The wait is finally over. After a long, strenuous campaign season and a tightly contested election, we now know that President Barack Obama will continue his presidency for a second term. Though you may not personally be happy with the outcome, I think we can all agree it’s relieving that our social media outlets will no longer be filled with the political viewpoints of every Joe Schmo who knows how to work a smartphone or computer.
Unfortunately, just because the political spectrum will now take a backseat in our minds to more important topics, such as the new episode of “The Walking Dead” or what type of latte Kim Kardashian just ordered, it doesn’t make what’s happening in Washington any less important.
This is especially true for our generation. As we all begin to slowly make our way out of the sheltered bubble of college life and our parents’ wallets, things like the job market, taxes and nationalized health care will become increasingly more vital to our lives and the decisions we make.
It also seems like none of these can be agreed upon currently. The partisanship our nation faces has reached historic levels and has made any type of decisionmmaking on a national scale close to impossible. Constructive dialogue has been thrown out the window in return for an “us against them” mentality, only furthering the gridlock seen in our national political system. While debate and disagreement are obviously a part of lawmaking, the focus has now turned to which side believes what and why that’s wrong rather then concern for the end goal of creating positive change for our country.
Though I joked about the relief of no longer having to read about everyone’s political views on Twitter and Facebook, it really became concerning to see how unforgiving people could be in putting down the views of others in such a public forum. Who’s to say that your idea of how our country should be run is anymore correct then the next 20-something-year-old college student? Which is exactly why it’s vital for our generation to stop the vicious pattern of allowing differing political ideologies and party lines to become the main issue at hand, instead of the more important goal of bettering our country for ourselves and the generations to come.
Instead of rioting because of the election of our president like students at Ole Miss did, why not challenge the system in ways that can create substantial and meaningful change. An open, positive dialogue of the issues our country faces and the acceptance of viewpoints outside our own are essential to bringing back American democracy to the splendor it once held. Rallying together to support the positive change and challenge the questionable decisions that are being made becomes more effective when the issue is less about which party a person belongs to or their personal moral beliefs and more about preserving our nation’s great heritage.
These next four years are crucial for the future of America and our place in the international community, and I hope our president’s second term proves to be wildly successful. More importantly though, I hope as we begin to venture out into the real world, we consciously work toward a political culture that no longer pushes against each other based on party politics and instead realizes the power of our nation’s citizens pushing together for change.
