We are constantly being asked which side we are on.  Are we for it or against it?  Rarely are we ever allowed indecision, always forced to decide before we have the proper information to make good decisions.

The neutral audience is the smallest, yes.

However, it is comprised of people who grow up under rocks, as my government teacher once suggested. This is assumed because it is expected for someone to have an opinion and have chosen sides after their first few encounters, or even their first encounter, with the topic at hand.

As a matter of fact, the neutral audience is filled with people who are aware of the brash nature of human decision-making and consciously abstain from judgment, allowing themselves to take in much more information before they make a decision.

The apathetic audience would be neutral, except they are told that they have to choose sides before they are ready, so they simply eliminate the issue from their lives altogether.

As always, the majority of our nation’s political views are extremely partisan, often for no apparent reason other than “the other side is worse.”

This is not helped by the mainstream media. The writers for news stations such as FOX and MSNBC are aware that most people have difficulty distinguishing informative news from persuasive news and take full advantage of this fact.

They supply opinions rather than educating their audience, attempting to sway the moderate constituents, attempting to make people choose sides.

It is entirely possible that if the people were provided with copious amounts of unbiased information, many more voters would lean toward a third party, or would at least stand behind the political views of their party as opposed to associating with the moral values connoted by the partisan media.

What can you do to be more informed?

Consciously spend time searching for information, with the expectation that most will be biased.

Be mindful of that reality, cast aside any previous party preference, and collect information objectively.  Sources such as NPR and the BBC are good places to start.

While the BBC is not an American-based corporation, it supplies world news; your views on government should be based on the most diverse set of information possible.

Most importantly, you do not have to decide on anything any time soon.  Just as it would be unreasonable to expect you to learn calculus in a few days, so you should not be expected to comprehend the intricacies of modern civilization.

In all actuality, there will always be more to learn.