"Enweghị m mmasị na ndọrọ ndọrọ ọchịchị": ọ ga-ekwe omume ịnọpụ?

“I know from my own experience that someone who is not interested in politics is not interested in anything at all,” says 53-year-old Alexander. – It annoys me when people are not aware of things that everyone has already discussed a hundred times.

Here was the premiere of Stone’s film “Alexander”. Scandal. Greece officially protested. News across all channels. Lines at cinemas. They ask me: “How did you spend your weekend?” – “I went to the Alexander. – “Which Alexander?”

Alexander himself actively comments on social life and the political agenda. And he admits that he can be very hot in discussions and even “banned” several people on social networks “because of politics.”

49-year-old Tatyana does not share this position: “It seems to me that those who are very fond of talking about politics have problems. These are some kind of “scab scratchers” – newspaper readers, viewers of political shows.

Behind each of the positions lie deeper beliefs and processes, psychologists say.

Inner peace is more important?

“The most important battle takes place not in the political arena, but in the soul, in the mind of a person, and only its outcome affects the formation of a person, the perception of reality,” Anton, 45, explains his political isolation. “The search for happiness outside, for example, in finance or in politics, diverts attention from what is inside, affects the whole life of a person, which he spends in constant suffering and in search of unattainable happiness.”

42-year-old Elena admits that if it were not for her mother and her TV friend, she would not have noticed the latest reshuffle in the government. “My inner life and the lives of loved ones are more important to me. We do not remember who ascended the throne under Rousseau or Dickens, who ruled under Mohammed or Confucius. In addition, history says that there are laws of the development of society, with which it is sometimes pointless to fight.

Natalia, 44, is also far from political events. “People can have different interests, I have politics and news in last place. In addition, psychologists advise avoiding negative information. What will change for me if I find out about another war, a terrorist attack? I’ll just sleep worse and worry.”

Everything that is “outside” does not affect the inner life in any way, says 33-year-old Karina. “The priority is my mental well-being, and it depends solely on me and my mood, the health of my relatives. And the rest is from a completely different world, almost from another planet. I will always earn money, and what I have at the moment is enough for me – this is my life.

There is no way out only from the coffin, everything else is in my hands. And what’s on TV, other people with freedom of speech, economy, government, does not concern me – from the word “in general.” I can do everything myself. Without them”.

But 28-year-old Eka was also not interested in politics, “until I thought that the time would come in this country, as in others, the government would change regularly. Once I realized that if there are so few sane people, then someone should relay reliable information. I had to start with myself. I still don’t want to be interested in politics. This is very unpleasant for me personally, but what to do? I have to explain, tell why you can’t stay away, both in person and on social networks.”

Under fire of insults and negativity

For some, staying away from hot topics equals safety. “I almost never post about politics and rarely enter into dialogues, because for some it is so important that it can even come to a fight,” says 30-year-old Ekaterina.

She is supported by 54-year-old Galina: “It’s not that I’m categorically not interested. I don’t really understand cause and effect relationships. I don’t publish my opinion for fear that they won’t support me, I don’t comment on someone else’s opinion for fear of being misunderstood.”

37-year-old Elena stopped watching TV and the news because there is too much negativity, aggression and cruelty: “All this takes a lot of energy, and it is better to direct it towards your goals and your life.”

“In Russian society, really, few people can argue and discuss calmly – the lack of points of support and a clear picture gives rise to their own interpretations, from which it is impossible to choose the right one,” says psychotherapist, certified Gestalt therapist Anna Bokova. – Rather, each of them only hinders the conclusion.

But admitting and accepting your helplessness is one of the most difficult tasks in therapy. Discussions turn into an Internet holivar. The form also does not contribute to increasing interest in the topic, but only scares away and prevents one from expressing one’s already shaky opinion.”

But maybe this is only a Russian feature – to avoid political information? 50-year-old Lyubov has been living outside Russia for several years, and although she is interested in Swiss politics, she also passes the news through her own filter.

“More often I read articles in Russian. Local news has an element of propaganda and its own system of priorities. But I do not discuss political topics – there is no time, and it hurts to hear insults both in your own and in someone else’s address.

But a dispute with bosom friends over the events in Crimea in 2014 led to the fact that three families – after 22 years of friendship – stopped communicating at all.

“I didn’t even understand how it happened. We somehow gathered for a picnic and then said so many nasty things. Although where are we and where is Crimea? We don’t even have relatives there. But everything went off the chain. And for the sixth year now, any attempts to restore relations have ended in nothing, ”the 43-year-old Semyon regrets.

Attempt to control the aircraft

“Those who are interested in politics outside of work are trying to control life, reality,” comments Anna Bokova. – Increased interest in politics is a way to cope with the existential fear of the chaos of this world. Unwillingness to admit that, by and large, nothing depends on us and we cannot control anything. In Russia, moreover, we can’t even know anything for sure, since the media do not convey truthful information.”

“I think that the words “I’m not interested in politics” are essentially a political statement,” explains Alexei Stepanov, an existential-humanistic psychotherapist. – I am a subject and a political one too. Whether I like it or not, whether I want it or not, whether I admit it or not.

The essence of the issue can be revealed with the help of the concept of “locus of control” – the desire of a person to determine for himself what influences his life more: circumstances or his own decisions. If I’m sure that I can’t influence anything, then there’s no point in being interested.”

The position of an observer who understands her limitations was taken by 47-year-old Natalya. “I “look after” the politicians: it’s like flying in an airplane and listening to whether the engines sound evenly, whether there are crazy people around in the active phase. If you notice something, you become more sensitive, worried, if not, you try to doze off.

But I know a lot of people who, as soon as they step on the ladder, immediately take a sip from the flask to switch off. So it is with politics. But I cannot know what is happening in the cockpit and with the equipment of the aircraft.”

Differences in the motivations of ordinary people and politicians only convince the former that they cannot influence anything. “Gestalt therapy relies on a phenomenological approach. Namely, in order to draw a conclusion about something, you need to know all the phenomena and meanings, – says Anna Bokova. – If the client is interested in therapy, then he talks about the phenomena of his consciousness, his inner world. Politicians, on the other hand, seek to turn events in the way that suits them, to present them in the right light.

Of course, sometimes clients do this too, this is normal – it is impossible to look at yourself from the side, blind spots will certainly appear, but the therapist pays attention to them, and the client begins to notice them. Politicians, on the other hand, do not need to be looked at from the outside, they know what they are doing.

Therefore, to believe that someone other than the direct participants in the events can know the truth about internal motives and logic is a deep delusion. It is naive to think that politicians can be frank.

That is why one can be interested in politics only at an amateur level, realizing that we will never know the whole truth. So, we can not have an unambiguous opinion. “The opposite is true for those who cannot come to terms and accept their helplessness and continue to maintain the illusion of control.”

Nothing dedends on me?

40-year-old Roman has a realistic view of what is happening in the world. He is only interested in news, but does not read analytics. And he has a rationale for his point of view: “It’s like guessing on the coffee grounds. All the same, real currents are heard only under water and those who are there. And we mostly look in the media at the foam of the waves.

Politics always boils down to a struggle for power, says 60-year-old Natalia. “And power is always with those in whose hands capital and property are. Accordingly, the bulk of people, without capital, have no access to power, which means they will not be allowed into the kitchen of politics. And therefore, even those who are interested in politics will not make a difference.

So, be interested or not be interested, while you are naked like a falcon, another life does not shine for you. Swear, don’t swear, but you can influence something only if you become a sponsor. But at the same time, you constantly run the risk of being robbed.”

It is difficult to accept that nothing depends on us. Therefore, many turn to those areas in which they can influence something. “And they find certain meanings in this. It is individual for everyone, but the search occurs only after recognizing the meaninglessness of existence and living the feelings associated with this fact.

It is an existential choice that, sooner or later, consciously or not, everyone faces. Politics in our country is one of the areas, the example of which shows the futility of trying to understand anything about someone. There is no transparency, but many continue to try,” says Anna Bokova.

However, not everything is so clear. “The politics at the top cannot but be reflected in the politics at the lower levels,” Aleksey Stepanov suggests. – A person can say that he is not interested in politics, while he will be included in what orders exist, for example, at the school where his child studies.

I am convinced that each of us is involved in what is happening. If politics is a “garbage dump”, then what are we doing on it? We can clean up the place around us and start cultivating a flower bed. We can litter, admiring other people’s flower beds.

If you are a smoker, smoking on a platform, you are supporting lawlessness and double standards. It does not matter at all whether we are interested in high politics. But if at the same time we finance a center for the prevention of domestic violence, we definitely participate in political life.”

“And, finally, many psychological phenomena make themselves felt already at the microsocial level,” continues the psychotherapist. – Is the child interested in what family policy is pursued by his parental couple? Does he want to influence her? Can it? Probably, the answers will be different depending on the age of the child and on how exactly the parents behave.

The kid will obey the family order, and the teenager can argue with him. In the political sphere, the idea of ​​transference as a psychological mechanism is well manifested. Each of us is influenced by the experience of communicating with significant figures – father and mother. It influences our attitude towards the state, the Motherland and the ruler.”