The Politicization of the West
Who knew that the maxim, the “personal is the political” would become so relevant in modern-day politics and society? Today, everything is politicized. Everything from our speech to our beliefs is more politicized than ever. Our modern culture has become flooded with political commentary, whether we wanted it or not. Movies nowadays kowtow to the political trends of the day, more overtly and with a less meaningful message, than it used to. The social commentary epics of yesterday are gone and are now replaced with politically correct culture and diversity pandering. News media is the same story. News once used to state the facts and let the listener decide whether the information is relevant. Nowadays, new channels like Fox and CNN spend less time stating the facts, and more time giving biased commentary. Our politics has become more monetized as ever. That politics can be monetized is not the problem. The problem lies with the people monetizing it — the general populous. It all comes down to this. Where culture used to determine politics, politics now determines culture. And that has created a suffocating, divided West.
One of the great reasons that we are losing a common culture in the West, is due to the politicization of things. Back in the 50s, people of all political beliefs and backgrounds could come together, sit down, and talk about life without politics getting in the way. As the personal became the political after the 70s, we have been starting to see a divide forming. It has all come to its head now, in modern America, where conservative and liberal partisans hardly communicate with each other anymore without spitting an insult in between. This has all created a certain bitterness in national politics as well. People no longer simply attack beliefs but also attack the person saying it. Who cares if President Trump had an affair? At least he has been doing a fairly good job at the presidency. Equally, why does President Trump feel the need to name call Joe Biden? In a normal world, people would disagree with President Trump or Joe Biden for their convictions, not who they are. This bitter politics at the top cycles all the way back down again to the general culture, where it all started. When the people at the top start becoming increasingly hostile to each other, people at the bottom inevitably start doing so as well.
If there is one reason that youth have become disillusioned with politics, it is certainly due to the failure of our modern culture to be a proper arbiter of discourse. The youth vote across Western countries are as low as ever. Moreover, the youth who are interested in politics share one thing in common: they usually are in favour of radical change. Support for democratic socialism in the West is often found within younger demographics. This is often coupled with a dislike of modern politics and social structure. That fact remains, you overthrow the system your land was built on if you don’t dislike that system is the first place. That support for radical change is at a high, is an indicator that something has gone wrong in our society. The politicization of it, certainly has not helped the cause. Only, it has widened the divide within our land.
