How We Can Heal Our World- The World of Social Media

Some people may argue that this election brought out the worst in people, to some extent that may be true. I have seen everything on social media from “ kick that Muslim out the white house” and “We don’t want a Mormon president.” Both statements reek of anger and hatred. So where do we go from here? Do we remain red Facebook profiles and blue Facebook profiles or do we just go back to being human?

Here’s my prescription for this bad case of virtual negativity and divide:

The common theme in all these political posts is passion. Passion is powerful. Passion can turn into action. But what action has our passion for political parties turned into? We can still decide that. We have the opportunity to take that passion and use it for good. But first we need to get past the hatred.

Imagine a world where everyone had the same beliefs and no one got into an argument. We all liked the same foods, all believed in the same religion, we all had the same ideas for our country, we all studied the same subjects, we all vied for the same jobs, we all had the same music tastes and all agreed that Mac’s are better than PC’s.

What would happen?

We would cease growing. Ideas would not be circulated. Life would be boring.

Let’s respect our friends for having conviction and passion for their political beliefs. Obama supporters be humble, Romney supporters open your minds to accepting or at least respecting our president because if he succeeds, so does this country.

Both groups of people, ask yourself this:

When I first met this person who is my friend on Facebook did I ask their political affiliation or did I ask about their hobbies, friends, classes, job? Often we do not befriend people based on political beliefs we befriend people based on their personality, commonalities, and how they make us feel.

In the words of the president: “we may have battled fiercely but it’s only because we love this country deeply.”

I believe its only a matter of days before adorable kitten pictures, new fashion trends, daily experiences, movie recommendations and inspiring posts will once again be “liked” on Facebook by both political parties and it’s only a matter of days until our profiles are no longer red or blue.

Let us focus on the love we all have for America and let that love unite us all. In the aftermath of the election, vote for love not hate because when love prevails, beautiful things happen.

So try this:

Find the nearest Facebook friend who you may have exchanged nasty words with online and simply like a status, comment something positive on a photo.

We are all people and we all want life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness and most of all we want people to share it with.

JS