Guest: To rid our system of 'hate politics,' we must use our vote as the cleansing agent
Our America is at a crossroads. Our democracy is on a path of destruction, not from an external force, but an internal force. Our current path is littered with false, misleading, derogatory and fantasy-based conspiracy statements made by politicians and their supporters. Hateful political statements distributed through modern communication channels are more invasive and damaging than ever.
Cellphones, TV coverage, social media and other means not available in the past are today used to repeat statements made and actions taken that corrode our democracy like a leaking container of acid. Unfortunately, it will only get worse as artificial intelligence (AI) is used more and more by politicians, their advisers and supporters to influence voters. Sophisticated AI tools can create cloned human voices and realistic images, videos and audio with lightning speed. When connected to existing social media programs, AI can spread hateful and false messages to targeted audiences taking hateful campaign messages to a new low. The use of hate in political campaigns will become more effective, yet less discernible. Truth is being replaced by what I call “hate politics.”
Hate politics is doing more than just helping a candidate get elected. It is being used by unscrupulous politicians in eliminating social and ethnic diversity of all forms in our America today. Gender, immigration, sexual orientation, race and ethnics are just a few of the targets of hateful political comments and actions. Accusations generating hate do not end with just these subjects. Politicians attack various elements of our democracy by proposing replacement of some government systems with a dictatorial system.
Oklahoma is no exception to hate politics. Hate politics is most often driven by political party affiliation that crosses state borders. Oklahoma’s public education system is an example. Ryan Walters, Oklahoma’s state schools superintendent, has made a policy statement telling lawmakers he wouldn’t consider federal grants that don’t align with Oklahoma values. He wants to make changes in line with his ideologies as he alone sees fit. I have to ask, “Whose Oklahoma values?” Walters says diversity, equality and inclusion (DEI) efforts are Marxist, so he wants to eliminate funding that incorporates learning these subjects in schools, including universities. DEI represents Oklahoma values to many. His statement, along with calling teacher unions terrorist groups, are examples of using hate to implement his personal ideologies.
Today in our America, including Oklahoma, there is an abundance of hate politics. Hate is a feeling with underlying hostile activity. Extensive human psychology research has determined that hate is a multi-dimensional emotion that can result in a person doing drastic things impulsively. Psychological research also has shown that a person’s vote is most often driven by emotional impulses while subconsciously ignoring key facts and details that could contradict these impulses.
Political candidates are aware of how hate influences voters. Hate is a highly communicable “disease.” It can quickly become an insidious form of discrimination that is self-perpetuating. It is up to every voter to help “clean up” our political system. Cleanup starts by using our vote as the cleansing agent. To do this, we should vote only for candidates who tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth while avoiding statements that incite hate.
Alan Simpson, a close friend of former President George H.W. Bush, said this at President Bush’s funeral: “Their mothers always told them: 'Remember, hatred corrodes the container it’s carried in.'”
We should get rid of and not elect “corrosive political containers” in our public governing systems.
Richard C. Hall, of Norman, served 30 years in federal civil service and retired as a division manager.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Guest: We must vote out those who spread 'hate politics'
