Taking a stand: Why you should care about politics
So i'm procrastinating right now - though I'm not crunched for time either, so not too bad.
I'm sitting in my guest house in Ramallah, Palestine right now.
Coming here and having even just a few intense experiences already has really opened my eyes up. I'm getting pretty excited to grow up, get more education, do something with myself, make my voice heard.
I know a lot of my friends aren't in to politics, but one of the reasons I've become invested in it is that there are so many injustices happening around the world today and so many people who only do things for self benefit. Even though I really dislike the nation-state because it is a deep source of racism and a "reason" to think another human being's life is less valuable or meaningful, men and women have set up governments so that those selfish individuals are prevented taking advantage of innocent people and that those who break the rules any given society has deemed inappropriate and or unacceptable are reprimanded by what we call justice.
Policy is what controls our daily lives and if you don't stand up for what you believe in and say something about it, no one "who matters" will ever know you thought what you did. Those who are in power get to have their fair share of input, when does your input come, on election day? Hardly. We have a limited government and when what your government does you find unsatisfactory, it is your duty to right that wrong.
Something I hope to do when I get older is to be able to write, intelligently and articulately, so that I can have a chance of having my thoughts read by innumerable people. I don't know exactly what I want to do, dabble into journalism, be an author, or just teach, but I'm sure that I will find a way to progress my career in a manner such that I'm noticed because I stand out.
Change, not always negative, is necessarily thought of as radical; I hope to take advantage of this perspective in so tactful a way that I'm not thought of crazy when I finally get my voice out to the crowds, but rather as constructively critical.
I believe that the only way a society can progress is by criticizing what it takes for granted. More people need to realize that the media they follow, be it liberal or conservative, does not represent reality as it is. It represents reality as it wants you to think it is. So I ask you to open your eyes.
...Anyway, I would encourage anyone who reads this to strive to have their voice heard, because if you believe in democracy, you believe in representation. So go represent yourself! If not now, wait till you graduate from college or something - but do it!
I'm sitting in my guest house in Ramallah, Palestine right now.
Coming here and having even just a few intense experiences already has really opened my eyes up. I'm getting pretty excited to grow up, get more education, do something with myself, make my voice heard.
I know a lot of my friends aren't in to politics, but one of the reasons I've become invested in it is that there are so many injustices happening around the world today and so many people who only do things for self benefit. Even though I really dislike the nation-state because it is a deep source of racism and a "reason" to think another human being's life is less valuable or meaningful, men and women have set up governments so that those selfish individuals are prevented taking advantage of innocent people and that those who break the rules any given society has deemed inappropriate and or unacceptable are reprimanded by what we call justice.
Policy is what controls our daily lives and if you don't stand up for what you believe in and say something about it, no one "who matters" will ever know you thought what you did. Those who are in power get to have their fair share of input, when does your input come, on election day? Hardly. We have a limited government and when what your government does you find unsatisfactory, it is your duty to right that wrong.
Something I hope to do when I get older is to be able to write, intelligently and articulately, so that I can have a chance of having my thoughts read by innumerable people. I don't know exactly what I want to do, dabble into journalism, be an author, or just teach, but I'm sure that I will find a way to progress my career in a manner such that I'm noticed because I stand out.
Change, not always negative, is necessarily thought of as radical; I hope to take advantage of this perspective in so tactful a way that I'm not thought of crazy when I finally get my voice out to the crowds, but rather as constructively critical.
I believe that the only way a society can progress is by criticizing what it takes for granted. More people need to realize that the media they follow, be it liberal or conservative, does not represent reality as it is. It represents reality as it wants you to think it is. So I ask you to open your eyes.
...Anyway, I would encourage anyone who reads this to strive to have their voice heard, because if you believe in democracy, you believe in representation. So go represent yourself! If not now, wait till you graduate from college or something - but do it!