A Story of Ideological Indoctrination
I can remember when I was in first or second grade and lined up along the hallways were voting boxes. Inside each of the private cubbies was a ballot in which students could vote for either Barack Obama or Mitt Romney, and then turn the ballot in to simulate voting.
The mock voting was a bit fun — it was time out of class — but I remember feeling so awkward after the vote. Walking back to class, I would hear: “My dad told me that Republicans…” and “My mom told me that Democrats…” among many other comments.
Years later, I am writing these thoughts down thinking, “What was the purpose of this mock vote?” The more probable answer would probably be that the school set it up as a fun and trivial activity; a chance for students to feel more adult-ish.
But a more sinister thought comes to mind: Was it a form of ideological indoctrination?
Since, essentially, the dawn of this nation, the United States citizens have lived under an unfortunate two-party system. Whether it’s the Federalist vs. the Anti-Federalists or the Republicans vs. the Democrats, the United States has firmly established a duopoly of ideology.
But you are probably asking: “Okay, sure, the United States has a two-party system; what’s wrong with this?”
The primary issue with a two-party system is that it funnels voters into set ideas. For example, today, the United States has two “distinct” parties — the Democrats and the Republicans — but are they as distinct as people make them out to be?
Here’s a little challenge: read this list and see if you can think of the main theme of each “contrasting” view point:
1. The Democrats want to go to war against Israel, while the Republicans want to go to war against Palestine.
2. The Democrats want to increase regulation on guns, while the Republicans want to increase regulation on drugs.
3. The Democrats want to restrict private healthcare, while the Republicans want to restrict abortions.
In each case, you might be thinking, “Clearly, the parties hold different views so it is unreasonable to say that they are similar.” But if you were paying close enough attention, you may have found the underlying notion of each point:
1. The Democrats and the Republicans are warmongers.
2. The Democrats and the Republicans want to limit individual freedom within the home.
3. The Democrats and the Republicans want to regulate economic transactions.
While the underlying ideologies are different (liberals vs. conservatives), the elected officials end up supporting similar ideas to one another; and this broad, authoritarian box that voters have been forced into is purposeful: Expansion of federal power.
Nonetheless, I digress, these are generalizations, as some Democrats love guns and some Republicans are fine with abortions. However, in both cases, this is, inherently, arguing against the two-party system. Why should you, a loving-gun Democrat, or you, an abortion-complacent Republican, be forced to vote under the same party as the hating-gun Democrats and the anti-abortion Republicans?
Note that I am not arguing for centrism — an ideology that dissolves into the same broad and authoritarian ideology — but arguing for a more nuanced approach to politics.
It is fine if you are truly a Democrat or truly a Republican, I disagree with both parties immensely, but that is fine. However, what happens to everyone else that isn’t okay with these two parties? Think of the monarchists, the communists, the anarchists, and the free-market capitalists, all left powerless as regulation deems them incompatible with the system the United States has so firmly established.
These claims I am making aren’t anything too controversial either, most people actually agree with me when I talk about this. Any logical individual sees the necessity of competing political ideologies; it is the backbone of achieving an effective country in all regards.
So while the mock voting in elementary school may have not been a direct form of ideological indoctrination, it sure acts as a proper representation of the belief-system funneling that American citizens have been blind to for centuries.
It is time for the American citizens to rise up against the propaganda and instead, foster an attitude that welcomes competing ideologies for the mass betterment of our country.
Thank you for taking the time to read this article! I hope you found it informative and engaging.
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Stay curious!
