Posted on 05/03/2012 8:55:00 AM PDT by Lazamataz
About 17 years ago, in Rochester, NY, I befriended a small group of people. It was in my druggie days, and they were all big potheads. There was one couple in particular, the T's, I will call them.
I used to go to their frequent dinner parties, and all of us would have a grand old time. They loved inviting me, they called me the 'life of the party'.
Fast forward to now. I happen to look them up on FaceBook. We are all delighted to have reconnected. Things are cool. Over the course of time, the female starts bringing up politics, decrying those 'awful, racist TEABAGGERS'. I tell her my sympathies are with the Tea Party and all we want is a return to the Constitution. When she starts going on about how the Constitution was written by a bunch of racist, evil white men and that it needs to be completely rewritten, I advise her that we probably should avoid the politics discussions if we are going to remain friends.
She ends up being a founding member of Lincoln, Nebraska's Occupy Movement. She contacts me about it and wants me to celebrate it with her. I tell her that I am very happy she's found something that works in her life to avoid depression and her other issues, but I am opposed to the movement as a whole. Still, I stress, I'm happy that she's happy.
Over the course of time, I do my usual thing on facebook and post occasional taunts and jokes directed at the Occupy Wall Street movement. Then one day I notice that she's been missing in action. I go look her and her husband up.
They de-friended me.
Well, to that, I say, good freakin' riddence. I like to leave politics out of friendships, but you know what? OWS and the left are my ENEMIES. I cannot be friends with my absolute, mortal, hated enemy.
Good Riddence.
Time for Green Day!
GREEN DAY GOOD RIDDENCE LYRICS
GOOD RIDDENCE LYRICS by GREEN DAY:
Another turning point
A fork stuck in the road
Time grabs you by the wrist
Directs you where to go
So make the best of this test
And don’t ask why
It’s not a question
But a lesson learned in time
It’s something unpredictable
But in the end is right
I hope you had the time of your life
So take the photographs
And still frames in your mind
Hang it on a shelf of
Good health and good time
Tattoos of memories
And dead skin on trial
For what it’s worth
It was worth all the while
It’s something unpredictable
But in the end is right
I hope you had the time of your life
It’s something unpredictable
But in the end is right
I hope you had the time of your life
It’s something unpredictable
But in the end is right
I hope you had the time of your life
In my experience, Conservatives may care about politics, church, fishing, cars, books, scotch, skiing, or any of a number of different things. Friendships can be based on one or more of these items. If a friend doesn't enjoy scotch, then focus on the fishing. It's not hard.
Leftists, on the other hand, seems to define their personal self-worth by their politics. They need to save the world. Their opponents are scum. To hang around with scum is to call into question their own internal goodness. They can't handle that. They can't focus on the skiing, the books, or the scotch. All they see is that you are racist SOB with bad political views.
As I say, it can go both ways, and I know some Conservatives who will cut off any Leftist friend, but I think for the most part we do not tie our own self-worth so closely to mere politics. I have crazy neighbors here in MA, and I'm happy to have a pleasant conversation them at any time on many different topics. But there are days in which they can barely speak to me in a civil manner. They don't threaten me, but I somehow seem to threaten them.
Same thing happened to me on Facebook. A musician acquaintance posted nothing but Obama loving and, even more frequently, conservative bashing posts. Oh, he also has four degrees and is a college professor.
I would post my “thoughtful” dissenting comments and he, even at age 52, would come back with “you’re insane” type comments, as would many of his friends. I also got a lot of likes. :-)
One day I complimented him on showing real character by not unfriending me. It was pre-emptive, of course, but it worked. As time went on, his attacks on my and my posts got worse and worse. The name calling was unbelieveable. I don’t think he was used to arguing this stuff with people other than his students - people who have experinced life, know what they are talking about, and can articulate it well, and strongly disagree with him.
I got more and more likes as his inner circle joined the fray, using his tactics: name calling and insults, but no real arguments.
He finally unfriended me and when I messaged him, complimenting him on keeping me around for so long, but also throwing in my own zing: He was demonstrating the old axiom that age comes with wisdom, but sometimes age comes alone.
He came back with a response in which you could almost see the spittle flying from his mouth, mentioning all his degrees and his age, etc. It was funny, but also sad.
So I’m sure his facebook page is back to it’s old circle jerk days. And that is where liberals tend to be happiest.
Back in the day, did you hit it??
I used to try to leave politics out of friendships, too. But then I realized that’s not possible. How can you possibly be friends with someone whose political beliefs include enslaving me?
L
P.S. It’s spelled “riddance”. Luv ya, man!
We all know what you meant and you are correct.
You are not your emotions. It’s a fact you have emotions, but your emotions are not facts. Hang in there.
Me too. The crazy thing is, I am willing to be friends with them despite their communism, but not vice versa. They are truly intolerant people, which of course is the very nature of communism and fascism.
They are not liberals in the true meaning of the word, they are totalitarians.
Been there, but it was I that got “un-friended” by the mob, for having the temerity to stick of for Rush’s right to free speech.
Their parting shot was that I’m “a woman hater!!”
Serious sh!t-fer-brains; why did I even try?
liberalism is not a mental disease. liberalism is the loss of God from one’s life, show me a pious, humble (which is how Jesus taught us to live) liberal who prays to Our Lord for unselfish reasons.
Not me. Not any more. If you are a Communist, your only worth to me is how many rounds you will take before your use as a range-target is diminished.
You are much better off not having to associate with them.
Laz I sympathize but I agree with you for saying good riddance. They are the enemy now. I believe many of us have the same dilemma.
I plan on asking them: "Are you a Dim or a Socialist?...as the Dims have been infiltrated and taken over by Socialists and Commies, I guess you know."
Their dad's fought in WWII against the very thing their party has become.
It’s true, to liberals, Government is the be-all end-all of life....conservatives on the other hand, tend to view government as a necessary evil, and they go about their own lives and don’t rely on the government.....this is what works to our disadvantage, and frankly, I don’t know of any easy solutions.....the problem is what true conservative in their right mind wants to run for political office and put up with all of the crap that comes along with it, when they can be successful in the private sector?
She was a touch porky for my tastes. She didn’t appeal to me.
Lincoln, eh? I know a retired lawyer who has lived, and practiced in Lincoln his entire life. He actually said (and believes) Martin Sheen would make a great president (like the one he played on TV)!
I know a couple of other crazies from there, but I won’t get into that.
There are some sane people, like Laz, in that nice town.
I’ve been de-friending my liberal ‘friends’ long before Facebook. For me the issue was forced when my ‘Ivy League Professor’s wife’ friend sent out an email suggesting we had it coming. From that point forward I realized that liberals are by-and-large America haters. At their root, its about rejecting all that has made this country great. They’re not my friends.
Unfriended.
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.