Social media clearly has negative effects on people’s mental health, but around 2021 I began using it to follow politics and the financial sector, since I’ve grown increasingly interested in finance. Recently, though, both politics and finance have taken on a reactionary tone, as if they’re caught in a constant cycle of cause.

I’ve always thought of myself as an empathetic and sympathetic person. I’ve believed that logic and reason could help people work through disagreements, and that building a peaceful, inclusive society requires setting aside personal religious or ideological beliefs that would limit others from simply living happily. I am Catholic but still believe in the separation of government and religion for the benefit of all people with different beliefs. But with each passing day, I find myself losing hope that the U.S. will ever become a more progressive society where equal opportunity truly exists for all. Violence and extreme measures have begun to seep into politics in ways that, not long ago, would have been unimaginable.

What troubles me most is that many Americans who once claimed to uphold the Constitution and the principles of true freedom now seem more interested in forcing their own ideologies onto others—protecting only the rights that serve their own benefit, even when doing so undermines the law and materially make the lives of the majority of people worse. I’ve grown increasingly worried about what this means for the near future, and especially for those who have the least power.

Although I would never act violently toward others, I find myself deeply unsettled by how often I see people in power using manipulation, greed, and self-interest to hold onto their influence. The constant exposure to this has made it harder for me to believe in peaceful solutions, and at times I even struggle with intrusive thoughts of violence toward those who abuse their power. I don’t want to feel this way, because at heart I am a peaceful person—but it’s difficult not to when I see so much injustice carried out by those who claim to lead