We live in contentious times. An officer in my car club, a stanch conservative, will come down instantly on any political talk, conservative or liberal. It has the potential to tear the club apart. There is no longer any reasoned debate that I so enjoyed when I was in college. It’s all raw emotion.
A liberal friend, the only one I have, called my yesterday just to chat. He devolved into how much he despised Trump. I let him ramble as the relationship goes back thirty years. I found myself amused that he would put so much energy in his views and it indicates how successful Trump has been. (Incidentally, this guy was royally screwed by his Obamacare policy which he bought as a way of supporting the program. Still, he learned nothing from the experience.)
A teacher friend got an email from his employers saying that teachers were advised not to have any online presence. If they posted something that became controversial they would likely be fired.
At my former employer I probably could have had a pro-gay bumper sticker, but something like a proud white boy sticker would have eventually resulted in my being let go. Probably not for that official reason, but when the next layoff came I’d be gone.
I said all of that to say this. If this officer put something viewed as political on his uniform that is not part of the uniform and it caused wide notice and “controversy,” he will likely be punished or fired. In this day and age it is dangerous to let anyone know you are conservative. Probably some sort of rainbow symbol would be tolerated, but anything conservative, religious or political would most likely result in punishment or dismissal. That’s just the way it is in the times we live in.
I had a liberal friend go off on me at a fishing lodge in New Zealand that my wife and I were paying for, it sleeps six and we were just two so why not, right? We had invited them, him and his wife, as we go back over 30 years and they are well traveled as are we. But his anti Trump hatred was so strong he couldn’t resist telling me how I helped elect an idiot.
Just before his hate filled rant he was telling me how his brother, a retired Navy Master Chief working on National Security stuff in the private sector, loves Trump and what he is doing to keep us safe. His brother is smart but I’m stupid? He got so bad my wife, who never gets involved, told him he shouldn’t bring up politics and should know better.
So he shuts up and we endure a week at the fishing lodge, he doesn’t fish so I had days with just my guide and the river, and now move to a secluded beach house for another week, again we are paying for it, my buddy is paying for the rental car. After a couple days I encourage him and his wife to leave early and they do. Finally.
He has reached out once since this trip, which was in January, but I can’t bring myself to answer or return his call. I seriously doubt we will ever speak again.
Life is too short to spend time with people who can’t keep their hatred from spoiling things.
That’s just the way it is in the times we live in.
Unfortunately, it’s the way it is because we let it become that way.
“There is no longer any reasoned debate that I so enjoyed when I was in college. It’s all raw emotion.”
That’s what I see as the divide, people using reason and logic to think, and people using feelings to think.
Your post is really excellent. As a teacher I am always surprised when teachers post things about their students or really inappropriate comments or photos on social media. How dumb are you? How rude & unprofessional are you???!!
Personal affiliation symbols have NO business at your workplace. Unless you own the business & know you will inevitably lose some business.
At this point I really don’t feel sorry for people who do not know better to separate their poitical beliefs from their workplace and then cry crocodile tears when they are disciplined or fired.