There appears to be more political violence lately. These days, the U.S. President, Mr. Biden, has conveyed concerns that there will be political violence. The speaker’s husband has been attacked in his home. Conspiracy-influenced poll watchers are wearing tactical gear and staking out ballot drop boxes, for fear of election fraud. Many experts are worried about the potential for violence. [1] This all involves emotion, but no one talks about emotion, because they think it is a soft or even irrelevant topic. In truth, it is a critical, central topic.
In recent times, speakers have said that others when speaking should tone down their political rhetoric. They may not be aware that rhetoric conveys emotion. What the journalists and politicians call rhetoric is more than that. Synonyms for rhetoric are bombast, hyperbole, fustian or even flowery language[2]. But the true aspect that dictionaries, journalists and politicians are trying to say is that rhetoric delivers emotion and contagion. The implicit emotion of the speaker is conveyed in the rhythm, cadence and tone conveyed in the oration or enunciation of the words. This is how contagion is delivered or conveyed, in the effect of the emotion that impacts the receiver’s unconscious, having them believe something about conscious consideration. Anger and rebelliousness can be conveyed this way, as can other emotions.
Few people in politics and few journalists talk about the importance of emotion. But emotion is critical in politics and stability. Emotions of anger, aggression, rage and hate convey violence. You can’t have political violence without the emotion that drives it. So, let’s talk about the emotion. The emotions of anger, aggression, disrespect and rebellion drive it. The feelings of entitlement, about having what we want when we want it, even if we have to take it for ourselves, are involved. This is a lack of respect and a desire to take for ourselves what we want, even if it is not the way of the majority. The lack of cooperation involves a reluctance to accept the authority of the country, to accept the boundary and the regulation involved. We will kill, kidnap, lie and steal our way to power. These actions and attitudes feed of the underlying emotion.
Emotions along these lines are being spread, and widespread feelings of rebellion, revolt and upheaval are spreading throughout the land, it would seem. But this is not certain, we assume that many in the population are spreading and catching it, but this just might be fear spreading this rumor, because fearful emotions are contagious, and emotions don’t think.
It is natural that there would be much fear at a time like this. Fear of political violence, destruction and mayhem is natural after the various incidents of mayhem and destruction that America has seen in the last few years. Fear of injury, death and other atrocities is natural. Fear is contagious and can easily spread. And fear and hate provide the impetus for violent action.
Let’s look at the data. According to the Pew Research Centre, there are 56% of Republican voters who say they think the midterm elections in the U.S. will be administered very or somewhat well, with just 11% saying they will be run very well. In 2020, 50% of Republican voters expected the presidential election to be run well, and 9% very well. It seems to be increasing. But it is much lower than the 87% of GOP voters who said this in October 2018, shortly before the last midterm election, when the Republicans were in power. The move in the percentage seems to reflect the move in the polls and in the government.
While this is not as widespread as our emotions may tell us, it is still a significant concern. Emotions make it sound worse than it is, but the decrease from 87% to 50% of Republican voters who do not expect the midterm election to be run well is still very alarming. But emotions are still very critical.
The numbers have changed dramatically because of the effects of emotions, not because of the effects of rational thinking. Emotions like fear and hate are contagious and rub off on people very easily because they tap into the similar, but implicit emotions others have and wake them up, arouse them, bringing them out. People don’t think when that happens, when their emotions come out, they just react, automatically, changing opinions with them as their emotions erupt and come out. Instead, they should think, do they really want to act on that feeling, do they really want to have that feeling, is the feeling called for now, could they ignore the feeling, is it their feeling? Do they believe any message the feeling brings?
Emotions carry simple messages, and the message that an election will, or will not, be run well is a simple message. The idea that an election will be stolen, or rigged, is also a simple message, based on fear and paranoia, not on fact. The idea that democracy is in chaos is also a simple message and can be spread by emotions very easily, almost legitimizing it as a fact. It relates to the fear of election fraud. More people than usual in the U.S. want to be poll watchers because they believe in conspiracies that the elections are stolen. This is another simple message, easy to react to, and easy to believe if one is already distrustful and cynical and believes that all politicians and government agencies are corrupt.
But there is no evidence that the election was stolen. To establish that, if it were true, takes thought, calculations, and likely mathematical and statistical formulas. It means people have to look at numbers and data and think about them, by comparing some numbers to others, and ensuring that they have the correct and complete data. It also means people have to trust data and numbers collected, likely, from someone else, such as an assistant, a polling clerk and perhaps a graduate student. And, of course, all this would have to occur in each of the U.S. states. People who are distrustful and believe in conspiracies would have difficulty achieving that trust of the numbers. It is easier to skip all this and go with one’s emotions of suspicion and just jump to the conclusion that elections are stolen, without evidence. Likely many people, especially in the field of politics, are suspicious and distrustful by nature these days. But is it really true that people are so bad, mean, unscrupulous and ruthless that they would fudge or steal votes? All of the helpers at the polls? Each and every single one? In each and every state? And no one would report this to the media? No, it is common sense that this wouldn’t happen. Maybe a few, but not in such large numbers that the entire election would be stolen. That would be a large conspiracy in itself that wouldn’t pass media or public scrutiny. It would be bound to slip out into the news.
Because these basic emotions of fear and hate, which drive distrust and suspicion, are contagious, they spread easily. And emotions speak for themselves. They carry a lot of power, but they do not think because they move fast. In the present times where social media and click-bait dominate, fast, automatic, reflexive thinking have become common ways of reacting, and the polls and the media pick them up and report them very quickly, building more alarm. Instead, take the time to think it through in detail and you will find the truth. As they say, the truth is in the pudding, not in the advertising and rumors about the pudding.
It is better to consider various thoughts about such issues as hypotheses, possibilities, and look to see what evidence could prove or disprove it, rather than just assuming they are true without evidence. Emotions don’t think, the mind thinks, and needs to be used with critical thinking and systematic reasoning, such as through the use of data. This topic is so important that we owe it that.
[1] https://www.npr.org/2022/11/01/1133375222/concerns-of-political-violence-loom-days-before-the-midterms
[2]https://www.thesaurus.com/browse/rhetoric