Former Obama speechwriter admits shunning conservative in his family was a mistake

FOX NEWS ^ | 7/14/2025 | Hanna Panreck

[BookmanTheJanitor]

How else could we motivate them to mend their ways?

Who is "we"? Speak for yourself...coward.

[Mr. Jeeves]

The only reason David Litt “knew” that the vaccine was good and important is because the government told him so.

So he was outraged at his relative on behalf of the all-knowing, all-wise, and all-beneficent government. That his relative might have looked at the same set of facts and drawn a different conclusion is inconceivable in his mind.

You can probably look at any given issue the government has weighed in on and David Litt will be willing to display outrage against people who reject the government’s position. Will this blind loyalty ever translate into the heightened social status and government pension he hopes to gain in return? It is doubtful. :)

[Pontiac]

Had the author realized his family was correct about the vaccine? Has he apologized?

I am guessing not after reading the article.

I see this guy still living in his echo chamber never exposed to the truth.

And not challenging his assumptions whenever he happens to trip over a tidbit of truth.

[drSteve78]

Since BIL is an avid reader of the New York Times, maybe he will change his ways.

My wife, similar avid reader of the gospel known as the NYT. Not a chance in the world that there’s any other truth than conservatives are to blame, and after several boosters, covid injections have always been “safe and effective “, etc., with a continuous litany of blame on others for everything. Never “mea culpa”.

[wintertime]

re: “ compartmentalized relationship “

Hm?....Good expression! This is a useful frame in which to manage some personal interactions with others.

re: “collective crowd of Leftists” and their bubble

The Borg?

I always enjoy your insightful posts.

[drSteve78]

“ Can you explain it to me?”

A door was opened and you responded well. Good read.

[sauropod]

.

[left that other site]

“self-flushing toilet”

Brilliant! I LOVE it.

[ConservativeMind]

This brings up a funny moment that just happened this past month.

We ran into a relative not seen in ages. He is much older and lives in a very liberal area. He was met with gladness and warmth.

After being around him a bit, he casually brought up how all those crazies that didn’t get the COVID vaccine helped make it spread around and hurt so many others. My wife responded that neither of us got the COVID vaccine and that she had COVID, but somehow, I never got it (tested negative twice during her infection, but ate from her utensils, slept holding her, etc.). She said we took the horse paste and the other suggested protocol items.

His jaw dropped open and he was left fumbling for words and was apologetic.

The guy had earlier claimed he voted for Trump!

It was a bizarre encounter, but one that still made for a fine time together.

[catnipman]

“My frostiness wasn’t personal. It was strategic. Being unfriendly to people who turned down the vaccine felt like the right thing to do. How else could we motivate them to mend their ways?” Litt wrote.”

what an arrogant, ignorant piece of shite who thinks it’s his job in life to impose his medical beliefs on others ... how does he even know which people can’t take vaccines due to medical reasons? ... conservatives are very lucky to be shunned by such F-heads ...

[catnipman]

“Personally, the Conservatives in my family prefer those people to shun us.”

exactly ...

[healy61]

If I were a pud-smokin’-smacker who looked like Alfred E. Newman, I wouldn’t back down on shunning. He should continue because no one gives a shit what he thinks.

[ConservativeMind]

In the case of full-blown Leftists, it is something else altogether, an amalgam of arrogance, hatred, racism, sexism, ignorance, stupidity, greed (for power and control) all wrapped in a protective cloak of emotion that will not allow them to even question their beliefs.

And that is one of the main differences between “Us” (Conservatives) and “Them” (Liberals and Leftists): We engage in near constant introspection and examination of our beliefs, looking for the flaws in the foundations of our principles and the cracks in the edifices built on those foundations.

We have to, because we are told 24x7 by the Government, the Media, Entertainment, and Education, that we, as Conservatives, are not only flawed but Evil. So, we constantly examine and deconstruct our beliefs so we can ensure we are morally on the right track.

Leftists, except in rare cases, not only do not feel compelled to do this because they are validated 24x7 by the Government, the Media, Entertainment, and Education, but because they feel safety in the collective crowd of Leftists they occupy the same bubble with.

BTTT! My wife and I have a number of relatives that are a lot like this. They tolerate us, but conspire and keep all sorts of important family stuff from us.

We are making headway with them, but they are still anchored by several people who are vociferous in their stances and will crush the others like bugs, so the others don't ever speak up or do things better.

It is like every strong liberal is an extreme dictator, hidden under a cloak of quasi-respectability.

[alternatives?]

They still haven’t figured out they were lied to. They are still being lied to about climate change.

Science is never settled. How many times over the years have they changed on whether to eat eggs or not? If they can’t figure that out how can they figure out the climate?

[Agatsu77]

What a dumb-f^^k!

[Rockingham]

My family are all rock solid Trump conservative Republicans. In agreement on politics, we find other things to bicker about.

[Mean Daddy]

How else could we motivate them to mend their ways?" Litt wrote.

Reminds me of the Godfather II scene where Michael talks to Mo about Mo straightening out his brother Fredo.

[rlmorel]

I have to admit, before that, I tended to use the phrase "Liberal" and "Leftist" somewhat interchangeably.

Since then, I have had a few similar experiences, and I began paying closer attention to the dynamics of them. In the process, I realized there are people who are frozen in their ideology and have little to no chance of changing, while others are not.

After thinking about this subject today, I realized something like a Venn diagram might explain my views on this graphically, so I created this today after reading your post.

Note: it is not meant to be absolute, accurate percentages, or anything like that. It just portrays relationships and how I view them. For example, RINO's probably occupy a higher percentage in the CONSERVATIVE sphere, that kind of thing.

Just food for thought.

[rlmorel]

Or, as I have heard people say:

"Scratch the skin of every Leftist and there is a tyrant underneath."

[ConservativeMind]

Excellent summary!