Too Much Politics

A recent New York Times editorial suggested I, as a reader, quit talking about politics with others. The article suggested that political banter is keeping party invitations away, or keeping friends at bay. After talking about this with my grandmother, I think the problem is a layer deeper. I think I need to stop thinking about politics.
Every single day I check Reddit to look with tired eyes at the latest uproar in the political sphere. Every day delivers spectacle without fail. From the water quality in Flint, Mich. to Russian interference on social media, to whatever Trump decided to drop on my Twitter timeline, every day of political news brings its own series of woes. These are ‘bigger’ topics in the grand scheme of the daily news cycle; so often my gray matter is consumed by that one thing Marco Rubio said, or that just awful remark Bernie Sanders made that will be forgotten by almost all sentient life in a month’s time.
And oh my goodness, what a mental toll it takes to feel ‘up to speed.’
If somebody mentions any of these firestorms, I feel compelled to respond. I read this very upsetting thing in an article, and now a friend wants to discuss this very upsetting thing too. The result is too often two upset friends and nothing gained from it.
This might sound like neglect of our ‘duty’ as citizens. After all, democracy only thrives when the lot of us are informed and interested in our country’s affairs. But I don’t have much to show for the vast majority of my political browsing. If I stopped looking at the news for three weeks, would my life change? Would the system change? Would anything change other than a newfound sense of freedom?
Of course, I still plan on researching midterms. If nuclear war starts, I’ll probably know. But by and large, politics do not affect me or change my life in a way that warrants the commensurate agony. Why do I need to know about what crazy thing the governor of Maine said? I close my eyes and think, “What is important to you, Collin?” Maybe the time and agony spent on national political hot-topics might be better spent somewhere else. Local politics? Maybe on my friends and schoolwork? Maybe on fleshing out my own ideas?
I’ll still keep up with this stuff because my willpower often fails me. I will probably even write about it. But I envision a world where politics is in its right place; a place that is not at the front of my mind.
Collin Hall is the grandson of the Herald publisher and the editor of the Tartan, Gordon College