There has never been a shortage of political division, but recently it has become much more noticeable, especially in our everyday lives.
Policy Uncertainty, as defined by Steven J. Davis of Chicago Booth Review, falls under three main categories:
- Uncertainty about who the decision-making body is or will be.
- Uncertainty about what policy decisions they will make.
- Uncertainty about how policies will affect the economy.
Uncertainty regarding the decision-making body is the most common aspect, as it simply covers being concerned about who will become the people in power.
Meanwhile, uncertainty regarding what policy decisions they will make has become more important to analyze as we live in an age where we see political figures making shallow promises. A key example of this is President Trump’s vow to end the War in Ukraine, as he has repeatedly said he would; however, he has yet to make a clear and decisive plan to carry that out.
The uncertainty about how the economy will be affected has also become more notable, particularly with President Trump’s controversial decision to implement tariffs on foreign imports, which has caused outrage for many who rely on foreign goods.
These all come together to form Political Uncertainty as a whole. A good example of this comes from the previous presidential election. All of this is something that not everyone takes the time to understand, but it is crucial to understand it, especially as you become an adult.
We are also living at a time when world conflicts are a major event that develops over the course of days, leading to fast progression within the political side of the conflict. This, combined with vastly differing political views in a time where anyone who has a different view or opinion can be seen as a threat to your freedom.
These small conflicts form a much bigger picture about how people are uncertain about how government actions and decisions will affect them, and how their own political opinions and views will be seen. This, in and of itself, can be a deterrent for younger generations, notably teens nearing adulthood, from becoming involved in politics.
This is only scratching the surface, as we now live in an age where the political divide has become so large that, often, people are being killed. Partly or completely for their political leanings and decision-making. Leaving people even more uncertain about the future of the country.
Following the assassination attempt of President Trump, along with the assassination of a Minnesota lawmaker in their own home, it has become even more noticeable that government officials are becoming targets more and more, while security for them is lacking, with President Trump cutting almost all protection from notable officials such as former Vice President Kamala Harris.
“Harris, according to people familiar with her security operations, faced particular security concerns given that she was the first woman and first Black woman in the role.” CNN found in a report done in April, “Those concerns only increased after she became the nominee, the people familiar with her security operations told CNN, and was still at a high level into January following the campaign, with feelings about the election still raw.”
This, in itself, is a problem, as moving forward, we can only expect these attempts to continue as political tensions rise and even non-governmental figures become targets. Just recently, Charlie Kirk, an American Political Activist, was shot and killed while making a speech at Utah Valley University. This marks a turning point as Kirk was someone who wasn’t directly related to the U.S. government. While we don’t know the motivations behind the shooting, it can be presumed that it was done for political reasons due to the circumstances in which it took place.
Kirk was seen as a youth leader when it came to politics, meanwhile, others have expressed that they saw him more “as a threat to democracy,” as one poster wrote on X. Regardless of this, since Kirk focused his speeches towards youth and younger generations, his death sparked outrage on nearly every social media platform, which brought to light another issue.
Those who posted on social media were either celebrating his life, which led to others condemning those people for wanting to. This sort of political divide has become more apparent through social media as more and more people are finding themselves being condemned for simply sharing their views and opinions, especially on sensitive topics like death.
We now live in a society where this has become normal, and whether you like it or not, it’s here to stay, meaning we should at least understand that a part of maturing, even if you are an adult, is being able to respect others when they disagree with you, and by no means should we resort to violence to solve these issues.
It is incredibly important to take the time to understand the fact that people can have differing opinions and that you, as a person, need to respect that. While you have the right to disagree, you should not go after people because of the choices they made.
