Image Credit, Matt C
The upcoming presidential election will undoubtedly be framed as a battle between candidates, a contest of policies, and a test of America’s democratic ideals. But when the dust settles, it won’t be the candidates who emerge as the real winners. It won’t be the incumbents who secure their seats or the challengers who overthrow them. The eventual president, whoever that may be, won’t be the true victor. And it certainly won’t be the American people. The only real winners will be the advertisers, the TV networks, the newspapers, and the social media platforms—all vying for a piece of the more than $10 billion in ad dollars that will flood the airwaves and the internet in the lead-up to the election.
The reason why there will be no winners, except for those who profit from the spectacle, is because it’s the American people who are being victimized. Over the last year, they’ll be subjected to tens of thousands of hours of vitriol—videos, divisive memes, cartoons, images, photos, tweets, texts, slander, hate, racism. Everything nasty that one can imagine will become part of the fabric of their daily lives, all under the banner of free speech. Yes, that good old thing called the Constitution, which was once a beacon of hope, has now become a shield for the most toxic forms of expression.
It’s a sad state of affairs when countries like Canada can have their elections within 30 days, limiting the vitriol to a month or two, while the American people are forced to endure a grueling two-year marathon of mudslinging and fearmongering. At the end of the day, one must ask: Is it worth it? Sure, the endgame is power—unimaginable, unlimited, unchecked power—but in the pursuit of this elusive ultimate power, we are destroying the nation’s psyche. We are tearing at the very fabric of our society, driving an ever-widening wedge between citizens.
Again, is it worth it? The answer seems clear. The pursuit of power at any cost is not only destructive but deeply shortsighted. It may bring temporary victories to those who win elections, but the long-term consequences for the country are devastating. The relentless barrage of negativity and division sows distrust, erodes social cohesion, and leaves a trail of bitterness that lingers long after the ballots are counted.
In the end, the question we must all grapple with is whether this is the society we want to create—a society where the quest for power trumps the well-being of its people, where the profits of a few outweigh the mental and emotional health of millions. The true cost of our current electoral process is not measured in dollars but in the damage done to our collective spirit. And when we look back, we may realize that the price we paid was far too high.
About The Author
