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I'm Changing the Way I Think About Politics

2022-10-28 · letter vlog · Hank · 3:39 · watch on YouTube

Topic: US politics & society · mode: Personal essay · tags: timely hook, civic or action cta

Hank argues that the relentless national focus of political conversation, with its simple stories, isn't good: Montana and congressional candidate Monica Tranel show people are more complex than national narratives allow, so this election he decided to go local.

What is said

The parts of the video and what is said in each (★ — how much it matters to the video).

00:00:00 — How Hank met congressional candidate Monica Tranel making Hanklerfish art and later interviewed her

  • ★★ Hank first met Monica Tranel, who is running for Congress, when he emailed her and she helped him make Hanklerfish art for Project for Awesome donors. — 00:00:00 · Hanklerfish, Project for Awesome, United States Congress
  • ★ Hank has met Tranel a few more times since, mostly because he asked to rent out rooms and interview her in them publicly. — 00:00:00

00:00:29 — National focus and simple stories versus local politics: Montana, Tranel's campaign, the perception gap, going local

  • ★★ Hank admits he doesn't know how to be a person with a big audience who also doesn't like a lot of the way the world is. — 00:00:29
  • ★ Hank recalls celebrating Barack Obama's first election with John, he thinks while they were on tour. (hedged) — 00:00:29 · Barack Obama, John Green
  • ★★ Hank says most of what the brothers have done over the years has been nationally focused, which makes sense because their audience is international. — 00:00:29 · Nerdfighteria
  • ★★ Few viewers can vote for Monica Tranel, but Hank tells those who can that they had better, because she's great. — 00:00:29
  • ★★★ Hank has started to feel that the relentless focus on the biggest possible scope of every conversation, always the national one, isn't good. — 00:01:06
  • ★★ Hank says Trump won Montana by 16% in 2020 and 20% in 2016, yet in 2016 Montana also elected a Democratic governor, and it has a Democratic senator, Jon Tester. — 00:01:06 · Montana, Donald Trump
  • ★★ Hank thinks most people don't know Montana is a very red state that does a lot of pretty blue things, because that doesn't fit the national narrative. — 00:01:06 · Montana
  • ★★★ Hank says we tell ourselves simple stories by not letting in much data; he understands why, since it is complicated and simple stories persuade, but these stories are starting to rend. — 00:01:36
  • ★★ When Joe Biden's team invited Hank to the White House to hang out with the president, he wanted to go, but he has limited time this year (2022) and is focusing on his community. — 00:01:36
  • ★★ Hank says that if Tranel loses it will be because of the focus on national politics: her opponent isn't very popular, but Democrats are unpopular. — 00:01:36
  • ★★ Hank says Tranel has put about 50,000 miles on her minivan crossing one of America's largest districts, talking to people in 16 counties and two tribal nations. (hedged) — 00:02:15
  • ★★ Tranel keeps telling Hank she wishes everyone could see the America she sees when listening to people: people are a lot more complex than they get credit for. — 00:02:15
  • ★★★ Hank says research backs Tranel: people see themselves as about 60-40 on issues but see opponents as 100-0 on everything. — 00:02:15
  • ★★★ Hank says a lot doesn't fit into broader narratives, so we never think or talk about it; the fact feels unintuitive to him but intuitive to Tranel, who does the work. — 00:02:45
  • ★★ Hank says this is why we hire leaders: they get to know more than we ever will so we can do other things; the country is messy and led in many ways. — 00:02:45

00:03:18 — Go local and use How to Vote in Every State; sign-off

  • ★★★ Since his ballot is local, with local things on it, Hank decided to spend his time this election going local, and he feels really good about it. — 00:03:18
  • ★★ Hank tells viewers who can vote to go local too, and those unsure how to vote or whether they're registered to check youtube.com/howtovoteineverystate. — 00:03:18 · How to Vote in Every State

In the description and comments

  • ★★ The description urges viewers without a voting plan to make one now: take a sample ballot to the polling place, or vote early where possible. — video description
  • ★★ The description says many people are really trying to make the country better, and democracy only happens when we do it. — video description

Threads in this video

Mentioned

Central: Monica Tranel

Also: People: Barack Obama · Donald Trump · Joe Biden · Jon Tester

Projects: How to Vote in Every State · Project for Awesome

Works: Hanklerfish

Organizations: Democratic Party · United States Congress · White House

Concepts: local government · political polarization

Places: Montana

Events: 2022 United States elections

Only in the description or credits: sample ballot

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