My platform is not political, but I am a very concerned American and I feel compelled to share my thoughts and feelings about this horrible assassination attempt on Former President Trump.
Since Trump's Presidency, there has been an increasingly violent and hateful divide between our conservative and liberal citizens. Many people blame Trump for this, but this isn't his fault. The disease was already present and festering. The fact that Mr. Trump could be elected President and collect such a strong following is only evidence that a large number of Americans were extremely unhappy and not feeling heard. He is clearly expressing thoughts and emotions that are shared by many US citizens. No matter what side of the political spectrum one falls, everyone has the right to be heard and have their concerns addressed.
We are inching ever closer to another Civil War. It is very likely that several foreign countries have been secretly fueling this fire for many years. They have been so successful, we now have powerful extremist American organizations also pushing for Civil War. I suspect, however, that most of us do not want this and understand how devastating it would be to every US citizen and millions of people worldwide. I strongly feel the answer to this growing animosity is for ALL of us to take some time to drop our biases and genuinely try to hear the concerns that the other side is expressing. You don't have to agree with someone to feel compassion for them, and where there is compassion healing can be found.
A huge source of American Unrest is social media consumption. Be very alert! Any time you see a post that triggers a strong divisive political emotion in you, even if you agree with it, take that as a red flag. Despite any good intentions they might have, this person is ultimately fueling hate. Worse yet, they could very well be a foreigner trying to undermine our political stability. The healthiest way to deal with these is to flag and block them. Depending on the platform, the more likes, dislikes and comments they get (positive or negative), the more attention and power they get. Dislikes can sometimes make the thread go away, but you risk stoking animosity within yourself by marking a dislike. If you actually know the person making a divisive political statement, whether you agree or not, try offering a comment that acknowledges their feelings in a less divisive way.
Don't trust ANY media source blindly. If you read something that the "other side" did that sounds incredibly horrible, ignorant, appalling, etc., it's possibly either a lie, an exaggeration, or a comment taken out of context. Political spin happens on both sides and even within the highest regarded news agencies! Take some time to investigate news reports in other media sources, especially one that represents the opposing opinion to whatever you normally read. You will not only be better informed, but you might even find enlightening perspectives from the opposing side.
I think most of us care very deeply for our country. The problem is that we disagree on how our government should currently be run. Our forefathers were incredibly wise and set up an immensely successful democratic system. Any event that threatens the operation of that system threatens the democracy we cherish. Be very suspicious of anyone (liberal, conservative, other) whose words or actions result in destabilizing our government or its reputation.
I see this assassination attempt as a wake-up call and an opportunity to put aside our differences. We are not a country that solves election conflict with murder. No matter what the outcome of the election is, I would encourage everyone to accept the results and move on. Though it is important to be alert for election fraud, engaging in unfounded accusations of election fraud and other subversive ideas only hurts us. We must put our country first by extinguishing any bitterness we might have and do whatever it takes to find stability again.
p.s. I took a risk posting this. I don't want to start a train of responses that do exactly what it is that I am discouraging. So I am turning off responses and deleting all comments that have already been made. It doesn't mean that I agree or disagree with the comments. I hope that you all can understand. If this post causes too many problems, I will delete it too. Please feel free to let me know if you wish for me to take it down.
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