DISCLAIMER: No political stances were taken or harmed in the writing of this article.

As the Presidential race heats up, so does everyone in the world. I’ve become so accustomed to political memes, posts, and rants on Facebook that I barely notice them, although I do think it’s amazing that my generation is so in tune with politics. However, I don’t like the conflict and hate I see swarming around my life because of it. Whether or not you’re “feeling the Bern”, or “making America great again”, you are still a human. I’m a human, you’re a human, Bernie Sanders is a human, and Donald Trump is a human, and Hilary Clinton is a human (see where I’m going with this?) As opposite as all of these individuals may seem, it’s diversity of this degree that makes the world go round (and also causes obnoxious people to spark Facebook fights pertaining to political views).

1. It’s Actually a Good Thing to Have Altering Views.

In a world where many current events are hashed out publicly on the internet, it’s important to remember that it’s completely fine to disagree with somebody’s political views. The only thing that isn’t fine should with this scenario is the people who can’t accept that people disagree with them. Oddly enough, we function on a two party system BECAUSE We have different opinions. That way, we can see different issues handled and developed in different ways, since thankfully we no longer have to get on a horse and drive to the nearest general store or tavern to catch the hottest political news. I mean, technically you could go to a tavern and discuss politics, but somehow I just don't think your night is going to end well if you do that.

2. I Don’t Have to Agree with You.

Think about it: If EVERY single one of us agreed on exactly who should be president, how they should do it, and why they should do it, we would literally be a world full of clones. I know numerous girls who get pissed off if they encounter someone with the same shirt as them, so I am pretty sure this clone world would not work. When people feel the need to constantly remind me why my political decisions are wrong, I feel the need to ignore theirs even further. In an ideal world, people would keep their opinions to themselves and not spark fights. If you are one of those people who cannot handle the presence of someone who has a different political views as you (unless they are obnoxious and smothering you with their beliefs and or arrogant, proceed as you wish) please please grow up. Debates are great, but once slander and insults get thrown into the mix, I clock out. One of my closest friends I made at college and myself have opposing views, and it does not affect our friendship. I respect her views and she respects mine (love you Nikki, stay beautiful). We both know why the other has a different view, and we are still great friends who hang out a lot and get along. Pretty neat, am I right?

3. My Opinion is Still Valid even if I don’t Obsess over Politics.

Some people eat, sleep, and breathe politics, which is totally awesome, and I honestly admire that. I, however, do not. Am I educated? Absolutely. Do I watch every single update live and every single debate live? Not every single one, no. We are all entitled to our opinions, and nobody's opinion can be pegged as right or wrong - they are individualized for a reason. There’s an automatic assumption made when someone disagrees with someone else’s beliefs that they’re just uneducated and know nothing. LOL, false. We were all raised differently with different socioeconomic backgrounds and personal moral beliefs, therefore I have three words for you if you disagree with my political views: get over it. Please don’t lecture me in great detail as to why I’m wrong, because there is almost a one-hundred percent chance your insight is not going to change my mind and make me hate myself for being so uneducated (because I’m not, bye).

4. Learn to Agree to Disagree (Especially on Facebook, please God).

That’s right, refrain from that snarky Facebook fight, save yourself some embarrassment, and agree to disagree with whomever posted the oh-so-offensive post that is just tearing up your insides. Act like an adult, and delete the person who is grinding your gears so aggressively with their political stance, or hide their posts from your timeline. The beauty of technology is that since we no longer need to have a printing press to receive political news, we can pick and choose what we see – NEAT! Because, oddly enough, chances are your comment will not change their view, and now all you’ve done is given us all a show and a large amount of secondhand embarrassment. Now, there are people who thrive off of this conflict and post things just to spark a fight, and whatever comes their way is their own fault. However, I’m not entirely positive on this since the statistics aren’t calculated just yet, but I think that most employers don’t look back on your past Facebook activity and say “Yep, they started a fight over a Donald Trump meme that was irrelevant to them completely. Hire them immediately.” Or “Well, they made it clear why Bernie Sanders socialism ideas were wrong, we should probably just hand them our company.” Takeaway: this is doing basically nothing for you, besides making me cringe. I'm not saying that there aren't exceptions to this, because there are definitely hardcore extremists who need to stopped. But Facebook admin usually handles these posts smoothly, and I generally don't accept friend requests from these people. Hopefully you don't either.

5. Everyone is Entitled to their Own Opinion.

As previously stated before, WE ARE ALL ENTITLED TO OUR OWN OPINIONS AND NOBODY IS RIGIHT OR WRONG. If someone hates Trump for what he said at this one place at this one time to this one person, great. Likewise, if someone hates Hilary for the way she did this, said this, or felt about this, that’s great too. Everyone has their own opinion and you bet your bottom dollar they’re allowed to share their opinion; controversial or not. So if they decide to do so, you’re allowed to fire your opinion back, absolutely. But they don’t need to answer you. They don’t need to prove why they’re right. One time, I shared an article about a political belief and was accused of only feeling this way because I was privileged. Oddly enough, I'm actually a first generation student with self-made parents. I guess I didn't understand why strong work ethic meant I was privileged, but I was accused of it anyways. They don’t owe you anything, so take that as a hint the next time (refer to above bullet) you’re inspired to start a Facebook brawl. If someone shares something controversial, they can deal with it however they want because that’s their opinion and, believe it or not, they probably have a reason why they feel that way that is entirely unrelated to you. Nifty!

6. Everyone Love Everyone.

My political view is mine, I can vote for whoever the hell I want, and so can you. If someone decides to vote for Trump, it does not mean they are a terrible person, maybe they agree with his financial views, or maybe they don’t want to vote for the Democratic candidate. Likewise, if someone wants to vote for Clinton – my god, let them! You do not know their life, family, or beliefs as well as you think, and that is totally okay. I’m not perfect, and I love to share the occasional funny Facebook post insulting a politician I don’t like (but I like sharing how-to food videos that show you even more glorious ways to embrace avocado way more) and that’s fine. If it were up to me, I would just make my own political party dedicated to avocado consumption and Gossip Girl debates on whether or not Chuck and Blair should be together, and then after our heated debates we would all drink wine and paint our nails. But that's just me, and that's also precisely why it is NOT up to me.

7. However, Don't be Afraid to Fend off the Keyboard Warriors.

My last rant about this comes down to this: if you start a keyboard war with me, I probably will not answer. Have you ever yelled into an empty room and not gotten a response, because it was an empty room? That’s similar to what it will be like. Guess what I will do, though? I will probably screenshot it and send it to my #Besties, and we will all discuss the ways in which you need to chill. One time, though, I did respond. I had shared an Odyssey article (shoutout to the fellow writer who posted it, you rock) about a political belief and was accused of only feeling this way because I was privileged by a full-fledged keyboard warrior. Oddly enough, I'm actually a first generation student with self-made parents who did not inherit any money nor receive any financial help. I guess I didn't understand why strong work ethic meant I was privileged, but I was accused of it anyways. Not surprisingly, the attacker did not respond to my defense (it's funny how most of them do that) but then my mom backed me up in the next comment, and all was well in the world. Love you long time, Mom.