Sep 2, 2020
Why the Left and Right are so annoying
One of the unfortunate things of the 2010s was how things became more politicized.
Right under our nose, people were either becoming politically Right or Left.
And as this polarization occurred, conflicts between these two groups have come to be more intense on the internet and in real-life.
So how did we get to this point?
One guess of mine is that people haven’t developed their own personal values. And with the constant bombardment of the internet and all its polarizing news, people are feeling more powerless and anxious.
They don’t know what to do since they have no personal values of their own to ground them.
So what they do is to start adopting the values of a group they subscribe to.
As a result, they wrap their identity around these external values they get from the Left, Right, etc. And what’s worse is that it doesn’t stop there.
They continue to get bankrupt values from shallow people on the internet. Making them think they need to be X, Y, and Z. Otherwise, they are losers stuck in the rat race of life.
So many people today get their values externally and it causes them to feel like they are never enough.
Even if someone claims to be the Left, they are so insecure about what they believe, they need to force others to believe their views. Or if someone is on the right, they are so insecure in their own beliefs, they will call anybody an idiot who doesn’t agree.
Too many people today are not comfortable with who they are, what they believe in, and what they are doing in life.
And that allows people to be swept up by ideologies they don’t completely understand.
What people need to start doing is to develop their own personal values.
They need to sit down, take some time, and think about what is important to them. Because when you have the right values for yourself (which is different for everybody), you will be able to feel more comfortable about yourself in life. Even if people don’t agree with you, you will be okay, since living your life, you have seen what is important to you.
Now it’s a big task to find your personal values, but to help you brainstorm, I’ll list a few of mine:
- Self-respect is the most important thing you can have in your life.
- Stay away from toxic people and relationships.
- To treat my time with the utmost respect as I am always nearing closer to death by the second.
- It’s okay to be afraid, but it’s not okay to not try.
- Investing in the few friendships I care about in my life.
- To not be disrespected by others.
Those are just a few, and I came to these ones from making mistakes, reading books, and therapy. And having these values in a world that is confused about being honest versions of themselves, makes life wonderful for me (even in COVID).
So don’t be like the people on the Left or Right and be swept away easily by their values.
Take a step back and wonder what values you want to be the center of your life.
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