Why can't we discuss politics like we'd discuss movies, art, or books?

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   RJ Schwartzposted 7 years ago

   I can't remember a political thread that didn't degrade into name calling, vicious innuendo, or outright vilification. Usually it takes less than a single day before the nastiness comes out in some form.  I do understand that their is a high level of passion involved which creates strong emotional responses, but seriously....Why Can't We Speak About Issues Like Mature Adults Anymore?
   
   If I look at a thread discussing Star Wars, lots of opinions are added, but no one is calling Chewbacca fans names, nor are groups ganging up on Ewok supporters, even though they are strange little bears.  When we talk poetry, comments on different interpretations don't spark on-line fights.  Artworks are debated as are the artists, but no one types an all CAPITAL letter response with mocking names of the painter. 
   
   Perhaps it's the reason why America is so divded - we lost our ability to rationally come to a compromise and move the nation forward.  Now it's a pendulum that swings so far, it's about to come off the rails.

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   Kathleen Cochranposted 7 years ago

   Because it's personal.  You don't just have a different opinion - you are attacking me.  That's how it feels.  I've said it many, many times.  We have been so wrong about so much for so long in this country, our biggest fear is that somebody else might actually end up being right.  It's terrifying.  You can't be right because that makes me wrong.

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      RJ Schwartzposted 7 years agoin reply to this

      Great answer Kathleen - I'm sure many others have that same sense of "ownership" on the ideas they support.  Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

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   ahorsebackposted 7 years ago

   RJ ,  I think we have to return to the  original political form and forums  of America to understand this ,  It was perhaps the ultimate in competition ,    a boxing match if you will ,    ONE important difference . The language ! ---People  of yesteryear were much more polite  and articulate in the kinder  sense of political debate .  Lets face it  , today ; the bastardization of  the English language in America and the tone of social medias    IS the decline of a "gentlemen's debate "?    Not many people attend the real and original town meetings  these days , at least far less than the political  forums  here  BUT  by regulation they are far more "polite ".
   
   Like it  or not people Hubpages  = Face Book .

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      RJ Schwartzposted 6 years agoin reply to this

      I think that we should seriously consider getting rid of Political Parties and demand better from anyone running for office - too much time is wasted on trying to advance Party agenda's at the expense of the common citizen.  Without Party dominance, we cut off the influence of billionaires and foreign nations trying to steer things.  We cut off the narrative that it's us against them or D against R .

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         ahorsebackposted 6 years agoin reply to this

         I agree , the idiots in congress hide behind party affiliation and vote with their  wallets open  and their heads turned away from the voters.

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            mike102771posted 6 years agoin reply to this

            Don't you mean our wallet's open?

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   MizBejabbersposted 7 years ago

   History shows that it’s in our blood, in fact the early 1800s were known as the “Dark Ages of Partisan Journalism”, so CNN, Fox News, et al. are nothing new. They just have new means to work with. At one time, fist fights and other bar room type brawls actually broke out on Congressional and legislative floors and the newspapers reports really gave people something “to get het up over.”
   
   Movies, TV shows, poetry and literature are entertainment and don’t affect our lives personally like politics and politicians do. A person who is about to lose his family’s insurance or one who fears a new tax may be enacted on his income group certainly has a reason to react more strongly than one who didn’t like the latest X-Men movie. A forum presents an outlet to express that fear, and sometimes discussions revert to name-calling when passions rise. On the other hand, there are trolls who delight in stirring up trouble among people who are calmly discussing politics. So I would say that it is just human nature.

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   mike102771posted 7 years ago

   IMDB just recently removed the discussions section from their site saying how it wasn’t a positive experience anymore. You don’t see much of it here on Hub Pages but there are many people who will GO ALL CAPS on movies. Just look at the DC vs. Marvel movies. People ruined the IMDB discussions calling each other names, spam, hate and other non-mature things.
   
   Then you have the east coast west coast fights over rap. This is near the 20th anniversary of the death of Notorious B.I.G. People are willing to kill for their music.
   
   Let’s just not talk about the epic poetry riots. Nothing but a bunch of rhyming fools.

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      RJ Schwartzposted 7 years agoin reply to this

      I guess those poetry slams are something more than most people imagine, right?  Thanks for the additional input on the movie and music front.

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