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How do you talk to relatives who are politically stupid?

Posted on 01/27/2018 10:37:14 AM PST by Krosan

My cousin is an anesthesiologist. I think she is really smart, but she works 13 hours every day and perhaps doesn't have time to think. She is saying the dumbest leftist things, but I know she is not a bad person.

Perhaps you guys have some pieces of advice on how to talk with your family when they've been fooled like that.


TOPICS: Miscellaneous
KEYWORDS: chat; vanity
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To: Krosan

Try to show through reasoning where some of these liberal policies lead. I interact as little as possible with relatives about politics who are Democrats. They reciprocate to maintain peace. It works for us.


21 posted on 01/27/2018 10:43:37 AM PST by BipolarBob (At one time I held the world record as the worlds youngest person on the planet.)
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To: Krosan

Very carefully.


22 posted on 01/27/2018 10:43:40 AM PST by independentmind (Sticks and stones will break my bones, but words will never hurt me.)
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To: Krosan

Then use words they like, such as “transcends” and “construct.” See how many you can spot in this short statement:

“The theory that man’s humanity to man transcends the class struggle is a false construct propagated by the pervasive media complex.”

It is actually pretty meaningless, but the politically stupid smart person will slowly nod their heads and say “aha....”


23 posted on 01/27/2018 10:44:13 AM PST by henkster (YA - russkiy bot)
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To: Krosan

Don’t talk politics. On that subject, they will lose all reason.


24 posted on 01/27/2018 10:44:59 AM PST by Cboldt
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To: CGASMIA68

She probably works at a Hsptl and all she sees is CNN.

...

The hospital near me stopped that about a year ago, even though it’s in a Democrat infested area.

They do patient surveys so I bet they got a lot of complaints about CNN.


25 posted on 01/27/2018 10:46:01 AM PST by Moonman62 (Make America Great Again!)
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Comment #26 Removed by Moderator

To: rigelkentaurus

“I stop interacting with relatives who cannot think and reason. Relatives who are actively working to hurt me and my family see severed relationships”

^^^^
This!


27 posted on 01/27/2018 10:46:11 AM PST by nevadapatriot
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To: henkster

Thank you for the giggle.


28 posted on 01/27/2018 10:46:30 AM PST by FreeperCell
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To: Krosan

If it is someone you care about try to keep the lines of communication open. Assure him or her that you’re always available to talk to or ask questions. But insist on two rules: insist that they be honest, and insist that they not be insulting. Despite their protests, it is not hypocritical for you to set the standards or the ground rules.

If there is a reasonable person hiding in there you can bring them out and become a critical thinker.

If they are “progressives” they will be incapable of following those two basic rules.


29 posted on 01/27/2018 10:46:35 AM PST by rockrr (Everything is different now...)
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To: Krosan

I have relatives who hate Trump and think he’s going to blow up the world, but who would agree with just about everything he advocates. Even when I have occasion to point that out, they just shut down, say they don’t want to talk about it and inevitably close the discussion with “he’s a nut.” MSM at work with them, CNN watchers all.


30 posted on 01/27/2018 10:46:45 AM PST by RegulatorCountry
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To: Krosan

Flashcards and finger puppets


31 posted on 01/27/2018 10:47:40 AM PST by 1035rep
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To: Krosan
Joke with her, and say: “You're really bright, which makes me wonder how you could support failed leftist groupthink memes, like the socialism that is destroying people's lives in Venezuela. Is is possible that some of the equipment you're using in the OR is leaking gases and you're inhaling this without knowing?”

Of course, this might not go over too well.

32 posted on 01/27/2018 10:47:45 AM PST by neverevergiveup
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To: Krosan

You can’t talk to them. I have tried. They are in the religious cult known as liberalism, and like any cult they first need to realize everything they have invested in is a lie. Some day they may have a change of heart, and then you can explain.


33 posted on 01/27/2018 10:47:48 AM PST by Paperpusher
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To: rockrr

I make it clear to my relatives, that I love them, but I will not talk politics, you aren’t going to change my mind, and I’m not going to change yours’, so let’s just leave it at that.


34 posted on 01/27/2018 10:48:33 AM PST by dfwgator
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To: Krosan

Not knowing what she believes it is kind of hard to answer your question. Want to provide an example?


35 posted on 01/27/2018 10:48:39 AM PST by Robert DeLong
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To: Krosan

How do you talk to relatives who are politically stupid?

Here boy/girl fetch


36 posted on 01/27/2018 10:49:00 AM PST by Vaduz (women and children to be impacted the most.)
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To: Krosan

You will not communicate well with your cousin until you draw out their worldview. You must have a common frame of reference to start from. This is the basis of all apologetics, whether Christian or political, governmental.

Once you know their core beliefs, then you can speak to them in terms they understand while leading them to think about the rationality of what they think and why they think it.

Beliefs not based in the truth of Natural Law will not support themselves, then you will be able to lead them to the truth. There are moral absolutes and natural absolutes we must all live by. The fact that we don’t like the truth doesn’t change it or the effects of the truth.

I may not believe in gravity, but if I step off the cliff my most earnest heartfelt conviction that gravity is just a plot of the man to keep me from flying will not break my fall.


37 posted on 01/27/2018 10:49:02 AM PST by Billyv ( Freedom isn't Free! Get off the sidelines!)
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To: Krosan

“How do you talk to relatives who are politically stupid?”

You don’t. Play dead.


38 posted on 01/27/2018 10:49:06 AM PST by chuckee
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To: Krosan

I resort to sign language. My sign vocabulary is limited so I rely on the extended middle finger because it speaks volumes...........


39 posted on 01/27/2018 10:50:10 AM PST by varon (Let the hanging games begin)
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To: Krosan
I have a similar problem but it's a liberal Republican! She was raised GOP, is I think the only reason she isn't a Dim at this point. She's a busy doctor who gets her news from PBS and BBC. She has bought the propaganda that Trump is an embarrassing blowhard.
I don't have good answers for you - the person I know is very bullheaded and convinced she is right. I guess if I get a chance I can say, “Well, thanks to TRUMP'S tax cuts, the stock market has sure been good!” or other comments on how things are better.
But she's a friend, not a relative, so it helps to know I don't have to be around her if I choose not to.
40 posted on 01/27/2018 10:50:27 AM PST by GnuThere
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