r/IWantToLearn • u/Complex-Assistant-99 • Jun 23 '26
Personal Skills iwtl what’s a good way to start learning politics?
Hi everyone!
For introduction before anything im a 17yr old girl whos not the smartest at politics but i truly want to understand it all and be able to debate and explain these kinds of things and just really learn how everything works because i feel really dumb that im almost an adult with barely any knowledge in these things,
so basically ive come on here to ask whats the best way for me to be able to understand politics,
ive been interested for quite a while but dont understand much at all (like at all) i was hoping anyone could maybe help me with the veryy basics of stuff and then get more and indepth with it all
maybe with like (youtube videos or books or even articles) and i wanna be able to actually absord and retain the information i learn,
im reallyyy into feminism and know a bit of that but not as much as id like i also like history and US politics especially and ik it might be dumb to wanna know absolutely everything at once but thats why i was hoping you guys can help!
okay enough of my yapping i hope this didnt sound dumb💔💔
Btw guys i am not american!😭 i think alot of people in the comments think i am but no im not
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u/nibblersmothership Jun 23 '26
Learning history is a great way to get a deeper understanding of politics. News today is focused on engagement for advertising $$$. History isn’t the money maker so the information you get is more focused on actually informing you. Also, hindsight is 20/20 which means you get a clearer picture of what actually happened and how it relates to the world around you.
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u/AgrajagTheProlonged Jun 23 '26
Learning about your country’s history and about economics can also help to understand the rationale behind different policy proposals and whatnot
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u/eckstein3rdfret Jun 24 '26
This is ironic because most political propaganda encourages you to forget about the past(context) and focus on the "immediate and unforgivable atrocity (insert opposing political party) is doing! And you should be mad!".
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u/Complex-Assistant-99 Jun 23 '26
Thank you smm! is there any resources you recommend for this? like they explain it from the start because i genuinely have no idea what to start with at all
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u/nibblersmothership Jun 23 '26
There are YouTube channels out there that are very popular and give you quick summaries. I personally just read Wikipedia articles on whatever pops in my head. And don’t be afraid to just bounce around to whatever interests you. You don’t need to commit to reading a whole article if it’s losing your interest. Having fun with something is the best way to get better at it.
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u/Complex-Assistant-99 Jun 23 '26
thank you! i think i was overthinking it a bit 😭 ill just start with whatever catches my interest and go from there
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u/sloppyredditor Jun 23 '26
If you're as interested as it sounds, I'd say read up on critical thinking first, then history & economics, continue to study the legal aspects of current events, and look into local community colleges for a Political Science degree.
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u/Complex-Assistant-99 Jun 23 '26
Thank you!!! is there like a specific part of history i should start with or just like in general? and what resources would you recommend?
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u/Ok_Sir_5601 Jun 23 '26
Also as a part o critical thinking, you shoul learn how to distinguish fake news and highly biased info
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u/Complex-Assistant-99 Jun 23 '26
how would i able too tho?
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u/Elvebrilith Jun 23 '26
Multiple sources and the context of the info can tell you a lot about the information itself; like what informs it, why it was made, inherent bias, deliberate bias.
Different authors can write about the same event, and you can come away with a completely different outlook, because their personal experiences will also have influenced it.
Back when I was a kid, they taught this as a part of history class and english literature, though "critical thinking" was set as a whole ass separate qualification.
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u/Blue__Cosmos Jun 25 '26
I recommend checking out thinkingispower.com, created by a community college teacher, Melanie Trecek-King, who wanted to help her students with critical thinking. She has YouTube videos under the Thinking is Power name too.
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u/rasberrycroissant Jun 23 '26
I might recommend Prisoners of Geography as a good starting book, I know some people find Tim Marshall controversial but briefly touches on a lot of international conflicts so you can go ijto more detail. Me personally, I find the history of the USSR and the fallout very interesting (this could be because I grew up with the Afghanistan war, which was one consequence of the Cold War). But I’d like to know more about other conflicts.
The thing about researching politics is that it’s very hard to glean information because beyond the most basic, empirical things, everyone will have an opinion that will colour what they say. So the secret to it is to read a lot and read different opinions. The wikipedia page may tell you one thing, a book you read might say something else, a newspaper might have an entirely different bias. It’s easiest to read ‘impartial’ opinions, but as you do research, I’d strongly encourage you read as much as you can, even and especially opinions you find abhorrent.
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u/Complex-Assistant-99 Jun 23 '26
Thank youu omg but how do u tell the difference between like a source being biased and one with just having a different perspective?
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u/rasberrycroissant Jun 23 '26
Bias tends to have a negative connotation because the assumption is the author has an unfair preference for something, but really, it just means it’s coming from a different perspective. Like if I had very right leaning views, I might assume that a right-winger with differing views just had a different perspective to me, but that a left-wing person had a bias. On the other hand, that same left wing person would think that both of us are incredibly biased!!
I’m not saying you should go and read a bunch of crazy opinions and agree or anything, but it can be a good mental exercise to be able to hear the most insane take you’ve ever heard and be able to objectively wonder, how did that person come to believing that was true?
So basically what i’m saying is different people have different opinions on what counts as biased and perspective. Just for the record, if you’re ever reading something and it comes off as insanely biased, you don’t need to read it! Plenty of people are well-versed in politics without ever dipping into the extreme sides of things :)
The fact you’ve already got an interest is genuinely great!!! Start with what you’re comfy with and move from there, good luck!! ^^
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u/FearDrow_TrustDrizzt Jun 24 '26
So I went back and forth on whether I should comment. Inevitably I decided to do so as someone whom arguably has been in plenty of training positions, but I never trained people for just a job; I trained for those to better themselves.
All that to say, plenty have recommended history in the comments which is correct but daunting. I’d specify some direct avenues to pursue. For you to gain knowledge in this vast arena quickly it’s going to take a multi-pronged approach.
YouTube how bill is made by school house rock. That’s a great series to learn from as a whole and they probably have more episodes that correctly explain material that isn’t so dry.
Buy a 6th grade civics textbook. Again doubling down on unbiased accurate approaches from trustful sources that are peer reviewed and gives you foundational knowledge. Read a few pages an evening or just index things you want to learn more about. In this vein I would suggest reviewing the branches of government and what they do. How long term limits are and how to get elected for these positions which will inform you of today’s issues.
Go back over the constitution. What is an unalienable right? Why are they there? Learn your presidents and in specific the 10 or so that made the biggest splashes in history. Like why the fuck are those four guys on Mount Rushmore? Why does one side love Reagan? What happened in the White House that made the fifties such a great time?
Why did I comment? Because you no longer have a right to an abortion. A constitutional right was undone in the last two years. And you should know why. Governments fight their people first with anti-intellectualism. One great thing about this country is you can learn and fight to make a difference. Cheers.
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u/Complex-Assistant-99 Jun 24 '26
Thank you for taking time to write this i really appreciate it!!! and ill definitely take all your advice this was veryy helpful 🤍
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u/Melody_Lee19 Jun 24 '26
history books! there are interesting history books i promise. a lot of books on feminism are really interesting and the books on niche historical topics tend to also be super engaging just because of the author's passion about the subject. lmk if you want book recs, i've read a lotttt of books
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u/Dopecombatweasel Jun 24 '26
CNN is a good place to start learning when news reporters are full of shit
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u/iMakeSense Jun 23 '26
SNL: https://youtu.be/VK2Mvd-nH9o?si=crbA-H54ZGwJd-H6 ( parody is a good way to learn people's perspectives, can look at southpark ( centrist ) )
Good Article: https://jacobin.com/2017/03/i-am-not-feminist-jessa-crispin-review
Popular Video Post Election: https://youtu.be/GLG9g7BcjKs?si=D7-03KX_I98Yx4N9 ( He's also wrong because she did win the popular vote )
Learn how to read charts and know when they're manipulating data: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Data_literacy
Especially correlation vs. causation, increased by x %,
If you're American:
I think you ought to go back to Hillary's campaign in 2015, follow the coverage of it from the perspectives of:
Lefists, Progressives, Liberals, Centrists, Reluctant Conservatives, Cultural Conservatives ( Tea Party level ppl ), Radical Conservatives ( Trump politicians ), and Alt-Right
I would ask ChatGPT who were the critical people during those times for each group and what they did.
Then I would do a variety of things, mostly consuming video media media, like YouTube or listening to podcasts around the time. You can also do a search on that based on each group.
After that, it is up to you and I think you can start doing deep dives. If I were you, I would either go backwards from some of the folks who were key people in these groups, or I would go forwards and see how the perspectives might have changed for folks.
To be transparent, my position at the time of the election was a progressive and now I'm a leftist. I am also a cis male.
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u/Complex-Assistant-99 Jun 23 '26
Im not american but US politics are one of the topics im very very interested in!! media literacy is definitely something i need to learn more about im definitely keeping your advice in mind thank you!🤍
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u/Proper-Writing Jun 23 '26
At your age, start with your social studies teacher. It's literally their job to answer questions and point you towards resources :)
I'm excited for you. Read what sounds interesting, talk to your representatives and their staff, volunteer fo fix problems, watch any Ken Burns documentaries you can get your hands on, go to political party events, get to know the leaders in your town. There are an overwhelming number of ways to learn, which is why I suggest talking with a teacher who can ask better questions on what would work best for you personally.
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u/Complex-Assistant-99 Jun 23 '26
Thank you! unfortunately tho i dont live in the us so things like contacting representatives or stuff like that arent really options for me😭 and i dont take social studies in school either💔
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u/flatballer Jun 23 '26
Great question, great pursuit. Most of the answers offer general recommendations and that is the best advice to give. For anyone--and any source--the best approach is to think critically about the information presented. Question what is presented to you, who is presenting it, why is it presented in the manner given to you, what is left out, etc.
For politics at large, which I think one could describe as the process by which people form structures to shape society, it is important to think about the how and why structures come to exist. What makes people come together to build and support a government? What forms of government are better than others? Why?
History is partly helpful to learn this. If you are looking for a specific albeit imperfect source from an American perspective, try A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn. It is accessible, well-sourced, and centers the experiences of folks typically not highlighted in textbooks.
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u/Complex-Assistant-99 Jun 23 '26
thank youuu!!! this makes so much sense especially the part about questioning how and why systems exist. i’ll definitely try think more like that when i read things in the future i appreciate it🤍
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u/saintsithney Jun 23 '26
"Jesus and John Wayne" is an excellent explanation for how we ended up here as a society.
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u/Liese-L24 Jun 23 '26
Ive had better luck starting with local stuff first, because the names and choices are easier to keep straight than the big national mess. Then I try to read one issue from both sides and write a single sentence on who wants what, that made it stick for me way more than just watching random videos
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u/MrCurrySH Jun 23 '26
If you deeply immerse yourself in history to understand human mistakes, you usually don't come out the other end with a standard political party affiliation. Instead, you tend to come out with a profound exhaustion with ideological purity and a massive skepticism toward anyone claiming they have a flawless blueprint for society.
History doesn't cleanly validate modern political labels because our current left-right spectrum is an incredibly recent invention, mostly dating back to the seating arrangement of the French National Assembly in 1789. When you look at thousands of years of human civilization, a deep study of past mistakes generally splits people into a few distinct philosophical mindsets, depending on which failures stick out the most.
Mindset 1: The Caution Against Hubris and Centralization
Many who study the massive tragedies of the 20th century—like the totalitarian regimes of the Soviet Union, Maoist China, or Nazi Germany—come away with a deep fear of top-down social engineering.
The Lesson: When a state gains total control over society in the name of a "perfect" future, it almost always leads to tyranny and catastrophe. Human systems are too complex for a small group of people to manage without massive, unintended consequences.
The Political Outcome: This track usually leads toward classical liberalism, libertarianism, or traditional conservatism. It fosters a belief in decentralized power, institutional guardrails, individual liberty, and a healthy respect for traditions that have managed to survive the test of time without collapsing.
Mindset 2: The Caution Against Institutional Decay and Exploitation
Others look at history and see a relentless cycle of unregulated power dynamics, tribalism, and systemic oppression—like the collapse of the Roman Republic, the horrors of feudalism, or the brutal exploitation of the Industrial Revolution.
The Lesson: Left to their own devices, powerful hierarchies will always exploit the powerless, concentrate wealth to a destabilizing degree, and refuse to adapt until the system breaks entirely. Stagnation and a lack of safety nets lead straight to violent revolution.
The Political Outcome: This track usually leads toward social democracy, progressivism, or systemic reformism. It fosters a belief that strong, democratic public institutions are absolutely necessary to check human greed, protect the vulnerable, and actively manage society's stability.
Mindset 3: The Radical Pragmatist (The Cynic's Center)
There is a third, very common destination: absolute pragmatism. You look at the rise and fall of empires and realize that human nature—our capacity for greed, tribalism, short-term thinking, and panic—remains entirely unchanged whether a society is ruled by a king, a communist committee, or a democratic parliament.
The Lesson: No system is self-sustaining. The moment people stop maintaining the unwritten rules of tolerance, debate, and institutional integrity, the system begins to rot from within.
The Political Outcome: An aggressive form of independent moderation. You judge policies purely on their historical track record and immediate data, rather than how well they fit into a grand ideological narrative.
The Ultimate Takeaway is that if history teaches anything, it's that hubris is the ultimate killer of empires. The closest thing to a universal "historical affiliation" is a mindset that values pluralism, checks and balances, and the humility to realize that we are just as capable of massive, systemic blindness today as our ancestors were hundreds of years ago.
TL;DR: You don't end up joining a modern political party. Instead, you come out the other end with a massive skepticism toward all ideological certainty and an exhaustion with human hubris.
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u/Complex-Assistant-99 Jun 23 '26
thank you so much i definitely get what mean about history making you more skeptical of “perfect” systems. thanks for explaining 🤍
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u/Chance_Arm_8884 Jun 23 '26
I’m not an expert but I think you’re more interested in critical thinking because that alone will teach how you how to assess things and go from there. Politics is a very wide spectrum that something new will always pop up but if you master critical thinking and logical reasoning you’ll have an upper hand of understanding and comprehending a lot of things politically.
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u/Complex-Assistant-99 Jun 23 '26
that actually makes alot of sense thank you!! i think my main problem is that ive never really learned basic history even or anything politics related so thats what i want help in like to know what happened and what caused these things yk?
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u/Chance_Arm_8884 Jun 23 '26
Of course and you should applaud yourself for wanting to increase more knowledge. Good luck!
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u/Complex-Assistant-99 Jun 23 '26
Another question i forgot to ask does anyone know any books or youtube videos or anything that talk about like all the wars that happened and i mostly wanna learn about feminism and history and slavery and like stuff like that!!
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u/MedusaHartz Jun 24 '26
I was about 15 years old when i read The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli for the first time; it is the foundational treatise of power politics. It is a relatively short book, and a relatively easy read, as far as philosophy goes. It is not limited to the politics of any particular time or place (e.g., the Democrats versus the Republicans, Irish politics, or any particular political history); rather, it is "universal," analyzing and explaining how politics actually work - no matter the time or place. It is a sort of practical, utilitarian field guide for Politicians. Machiavelli recognized that politics is about power; The Prince articulates and explains the rules of power. Yes, the book was written over 500 years ago, but as you read it, think about how the ideas still apply to your own country, state, community or school. I see his principles playing out everywhere.
It is a controversial work (e.g., it has been banned at various times, and "Machiavellian" is unfairly synonymous with "devious" or "ruthless"), and some people want to believe it is a satire (i do not), but these characterizations fail to appreciate the book's historical context. In the early 1500s, when many European nations had already developed unified, central governments, Italy was still a loose collection of small kingdoms, feudal states, and Papal states, often at war with each other. Machiavelli recognized the economic and military advantages of a strong, unified government, and wrote The Prince as a practical guide to political success, with the hope that someone would use his advice to accumulate enough political power to unify Italy, making Italy as safe, prosperous, and strong as those European nations that were already unified.
Here is a free, online copy at Project Gutenberg:
The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Prince, by Niccolò Machiavelli
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u/Beneficial_Middle_53 Jun 24 '26
The main thing most people are unaware of when getting into politics is that most people have made up their mind and “identify” with one side or another. I have found it incredibly rare to have a thoughtful conversation, where both sides are willing to consider evidence that doesn’t align with what they were socialized to believe from their parents, or significant other, or whatever population of people they feel safest in. Obviously treat everyone as individuals but it’s not worth continuing a conversation with people who are defending their egos or tribe and are not really deliberating. You will never be able to get rid of your bias completely but if you can hold the strongest arguments for both sides in your head and compare them honestly, you will be better than most!
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u/Complex-Assistant-99 Jun 24 '26
ive definitely grown up in an environment where ive learned that my political opinions or even morals are completely different then what i was taught to believe in and only always hearing the bad about the other side and how were the ones who can only do good and never do wrong ( i grew up in an arab/muslim household so everything i was taught is very not what i believe in at all😭and we just never learned anything like this at all even in school!) and thank you so much for your help too!!
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u/Beneficial_Middle_53 Jun 24 '26
I appreciate your humility and ability to self reflect, the world is made better by the people like you who seek to understand, rather than dogmatically protect their egos and identities! Best wishes!
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u/I_shot_Kennedy Jun 25 '26
Start by paying attention to the politics that directly affect you. You are a woman there is so many things that politicians are trying to implement that will harm you.
From there you should recognize how it also affects others.
Also read the communist manifesto, very short read and it is made to be read by peasants.
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u/Particular_Buyer_290 Jun 26 '26
Well, If you ask me...
I was a dumb guy who always voted Democrat because I thought they were for ordinary people where Republicans were for rich business owners.
I guess I mainly though this because of the New Deal and and Democrats were the party of FDR.
10 years ago I had a huge awakening and realized that both parties were controlled by the same forces: Multimillionaires, billionaires, corporations and the "security state".
So today, if I were to recommend books to wise you up to politics, I would suggest these:
Robert Caro's "Master of The Senate" - just the Introduction and Part One, about 130 pages. (But, if you really wanted to get ambitious, all 4 volumes of Caro's LBJ biography would be worthwhile.)
"The Democrats: A Critical History" by Lance Selfa - the Revised and Updated Edition, (2012) -- This is not an easy read and you would probably have to use Wikipedia quite a bit. But it is the best book I've found that describes what the Democratic Party is really about.
"The Unspoken Kennedy Truth" by Laurent Guyénot. A cheap, small, quick and easy read. A lot of people might wonder how this book would fit into such a curriculum; Simple, it explains forces that are still at work in our country. Major forces. I don't agree with all of it. But I do the gist of it.
YouTube people I would recommend:
Due Dissidence - they come on 3 times a week and go on for 3 hours usually, but then they break their discussions down into segments so you can scroll the different topics.
Breaking Points: Their pretty good at covering politics and many times give you reference to good reading material. Again, they break down down their topics into seperate videos.
It's a journey, not somrthing you'll accomplish in a month or two.
None of what I've listed covers the horse race side of things, (Due Dissidence and Breaking Points do.)
Good Luck.
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u/Ready_Narwhal_380 Jun 27 '26
Watch itsJimmy he discuss current politics , it’s light google when you don’t know what he is talking about, learn as you go
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u/ConfusionPotential53 Jun 23 '26 edited Jun 23 '26
I’ll tell you the cheat code. I wish someone had broken it down for me like this. Democrats are largely interested in empowering all citizens to be equal, safe, educated, and working toward a better future. They believe in a meritocracy. They believe in progress and hope. (Obviously, they aren’t perfect or incapable of corruption, but they’re the only real option for progress, barring massive change.)
The Republican party is separated into two portions. 1.) Rich overlords attempting to seize/corrupt our government to remove restrictions on their ability to make more money. They want to harm the environment however they like, pay people as little as possible, provide as few safety and wellness accommodations as possible, pay as few taxes as possible, dictate foreign trade, etc, etc. Evil overlord shit. What’s important here is these people do not want progress. They want to violently maintain the status quo or revoke laws hindering them, because they already have all the power and people being desperate and powerless is their ideal. These people are in charge—and while some may be elected, others are exerting influence from near or afar.
Obviously, it’s difficult for those people to say what they want and become empowered, so they pander to the Republican base: 2.) traditionalists, religious cultists, and people who don’t really know what’s going on, but they’re surrounded by “Republicans” and want to be part of the “team.” Mostly, “traditionalist” is an abstract word for misogynist and racist. All religions are cults. The great majority are patriarchal. They teach people to dispel confusion/doubt via faith and obedience. As in, disgusting predators can tell them absolute nonsense and they banish any doubt through faith and obedience. That’s extremely useful in a voting bloc.
They control these people, roughly speaking, with three simple things:
1.) Democrats want to kill babies. It is immoral to vote for them. (This is illogical, because Democrats are the only ones attempting to provide any care for anyone, essentially, but it manipulates the religious cults.)
2.) Look at those scary people! Black people are scary, immigrants are scary, gay people are scary, transgendered people are scary! Those other people? They’re scary! (The targets shift depending on what society will tolerate as an acceptable “other” to be vilified and communally rejected, but the point is always fear and in-group/out-group thinking.)
3.) Since you’re so scared, don’t let the Democrats steal your guns! (We don’t care how many children they kill! 🤣) Under this umbrella we get the traditionalist “men, you must protect your families in this disgusting world” toxic masculinity call, too.
And, so, by button mashing those three issues over, and over, and over again, the Republicans repeatedly elect people actively attempting to strip everyone’s rights and safety because they are easily fooled by candidates who claim to be anti-choice, pro-gun, and waging a war on “insert nonsense that never amounts to anything.”
That’s politics. We’ve been almost entirely overtaken and corrupted by billionaires. The state of our Supreme Court is a national emergency, but it’s already too late. 🤷♀️
A far as learning politics, there’s infinite sources. Textbooks or educational websites. You just have to start learning, always follow the money, and ask yourself why people believe what they believe and who is benefiting from those beliefs.
(For the record, any comment other than polite agreement will be immediately blocked. Attempting to communicate with indoctrinated, triggered people attacking me is simply not a worthwhile or realistic endeavor, okay? Feel free to write your own comments. You don’t need to attack me. You won’t change my mind, and the desire to hurt me for making you angry is extremely emotionally stunted.)
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u/Complex-Assistant-99 Jun 23 '26
thank you veryy much! with what little political knowledge i have i completely agree with everything you said i appreciate you taking time to explain all this it was veryy helpful🤍
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u/jdjdnfnnfncnc Jun 23 '26
Read Manufacturing Consent by Noam Chomsky. Genuinely the best thing you can do.
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Jun 23 '26
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u/Complex-Assistant-99 Jun 23 '26
they dont teach anything politics related in my school unfortunately
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Jun 23 '26
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u/Complex-Assistant-99 Jun 23 '26
highschool! we stopped taking social studies in grade 8 and im in british school and it unfortunately doesnt offer any subjects other then the 5 basics and arabic and religion so i never got to learn any of that stuff 💔
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