Change our name to the Divided States of America

It has become clear that this country has not been on the same page for a long time. Americans, instead of working together, are flaunting more of a “us vs. them” mentality. Hence, we do not live up to being the “United” States of America anymore.

First off, it is okay to want your candidate to win. As it has been throughout history, it is a fundamental right to vote for the person who represents your views the best. Being united does not mean having the same opinion.

However, it seems like it used to be more possible to interact with those with differing opinions. People are quick to not only dismiss another point of view, but they are even cutting ties in their personal lives with people who fall on the other side of the political spectrum.

Condoning oppressive candidates and policies is not the way to go about this. If you feel that others do not deserve the same opportunities and treatment as you do, you do not deserve fair treatment in return.

 But refusing to talk or even attempt to work together is not a way to go about it either. It divides this country even further. This mentality does not make us any better than the people who put us in this position to begin with.

This strain that Americans have had in working together is strictly the result of the Democratic and Republican parties, and the hatred and inability they have to work together. This has trickled down to the citizens of America.

The parties put forth candidates that not everyone felt a strong pull toward. Candidates with troubling stances or rhetorics. Candidates who have been in the game for far too long and offer nothing fresh or new. Candidates not representative of the diversity America holds today.

This makes it hard to vote for any candidate, as while you may agree with some of a candidate’s fundamentals because of their party membership, your vote also codones the things about them that are problematic that you personally may not align with. 

The cliche “damned if you do, damned if you don’t” has never been more true.

Regardless of what you did with your vote, all that seems to matter now to modern day political parties is power. They will trample anyone who gets in the way of getting what they want. Their motive behind getting anything done is rooted in keeping their power. It feels like their constituents fall to the wayside. 

Politicians do not even do the courtesy of pretending to be cordial. They make it perfectly clear that they hate each other.

Bipartisanship no longer exists. Nobody is willing to have conversations, only screaming matches and wars over social media. 

The worst part of it all is that it will never let up. No matter what happens because of this election, a side has to lose and will undoubtedly be upset. There is no backing down and accepting any results on either end. It will be an endless cycle with constant fuel.

What happened to that “one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all?”

In the midst of all the election chaos, I found one story that actually brought me joy. In Utah, the two candidates for governor did a political ad together, encouraging citizens in their state to vote. They saw no point in bashing each other in separate political ads; regardless of the results, they would still have to work together.

Why couldn’t everyone be like that? Why has that become so difficult?

I do not support Democrats. I do not support Republicans. 

I support America. I support the principles that, even though it may not seem like it at times, we all want for this country.

The land of the free, where everyone has freedoms and rights and has opportunities to pursue a happy life. Where everyone is treated equally and with respect. 

We as Americans need each other, on both sides of the political spectrum, to be united. I am not asking everyone to like each other. A lot of times in professional settings you need to work with people you do not like and agree with. The same applies here.

We need to continue to educate each other and really consider what needs to be done in order for everyone in this country to thrive. We have to take matters into our own hands and not rely on politicians to do our bidding anymore.

If we cannot do this, we might as well call ourselves the “Divided” States of America. Shutting people out does not solve any issues. We need to start living up to our name; we need to be united.