Imagine it’s 2024, Trump runs for presidency again, and he wins.
The Democrats, surprised by the results in a few counties, ask for a forensic audit of the voting machines but some get denied, “there’s no evidence”.
1/N
But you do already want to respect it! Perhaps, you even believe that your candidate did lose, but now you get suspicions because the Republicans are dismissing the claims of foul play rather than investigating them.
How can you know that elections are fair, if claims of wrongdoing are dismissed?
You get angry.
Of course elections were fair. There was no evidence of interference.
And most of the claims got investigated.
But you, a Democrat, don’t know that. You heard Republican representatives dismissing claims.
You used to have a “sportive rivalry” with the members of the other party. Different political opinions, but still fellow countrymen.
Now, though, you begin to see at least some of them as enemies of your country.
The media platform said that it was done to de-escalate violence.
But you see it as a threat to free speech, and thus to democracy.
For them, it was a de-escalatory act. For you, it’s escalatory.
On the other hand, the Republicans don’t understand. They see the few Democrats that call for violence. Of course they won’t listen.
I hesitated to write this post. For one, I’m not American and I have no business to discuss American politics.
OTOH, I thought it could be of value, at least for some. I’ve heard a similar speech (google “A radical experiment on empathy”) and it was life-changing.
