Do not be a fanatic

By Joshua Corcuera

 

The 2020 elections in America were over and a long period of campaign has come to an end. It is clear that the US election between Democrat Joe Biden and Republican Donald Trump is a divisive one. It has been apparent that during the campaign period, there are numerous personal attacks and insults hurled by both candidates — more often Trump — to one another.

It does not end there as well since their supporters commit the same attacks to each other which is because of their strong and unwavering support for the candidate they hope would win. Of course, not all supporters are fanatics but there certainly are a few who blindly support someone.

This is especially true in the Philippines. There are many fanatics in our country on both sides of the political spectrum, both the DDS and the Dilawans — though, from a personal perspective, I notice that most fanatics belong to the former. One can be considered a fanatic of any political side when that person is motivated by an extreme and often unquestioning enthusiasm, devotion, or zeal for either side.

As we can see, politics — as it has always been — is a divisive and polarizing issue. With social media, however, people from opposing sides are pushed further away from one another. When a controversial issue becomes viral, in social media at least, it is normal for people to take sides and defend their claims.

In some cases, though, fanatics would defend their stand to lengths that are extreme. And by extreme, it means defending claims in a manner that is often wrong and unjust — one that includes false accusations, such as red-tagging even if there is lack of evidence, and threatening remarks.

Henceforth, we should remind ourselves that fanaticism and blind obedience would not make society ideal. One reason is that people would blindly believe in what they merely see or hear — even if what they see or hear are mere lies fabricated and masqueraded to be the truth.

Another reason is that people would not be able to acknowledge or admit mistakes and, consequently, be unable to correct such wrongs. These can be observed in people who are fanatics of a certain politician. They would defend to the death the person they idolize even when there is strong evidence proving that their idol has committed a wrongdoing. Case in point, those who support a corrupt politician convicted by an independent judicial authority.

Now, that fanaticism clearly does not help society, we must avoid being fanatics of a certain political entity. Our loyalty should never belong to a person or to a political party. Rather, we should swear allegiance and be faithful to our nation. Only through this shared value of patriotism and duty can we heal the divides and move forward together.

Nothing is wrong if people would disagree with one another on a particular issue, but they should always bear in mind that the beliefs and ideas they believe in are intended for the sake of the common good — and not to satisfy their fanaticism.