Listen and read the news today. Stay abreast of it on Twitter and Facebook. It’s the same darn thing. A tape will be quoted by one paper to prove that a certain candidate was a creep but it carefully avoids the rest of the statement that, when all put in context, had a totally different meaning.
In this day of social media, a candidate can be smeared across the country in 170 characters or less. When you say a candidate is unsuitable for office, you may reach millions of people with your words. Heck, I have over a thousand people a day looking at one particular recipe on my food blog – and that’s just a recipe!
In days past, if you mentioned something to a friend about a candidate it might reach ten people overall. It didn’t matter if your facts weren’t straight.
In these next few weeks, can we all just take the time to read the whole story and not get all worked up over a few sentences taken out of context or an image, or whatever? How about if, for once, we act like mature adults and vote for our candidates without feeling the need to tear the other one down.
How about if we treat each other as we would want to be treated, just this once?
photo credit: DC John
