Political Preferences: Conflict of Choice

by Mat Joseph Dy

It would be a shame for journalists who value truth and victims of injustice to believe in something without credible sources, which makes me wonder if it is okay to cut ties over politics?

Unfriending people over politics is quite tricky. This scenario makes you wonder whether it is admissible to unfriend people over politics, but I generally think it is alright to unfriend someone. Politics is a serious topic. It can be viewed as a social concern as well. During the national election campaign in the Philippines, I was amazed by the diversity of the Filipino’s political ideas. What they believe is good for the country and who they support. Majority of my friends and I are unable to vote. However, we are still supporting a candidate. I asked my friends why they chose ‘this’ candidate, and they revealed their reasons. I agreed with some of their grounds, but there are certain points that I secretly beg to differ. They would often base their arguments and dispute their personal beliefs and opinion rather than credible facts.

Asking for facts means that you need more reasons to believe their rebuttal. Facts are verified thoroughly, so the points are actual. One’s argument is always their viewpoint on something that is sometimes not supported by facts. Opinions should always be based on facts, which means using the “respect my opinion” card is useless— not all opinions deserve respect. Having a political discourse needs to have facts to support our claims. Facts are searchable, and some are sitting right in a corner, waiting for people to be read.

Mistreating others because of political differences and disagreements is another reason to unfriend someone. Mistreating for not having the same political ideology shows who you are. I have witnessed this. They are treating other groups with different political beliefs in a barbaric way.

One of the representations of these cases are BongBong Marcos’ supporters against Leni Robredo’s supporters. The rage between their supporters is insane and unstoppable.

The campaign period caused the rise of misinformation and historical revisionism to cover up ‘this’ candidate’s history or to spread false information to damage the opposition’s image. Just like the memes, incorrect quotations in an interview, and satirical jokes.