Posted on 05/31/2010 9:46:47 PM PDT by se_ohio_young_conservative
Besides - what would be crueler than to leave them only to their fellow liberals? All of them standing around trying to be superior to each other? All of them lying to each other and themselves? Fun, fun, fun.
Thanks for your story and support for common sense and logic. I don’t know why, but it makes me feel better about my positions when I read about a black person standing up to the Prez ObommieDaCommie hordes.
My wife dumped me after I refused to take the Palin posters down /sarcasm
Yes, but you have never met my family or friends. I confess that I don't know too much about quiet conversation. Particularly when politics or religion comes up.
Well, ok, it does become quiet...when they stop speaking to me...
Sounds just a little bit too kooky for my tastes.
I haven't gotten a relevant answer.
One woman told me, "Becuase she's uhhh....so divisive."
A guy told me "Because she got that state trooper fired. That's just not honesty in politics."
OK. Yeah.
Same here.
You post the wildest vanities.
The building up of any living human being into almost a supernatural being is going to create an irresistable temptation to tear them down by others. I live in a democratic state where the few minority Republican are RINOs so I have no choice but to get along with those that disagree with me. (Naturally they dont like Sarah Palin. They loved Mccain and will likely go for Romney.)
What are your ex-friends objections to her? What are your arguments back?
Then we agree.
LOL :)
Politics is an interesting topic. What surprises me quite often, is who people support and what their actual ideals are. Often they don’t match up.
If you can ask questions that make people understand this, it really breaks down the confrontation.
Rush used to have a ten (or perhaps it was twenty) question list he would present to folks. By the time they had answered the questions, they not only understood what they really were (Conservative vs Liberal), but they also were able to understand who they should support.
I believe the indirect route is the best way to deal with politics. Help people see what is important to them, and they’ll begin to see more clearly what candidates are important to them.
Abortion is one of the toughest issues you can address. It’s a very combustible issue. If you say you want it abolished by law, you’ll instantly start a terrible argument. If the issue is raised and you state that there are over one million little humans aborted each year, and you wish people could come together to work on reducing that number to as close to zero as possible, you’ll be surprised how many people will agree with that. It’s a much less confrontational approach and one that people don’t generally disagree with. Why yes, it would be preferable to reduce those numbers.
This is how you address politics with family without starting fights. That and the understanding that disagreement today, with properly planted seeds of thought, can result in people coming to their own conclusions that are much closer to your own than you ever thought possible.
“When I think of abortion, I think of a stack of over one million little fetus body parts stacked in one big pile. That makes me very sad.” Who is going to disagree with that. And over time, that one mental image works on people.
Expand this model to other issues, and I think you’ll meet with much more success. Don’t confront. Don’t argue. People dig in their heels when their views or candidates are criticized.
Learn to accept criticism of your candidate. You might say something like, well, I can see how you might see it that way, but I think it’s important that our government goes in a certain (fill in the blank) direction, and this candidate agrees with that. Try to make it something you know they will see value in.
A family with children, can be touched on the issue of matters that impact those kids. There’s an art to this. Develop that artistic talent, and win/win can be yours IMO.
Keep it to positive issues others can identify with, and let go of some of the things you would like to address. Give it time. Alienating people, is the sure fire way to make sure you never influence them again. Not a win by any stretch of the imagination.
Right back at ya, Quix. I appreciate all that you contribute to this forum, as well.
And thanks for the prayer.
Good posts, Melas. :)
>> I have lost THREE real life friends
You need new FRiends.
My kids grew up with money. My daughter is religious and fairly conservative. Son is in the internet world, moved to SF to make his fortune and then married someone who makes him look conservative. Nothing I can do....he’ll have to figure it out for himself but right now he lives in a bubble.
That was also true of my family members. Of those who I talked to or debated during the presidential election, not one could give me any logical reason why they were giving Obama their vote.
Oh sure, they were good at regurgitating all of the standard Democrat mantras and talking points, but they could not tell me why this one particular guy deserved to be president.
I finally boxed one sister into a corner, and she had to admit to me that she was voting for Obama because he was black. Her attitude was, "Yeah, that's right. So what?"
She shamed me with that behavior. I couldn't believe that a woman who was raised with the same core values as I was could ever fall so low. I watched nearly every member of my family succumb to the same group hysteria.
I was recently back home visiting, and during my stay, not ONE of them ever uttered Obama's name. Even when the inevitable political conversation came up, not ONE of them threw his name into the mix.
Telling, eh?
Currently, I have 2 family members who don’t speak to me and several who will but seem to have made it their life’s missions to talk trash about me.
Ah....the wonderful family relations of the average black conservative. Fortunately for me, I'm in Texas and they're all in California. At least I've got a little distance between us.
What matters most to me, are the family relations in my own house. My wife and kids all have their heads right, and stand with me on the right. That counts more than all the other relations put together.
Melas post 148
BUMP
Well said. Regardless of anyone’s relgious beliefs, I think we can all agree that all political systems are ultimately going to be flawed because men are in charge.
Life has taught me that outside of academia no one ever actually wins a debate. You probably walk away thinking you've won something, but unless you actually brought the person you were debating with over to your side, it was just a waste of time.
I am listening, but I don’t agree.
I don’t live by the book or follow conventional thinking. Every election is very important because every election has consequences. And I respect politicians who realize that words mean something. Politicians who speak directly to the people. Politicians who inspire future generations. When FDR gave those fireside chats, that was personal. When Ronald Reagan said “tear down this wall”.. that was personal. When President Bush grabbed that bullhorn and stood on top of a car, that was personal.
We are not animals, we are spirits. And this is a reason why God gave us emotions. Live kicks the crap out of so many people, so they lose their ability to see through all of the conventional wisdom and trust their instincts.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.