this post was submitted on 10 Feb 2025
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It seems that people like being in crisis, rather than having stability. (lemmy.world)
submitted 2 days ago by [email protected] to c/whitepeopletwitter
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[–] sugar_in_your_tea 2 points 1 day ago

Americans just aren’t compelled to perform their civic duty

Maybe, it could also be that voting feels like a waste of time in the majority of states where the outcome is pretty much known after the primaries.

For example, I live in Utah. The R candidate will win by more than 15 percentage points even if a popular independent runs against him (e.g. Evan McMullin). On my ballot, some seats aren't even contested because everyone knows running against the R is a waste of time and money. I've considered running if only to give people in my district a choice, and I'd probably get 20% of the vote as a protest, but still lose even with an incredibly strong campaign. Even for many of the non-partisan seats, candidates get endorsements by R office holders.

If that's what happens every single time, why bother voting?

I still vote and am disappointed every single time, mostly because I feel it's my civic duty. And apparently 69% of Utah does as well, though I guess something like 60% of those like the outcome of the election.

  1. I'm guessing this is true in most parts of the world
  2. Same as 1, though going to rallies also don't really matter IMO. Real work is done through lobbies.
  3. The US is #5 for most charitable donations. There are multiple ways to care for your community.
  4. Look no further than here on lemmy to see that this isn't an American thing. People are tribal, and going with the group is way easier than thinking for yourself.

This is all stuff I have actually heard or seen ppl say.

Sure, and I've heard people say exactly the opposite. Be careful about your own biases and get a larger sample than just your personal interactions. That's why we have polls and studies.

I really don't think this is unique to the US, I think it's pretty common for humanity as a whole.

That said, there are certainly things to dislike about American culture, and as an American, I certainly have plenty of my own. However, there are also a lot of things to like about American culture.

I highly recommend you look for the good instead of the bad, because you'll find it.