“The very existence of a two-party system of government is designed to create duality, separation, and thus, opposition. Those truly in power have used the age-old, ever-successful method of pinning the public against each other in order to create a cloud of dust around the decisions truly being made and their effects on the public.

Imagine a potion being concocted by the wealthy corporate and political elites. There are a number of ingredients tactical to both maintain their power and build their wealth. It all revolves around domesticating and brainwashing the public into believing and acting against their own best interests, and done so under the guise of democracy and freedom. Here are some of those ingredients:

Fear. Both parties add a dollop of fear, though the Republican party is especially tactical in their usage. Right now, right wing media is filled with rhetoric around an ‘unrecognizable America’ if Biden wins the election, a scheme by Democrats to take our liberties away, etc. Generally unfounded on evidence, this fear-mongering rhetoric leads to irrational views and actions by the people in its wake.

Beyond just the media, fear is a natural reaction to change. Amidst one of the greatest eras of transformation in the world’s history, naturally a large percentage of the population has reacted with profound fear of the unknown. This is a natural reaction, yet a hurdle of being human that we are evolving through. Until our collective consciousness has evolved, this fear of the unknown will be easy pickings for those in power looking to manipulate large masses of the public.

Values. Certain ‘values’ have been politicized to such an extent that a single value alone can dictate one’s entire political affiliation. This is especially true within the Republican platform. Values such as gun rights, religious views (anti-abortion, alliance with Israel), anti-immigration hostility, distrust of government, amid many others, are often such strong views that they trump all else in regards to political affiliation. The more locked in to any one of these values, the more antagonistic the other side seems.

Dishonesty. The public is being fed news through a few select vessels of their choosing. Yet all news is filtered somehow, all news is funded somehow, and thus, all news is biased somehow. Each political parties play by their own ‘games’, relatively, however they share a common theme of sugarcoating reality to protect their image. Thus, like a wheat mill, the media is distorting reality, and we are being fed this processed version. We can only be so ‘woke’. Whether subtle distortion or blatant dishonesty (as the GOP has normalized), feeding the public a smorgasbord of distorted reality is guaranteed to stir up confusion and disdain.

These three ingredients are key in the potion of our political divide. They have, for centuries, been successful means for maintaining power and compounding wealth among the ‘sheep herders’, and today, a modern-day updated version of the same software is still being used to herd the sheep around. I believe we are en route to evolving through this model, however have a ways to go. Until then, we must continue to strive for truth, maintain presence, and call out injustice whenever and wherever possible.”