Political passions blind reason

We can regret, with all strength, the shameful scenario that has been built...

We are at a time when a problem is getting worse every day: polarization.

This term is – shall we say – at its peak in our country, especially when we deal with politics. The extremes stand up to show their claws with irrational attacks, where the intention is only to assert their own opinion and for that to happen, they are capable of destroying each other.

Cases of confrontations and even violence are common in our society and we can regret, with all our strength, the shameful scenario that has been built by defenders of political images, forgetting to think about the projects through which the necessary changes in Brazil are possible.

There is a struggle (like a tug-of-war) between “right” and “left”.

They are poles that will never understand each other, because their ideals are defended at any cost, which spreads the idea that the fight is not for the people, but for personal and party interests. For there to be understanding between one side and the other, it is necessary to come to the middle and look with impartial eyes and without passion.

We cannot escape the following questions:

Are we living in a period of “political dumbing down”? (Some say we've been living like this for a while).

What political education are our children and young people receiving in their homes and, mainly, in schools and colleges? Can they think for themselves or just follow the “vibe” of leaders who vehemently expose themselves for the causes of their flags?

The reality is that, unfortunately, we see many young people on the streets shouting and waving flags to defend ideologies without – at least – knowing their causes and effects. They don't want to learn to think politically, but they are led to think partisanly. They have ready-made answers that come from people who dress in activism, but do not behave like activists.

This extremist stage demeans the sense of compromise we need to have in order to rationally look at the situation as a whole. Taking a moderate position seems to be synonymous with fragility or indecision, as they anchor credibility between “right” and “left”. A reality that, each year, is labeling Brazil as a country with no solution. They are politically passionate and blind to their theses.

When we are at one end, we have something either in excess or in need. This happens if we are far from the middle ground, which is the virtue of justice.

So I ask: Is there virtue in political polarization?

For the Greek philosopher Aristotle, justice is not part of virtue, but it is it in its entirety because it occurs in the middle ground. That is, the more extreme we are, the less fair we will be in our thinking and in our actions.

He said something very important that I bring below:

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“Virtue is a mean between two vices, one due to excess and the other due to lack. And so, with regard to the substance and the definition that establishes its essence, virtue is a mean. It is necessary, therefore, to speak of these two, in order to better understand that in all things the mean is praiseworthy and the extremes neither praiseworthy nor correct, but worthy of blame". (ARISTÓTELES. 322 AEC).

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Such an argument makes us cry out for empathy, because we are too angry and this makes us reject the counterpoint. We cannot confuse “conflict of ideas” with “personal confrontation”, because the political debate of the extremes does not invite us to a dialogue, but to a war of name-calling and offenses.

Where are we going to stop?

If you, the reader, also have this perception, then we can only cry out for empathy to those who raise their party flags, because a fair and coherent country is made by the middle ground.

Anderson Cruz.

Writer, therapist and graduate student in philosophy.