A few days ago, I had a perfect storm of sorts for getting me to write this particular column: Three people commented online about my column, all in a unique form. It made me think about why learning that people read my column excites me. None of them said I had convinced them of anything, but that didn’t matter to me. That begs the question of why I enjoy writing this column and hearing that people read it, even if I haven’t convinced them of anything.
Undoubtedly, one possible answer is that I’m an attention-getter, and any attention is good attention for my ego. That might be the first thought to pop into your head, but I’m pretty sure all of my friends and anybody who’s ever had class with me would tell you that I’m not that type of person. I don’t want, need, or even seek attention just for attention’s sake. You’re free to believe otherwise, though.
I write this column because I want to make a difference, but making a difference isn’t necessarily getting people to agree with my position on various issues. I want people to think for themselves and come to their own conclusions. I always strive to get people to realize why an issue is important. I think politics is indeed very important and I’m always disappointed when political games wear people out and they lose interest. I find politics to be too important to lose interest.
I’d encourage people to bring this philosophy to the table anytime they discuss anything political: It isn’t so much about winning the argument as it is about intellectually engaging people and sharing ideas. One of my friends mentioned to me a while back that he’s really enjoying Poly, but he wishes our athletic department was a bit bigger, and he’d like to have the experience of going to games that, say, Berkeley does when their football team plays USC. For me though, I’d like to see more political activism. I don’t care what side of the issue people are on, I’d just like to see them standing up for what they believe in. Sure, people have their own political discussions here and there from time to time, but there doesn’t seem to be a whole lot of group political events on campus.
We’re certainly all busy with our lives, but I think it’s important to take some time every now and then to focus on something that we may not see immediate results from — whether it be taking a stance or getting information out on a local, state or federal issue.
It’s easy to get lost in politics and wonder what difference your vote could possibly make. It’s that type of attitude that leads people on large scales to become indifferent and discourage on so many political issues, and then things get left up to the few who are passionate enough to get involved. Sometimes I think that this is okay, and that somehow the people who are involved are the people who care enough to get involved, and therefore the people who aren’t involved don’t really care and we’re better off with them not participating. The problem with that logic is that more and more I find people who aren’t involved but who really do care, have excellent ideas, and could help society a great deal —the only problem is they’re so tired and disillusioned that they have dropped out of the political process. These are people I hope to reengage.
It seems that lately, people who give opinions tend to be more popular than people who try to convey the news without bias. I think getting unbiased news is important, but it’s extremely difficult to convey news without bias. Whether it be Wolf Blitzer or Charlie Gibson, I’m certain it’s difficult for the objective news reporters to try to stay objective in the coverage of the issues. I doubt it’s something I could do well, and so I don’t ever try to pretend to be unbiased, because I believe that would be dishonest on my part. I think that commentators who express their opinions as opinions are easier for people to relate or not relate to; you know where they’re coming from and see their perspective.
Hopefully now you understand a little bit more where I’m coming from, and I especially hope you’ll get involved in something important to you in whatever way you see fit.