How to be Political in the Digital Age

By Trevor Durham on February 5, 2016

The fact that you’re reading this little political article tells me a few things: you read news digitally, you read news, and you understand a bit of technology. These qualifications also entitle you to seeing the various issues of the world today (from local politicians to the Boko Haram massacres to Greece’s economic collapse). Today, we can see more problems than any time in human history. But we feel powerless to do anything. What do we do?

DO: Volunteer in your community.

Whoever destroys a soul, it is considered as if he destroyed an entire world. And whoever saves a life, it is considered as if he saved an entire world.” (The Talmud) Alternatively, “…if any one killed a person, it would be as if he killed the whole of mankind; and if any one saved a life, it would be as if he saved the life of the whole of mankind.” (The Quran, Chapter Five, Verse 32). There are many local schools, from elementary to high school, who could use members of the community to come in and help. Go speak on what you’re good at. Or volunteer at a place like Big Brothers, Big Sisters. Help out a charity. Get with local leaders and see where your actions can impact the world. It may not be complex politics, but it is the first step.

DON’T: Actively antagonize.

I know it seems powerful when you’re behind the glowing screen to yell your thoughts at somebody, actively insult, or frustrate the masses. But reconsider. Yelling at somebody or getting frustrated that somebody doesn’t share your view accomplishes nothing. Sure, share your information and sources, but statistically speaking, very few people leave a discussion thinking that they were wrong and learned something. Especially when it comes to any politics.

DO: Research.

You have the entire Internet at your disposal: Go beyond the first page on Google. Search multiple terms and phrases. Spend more than two minutes reading articles- you can find entire textbooks on the Internet. There are so many types of politics out there… Do you even know what the word politic means? You can learn a language, read ancient texts, find compilations of various sources… it’s incredible. And most of us just watch cat videos.

DON’T: Think the Internet is a joke.

Any slander, libel, or defaming things you post can, and will, be used against you in court. I learned this the hard way almost a decade ago, and it is certainly biting the people I know today. The Internet is not a playground. It is a permanent record of our actions, whether they are good or bad. Think about what you’re doing. Think about what politics you want to scream and insult. And be positive.

DO: Change the world.

We may just be a tiny fraction of the nearly eight billion souls on this planet. But every voice can be heard, even if by one person. We now have the entire civilized world a few keystrokes away. It’s really tempting to share that meme and watch Buzzfeed videos, but maybe spend a couple minutes today studying what’s happening around you in your home. Who is suffering? What services could use a new hand? Even volunteering at an animal shelter could cause a chain of events that saves lives. We don’t know. We can only try.

Do your best. Love. Politics are something that matter to all of us. And always keep up the good work.

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