Babbling About: Thinking In A Reactive World

#219: Politics doesn’t just feel loud right now, it feels personal, exhausting, and weirdly addictive. We’re sitting with that heavy tension so many of us carry after scrolling the news and social media: are we actually thinking anymore, or are we just reacting to whatever the algorithm puts in front of us?

We unpack how political polarization pushes everything into black or white choices, where nuance gets treated like weakness. We talk media literacy and propaganda, why “being informed” can quietly turn into “being influenced,” and what it feels like when public narratives don’t match what people can plainly see. From there we get real about voting as a responsibility, not a mood, and why “policy voter” versus “personality voter” misses the point when personality shapes how policies get enforced.

We also take on two topics that deserve more care than a comment section can hold: immigration and abortion. We talk about implementation, humanity, and context, then shift into faith-based voting, including what scripture says about mercy, humility, and loving your neighbor. We end with a challenge that’s both simple and hard: stay curious, ask better questions, and don’t let constant outrage replace your judgment.

If this resonates, subscribe so you don’t miss what’s next, share the episode with a friend, and leave a review to help more people find the conversation.

Transcript

Why Everything Feels Heavy

Johnna 0:00

What is up everyone? Welcome back to another episode of the Babbles Nonsense podcast. This week may be a little bit heavier because I don't know about you or if it's just me, but lately everything feels heavy. The news, social media, conversations, it's just constant. And it's not just what's happening, it's how it's affecting people. There's a lot of anger, division, reactions. And I've been sitting with this thought. Are we actually thinking anymore or are we just reacting to what's going on? So stay tuned because I'm going to dive into this. Well, first let me preface if you're not wanting to hear anything political, this may not be the episode for you because I am going to dive into what I feel is my opinion. Um, and I don't want to cause any more tension or heaviness in the world. So stay tuned if you're into all of this and want to hear my reaction. All right, guys, I first want to apologize for not putting out an episode last week and not even putting out an episode that I wasn't putting out an episode because I typically try to do that just so that people are like, is she still there? Yes, I'm still here. Work has just been busy. Life has been busy, life has been hectic and heavy, like I said in the intro. Um, and sometimes we just gotta pause and take a break so that we keep our sanity and all the things. Um, but yeah, I'm gonna try to do my best to explain my opinion on this episode. I don't want to have really an outline or an agenda, just real thoughts about the world we're living in right now and what it feels like to be someone who actually thinks in it. Because let's be honest, it is heavy. And I'm gonna emphasize the word heavy. And I think a lot of us aren't really confused. We're just exhausted from trying to make sense of things that don't really make sense in this world right now. Um, and I'll be honest, I may have to go back on my social media break because when I got back on, everything was fine. But then, of course, quickly, everything, the algorithms and everything politically going on in the world, it's consuming me. And I may just have to get back off. But somewhere along the way, everything, it almost like became black and white. You're either this or you're that, you believe this or you're wrong, and there's no space anymore for anything. Like we don't ful have to fully agree with each other, or we can agree to disagree, or I see both sides. It's almost like you either have to pick, and what's wild is the more you try to think critically, the more people look at you like, I don't know, you're the problem. Like you're indecisive or uninformed, but in reality, you're just not willing to blindly follow something that doesn't fully sit right with you. But before we get into it any deeper, I just want to say that I'm in no way a political scholar, in no way, am I. I'm sure I will say things incorrectly at some point in this podcast, but I've kept quiet on my platform, mostly with the exception of discussing how I felt about the Alex Predi case when it came to humanity. And even then, I tried my best not to make it political and just focus on the humanity of it all. But with everything that's been going on since I've been back on social media, which has literally only been two weeks, I just felt it was time. So I encourage you all to listen. Maybe you will learn or see a different perspective, or maybe you can reach out to me and teach me a different perspective. Because I'm all about listening and learning and growing. First, I just have to say I do not support this presidency. Um, I never have, and I most most likely never will. So I don't know if that comes as a shock to some people, but I don't. Politics are supposed to be about the policy, and I understand that. Well, first, let me just say that I used to actually never really care about politics. I used to tell my friends, just figure it out and tell me who to vote for, because I've always been that person who was like, politics are corrupt, my vote doesn't count, mostly because of what I was influenced in coming from a small town. Um, until recently, when I when you see all of this stuff and how it's affected, but really it's our vote that counts. Maybe, I don't know. We're not getting into conspiracy theories on this, but our vote and our voice does matter. So I just wanted to say that real quick. So what I was saying is yes, politics are supposed to be about the policy, but at some point, in my opinion, it's hard to look past the personality of a candidate and the rhetoric surrounding that policy that's being introduced. And that's not coming from emotion alone in me. That's coming from observation patterns and paying attention. And right now, with everything feeling so extreme, with every headline being dramatic, every conversation turning into an argument, no matter who you're speaking to, and every opinion feeling like it's coming from a place of, well, obviously, anger. And I don't think it's because people are suddenly more passionate about politics. I think it's because people are more emotionally manipulated than they've ever realized. We're constantly being fed things that trigger us, whether that be fear, outrage, frustration. And when everything feels so extreme, that truth kind of gets lost because people stop searching for what's right and start defending what they've already chosen, whether they even agree with it or not. Some conversations that I've had, people are not even agreeing with what I know their values and belief systems are. And we're not just being informed anymore, we're being influenced. We have also seen that in our government, and I like the the perfect example is with the Alex Predi case, where narratives were put online that were they were pushing things before the full facts were known, and conflicting statements from leadership were put out there, and the things that didn't line up, and then we saw as a nation the truth by the video, and that can create confusion in people, that can create distrust. And here's the thing: we all know propaganda exists, we all know that we are being lied to, but I think the problem is is we didn't ever really realize the full extent of it until now. Now that we have an example where we can say that didn't happen because there's more cameras than ever, there's more social media spreads like wildfire. It doesn't matter if you put something out there, you can't take it down. You personally may take it off your page, but once it's on the internet, it's out there. And when you see someone blatantly lie about something, when you saw something for yourself, but they're telling you you didn't, that is true gaslighting. I know gaslighting is overused and I know that people are like tired of hearing it, but that is truly what it is in itself. And we are also living in one of the most politically divided times in our most recent history, or probably history ever. Since the first election of Donald Trump in 2016, research from Pew Research Center shows that political polarization has significantly increased. And that also includes political violence. And that could be verbal, physical, whatever. People are way more divided. We see it. People are less willing to hear each other out and more likely to assume the worst about the other side. And we hear about far right, far left. And we forget about people being in the interim in the middle, but we can all feel that in real life currently. And I know that it's always been like, oh, the Democrats this or the Republicans that, and it was always been divided. But until that 2016 election, people were very quiet about who they voted for. And I do, in my personal opinion, feel like when administration gets on TV and starts talking very negatively about another party in a very condescending way, I guess, or unprofessional way, I feel like it gives people to feel the right to then start talking about, whether it be their friends, families, or whatever, in that same manner. And I'm not saying that all politicians are correct in the in the the as that they do or whatnot, but we've just never seen this kind of choice of words when it comes to debates and things like that than we have when it started in 2016. And that has been researched and facts are out there. You can look them up, they're out there. And now we have people saying that they didn't vote for this. And I know this part is going to irritate some people, so I'm gonna go ahead and apologize in advance. But your foe, your vote isn't just a reaction, it really is a responsibility. And that's something that I had to learn when I used to say, because again, I can put myself out there and say I was one of those people that truly didn't care, didn't care to educate, didn't care to research any of those things until it became so super important. But honestly, if we think about it, it's always been super important because we're cultivating a world not only for us, but for generations that come after us. So when you say your vote was simply because you were ready for a different change from the last administration, then I have to ask, did you actually read the policies? Because all of this that's going on right now was in there. Maybe not the war, but everything else was in the policies. And we all know that politicians lie, all of them. Our government is corrupt, all of them. They get rich off the backs of every hardworking American. So we know to some extent the policies they run on are most likely not the full truth. Like that's why I know some people say they don't vote. But we also have to think about the personality behind those policies. I've had conversations with family members where they have said that people are either personality voters or they're policy voters. Well, again, this goes back to the conversation I had at the beginning or the statement I said at the beginning. It's either this or it's that. Well, no, I think it's a little bit more nuanced than that. I think we have to look at both. I think personality is a big factor in politics. You could have the best policies, but the worst personality, or vice versa, you could have the best personality and crappy policies. I think it has to kind of go together. I don't think anyone is arguing that they don't want better policies, right? So the policies that were ran on this last election, whether that be immigration control, taxes, healthcare, I think what we're arguing about and what people don't want to say truly what the arg the argument is, is the implementation of that policy. That's the true problem. People, and I'll just use immigration as one of them because it's very controversial. Immigration, everyone's like, for example, if Democrats look at Republicans, they're saying, okay, you just want to deport everyone because it's an all or nothing statement, right? And then Republicans turn around and look at Democrats and say, you just want to let everybody in the country. I think there is a mix of that in between. And this is why I don't personally um um I'm not like I don't have a political affiliate. I don't consider myself a Democrat. I don't consider myself a Republican. Now, are there certain things that I agree more and kind of lean more towards? Probably. But that's just because of my values and my belief systems, and that's everyone. We're all entitled to that. But if we're talking about immigration, it can't, it's not always just black and white. Like we need to like if if immigration is the policy, let's have things in there like why is our country have so many laws and so many rules, and it takes people forever to be able to get into this country? Why do we allow certain people of certain races, certain descents, uh easier pathways into this country? Those are the policies that need to be changed if you want to talk about border control. We can't control other countries, but we also have to remember where we came from, and this was quote unquote the land of the free. And we all were immigrants at some point. I understand that there has to be policies in place because you know, we don't have limitless land, but also at the same time, I think there needs to be certain situations taken into account. And I do feel that that that is when personality does matter. Because when you're looking at these policies, and we'll just take immigration, for example. Um, I've seen a lot of people post like, well, Obama immigrated this many, or not immigrated, deported this many immigrants, and everybody's like, and nobody raised a finger or said anything about it. But we're not looking at the context, right? No one's saying that we don't need better policies, whether that be um better laws on how people can get here or you know, certain situations, because I personally have talked to immigrants when I worked in the ER and things that happened to them in their country, and of course, like anybody, for example, if you can't relate to this, then I don't even know what to say. But some parents will send their kids across the border because either they've been raped or you know, they don't whatever it may be, and they want a better life for them. And I don't see how anyone could sit there and say, Oh no, I would not do the same if it was your child. But regardless, Obama's presidency did it at the border. They weren't going into cities where the cities voted opposite of what maybe the certain president wanted, and going into people's homes and you know, giving them rules that they didn't have to follow, and all these things where it was less about the humanity of it. So I think that's where it gets a little tricky, right? Where people think that if you say you're against the way the protests um, or not the protests, but the way ICE was being handled in certain cities around the United States, it's not that they were protesting immigration, they were protesting how it was being handled. And again, that's when personality matters. And if you say you voted for him because Republicans lean more conservative, meaning more toward your faith, because I've seen that a lot. I do challenge you a little bit on that. And when I say challenging, I don't mean that I'm questioning someone's faith or suggesting that your beliefs are wrong. What I mean is that I'm offering a different perspective, specifically how someone might arrive at a different position, including their vote, while still being guided by their faith. So my intention isn't to invalidate anyone's beliefs, but to broaden the conversation and acknowledge that people can come to different conclusions from a place of sincerity and conviction. And so what I want to talk about here and bring up, which is one of the most controversial topics, is abortion. I try to lean away from talking about controversial topics, but this was a good example of faith-based voting. And again, not saying anyone's vote is wrong either way or the other because you're convicted in what is said to you and what you're led to do. But I just wanted to use it as an example and provide a different perspective. So I'm just gonna kind of start with if you're not in healthcare, you probably don't know that the word abortion can also mean miscarriage medically. And I know abortion has a very negative connotation on it because you automatically think elective abortion, but things that can also mean abortion are ectopic pregnancies that have to be, you know, aborted, um, miscarriages that fail, and you have to get a D and C to abort the rest of it. Those are medical things. And I'm sure if you've had a baby and you're listening to this, you've seen on your chart somewhere GPA that stands for gravita para abortion. And again, in the medical world, that means miscarriage. So for example, gravita means how many living children you have, para means uh or sorry, gravita means how many pregnancies you've had, para means how many living children you have, and then abortion typically means either elective or miscarriage. And I know some people are like, why doesn't it just say GPM? Well, because you have to account for the non-living since you have how many pregnancies you've had. So let's say you've had three pregnancies, then your gravita is going to be three, your para is gonna be two if you have two living pregnancies, and let's say you had one miscarriage. So it'd be three, two, one. Um, hopefully that makes sense and y'all are with me there. But also speaking from a healthcare perspective, these situations are not just they're not always black and white. These aren't political talking points when we're talking about someone's health. These are real women, they're real bodies and real consequences. Um, and I just feel like we shouldn't be judging other people for what they choose to do and what they believe in their faith is. And I'm gonna give a little bit more of an education course here. And this is where I do challenge you if you stated you voted based on faith. Because when we do look at scripture, um, I am trying to get more into Bible study. I'll I'll sit here and say I'm not the perfect Christian. I um just recently got more into church and more into my Bible and doing Bible study with a good friend. I didn't grow up in church and things like that. But scripture does say, for example, in Matthew 22, 39, love your neighbor as yourself. And we can relate this to, you know, if someone did have abortion, let's not judge, let's love them as we would love ourselves. Um, in Micah 6, 8, act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly. So I truly need someone to tell me why do we pick and choose which sins we turn into law? Like obviously, certain ones I understand, like thou shalt not murder, things like that, right? Because that affects everyone in itself. But in my personal opinion, I feel like sometimes we pick and choose which sins we put into law when it makes people feel uncomfortable, like abortion being one of them, gay marriage being another one, and the list can go on. We ignore the parts in scripture that call us to love, protect, and show mercy. And faith was never meant to be used as a weapon to control people, it was meant to be lived out in how we love them. And if we are truly discussing pro-life when we're discussing politics, why does life only seem to matter before it's born in this political culture? Why are we not voting or fighting for policies that feed children, support families, fix foster systems because we our foster systems are outnumbered right now? They are not well funded. Um, we have a horrible maternity and paternity system here in the United States. So, in my personal opinion, I don't feel like we can claim a pro-life if the concern ends at birth. I don't feel like that's pro-life. I feel like that's only pro-birth because it seems like people just magically forget that that child has to grow up. And again, I don't want anyone taking what I'm saying out of context and saying, oh, she believes in abortion. It's not that simple to me. I do not believe in it for myself, but I also cannot speak for someone else and what they believe in and what they're doing with themselves. All right, moving on to another way that people vote, and that can be sometimes that people vote based on who their family's voting for, what city they grew up in, maybe the culture they're surrounded with. And I think it's because sometimes we're just uninformed or overwhelmed by what is going on. So we'll say things like, My vote doesn't matter, I don't care, it's too heavy. But what that really sounds like is I don't want to engage because it's uncomfortable. And thinking for yourself really isn't easy. It means we have to sit in the gray area, it means we have to realize that we don't have all the answers, and it means being willing to say, I just don't know. And for a lot of people, that can be uncomfortable to do. So they grab onto certainty instead, even if that certainty may be shallow, maybe it's even incomplete for them because it feels safer than questioning everything, researching, sitting with that heaviness, having to watch the news, go to different news outlets, seeing what's fake news, seeing what's real. Because if you don't think for yourself, someone else will do it for you. In saying all of this, I know the world is very heavy right now, and I'll be honest. Sometimes I feel like we've gone past the point of no return, especially with all the things going on with the war with Iran, and you know, we have a president trying to depict himself as Jesus and then turning around and lying about it. But who knows? All I'll say is only God knows what's to come. And I have to come back to some scripture in Romans 12, too. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Because we don't just sit back, we get informed, we ask questions, we use our voice, we use our vote. And I don't think the goal is to have all the answers. I think that the goal is to stay grounded in your ability to think for yourself, maybe to question things when they seem a little off. Stay curious. Don't let it consume you. Do not let the noise override your judgment. Because in a world that's constantly trying to tell you what to believe in, the propaganda that's out there now with AI technology that you don't know what is real and what's not, choosing to think for yourself is honestly the most powerful thing we can do. So if this resonated with you and you're still here, you're probably someone who feels things very deeply and probably even thinks deeper. And you're not alone in that. Obviously, that's how my mind works, and that's why I felt so compelled to do an episode. And again, it was all over the place, but that's what this is. Um, this world may be loud, but there are still people out here who are choosing awareness over reaction, and I truly think that matters. So if you're still here and you think this resonated with you, share it with a friend, and I will try to maybe articulate better for a different episode. So until next time, guys, bye,