My friends know this, that there is no point in trying to get me to discuss politics because I just won't do it. Not because I don't have opinions. I have a lot of opinions! And of course like everyone else I think my opinions are pretty good ones.
I don't discuss politics with my friends, or with strangers for that matter, because where I live, in the United States, political lines are drawn very sharply. You are on one side or the other. If you are on my side we can be friends. If you are not then we are enemies. My enemies are bad people and I don't have to listen to or respect their views. But I'm not the one saying this!
I like knowing people who are different from me. I like hearing how they experience life. The books they've read, the places they've traveled, the hobbies they enjoy, I love to hear their stories! I can spend hours with my friends talking about all sorts of things, but never about politics.
Thomas Jefferson
to me!
Source
And then today I broke my own rule on social media. I didn't mean to. Someone posted a quote, supposedly by Thomas Jefferson saying that only tyrants criticize a free press. I thought it was unlikely that Jefferson ever said that, so I searched out the quote and found - from the Thomas Jefferson Foundation no less - that yes indeed, Jefferson never said it and furthermore the meme was totally made up and had been circulating widely for over a year.
I should have stopped there. I had found out the fact of the matter and that should have been good enough. But no, I copied and pasted the link and the information. My message was please do your research before posting things like this. And the original poster said thank you for the correction.
But my friend's friends were not happy. The words were still true, whether Jefferson said them or not! And that is where I broke my rule. I should have said nothing. What does it matter to me, I don't even know you! I wrote:
Point is it wasn't a founding father calling out Trump as a tyrant. Just somebody making stuff up to make us think so. To make us angry and outraged. I'm not even sure the words are true. A tyrant eliminates free speech and the free press, controls the press and silences any opposition. If anyone, even Trump, tried to do that here we'd be hearing a different narrative. Or crickets.
I should have known better, that trying to divert someone's outrage and sense of drama would be fighting words. I was suggesting that we should take a step back and approach this calmly. I don't know why I thought that was a good idea. I stand by what I wrote but it wasn't my best idea to say anything.
But it was a good reminder for me and why I don't discuss politics with my friends!
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Not talking politics in the real world is hard for me to do, but I am trying to learn...
and, online I avoid partisan politics like the plague...
But, after much research this seems about right... ;)
LOL - Perfect! (I might have to
stealborrow that one!)feel free to borrow it... I did... :)
Cool!
I'm thinking I might have to post it every day for a while until some people settle down! :-)
Well, here's where I found it if you need a bigger image...
http://www.dontgetcaught.biz/2015/08/abraham-lincoln-and-mark-twain-called.html
And a lot of information about mis-quoting! Thank you!
Something of a shame that the partisanship is growing hostile to where you need to stifle your views or risk losing friends.
Whatever happened to agreeing to disagree and then cracking another beer??
It is a shame and that's exactly how it is. I know I will never be able to say to them that maybe Trump isn't so bad. Or suggest we could agree to disagree! Even something so mild would bring shrieks of outrage and leave me with maybe three friends left. Like I said, I don't choose my friends by their politics, I like hearing other opinions, but that doesn't go both ways. I'd have to drink that beer by myself but I'm starting to think that isn't such a bad idea.
I happen to think like you, though there are times and can not keep from speaking or noting correct sources for untrue information. Well written!
I've been scolded more than once for posting correct information! "It's a good story, why do you want to ruin it?" Fine, if it's a good story say it's a story. Don't tell me it's a fact and expect me not to notice. Or tell me it "could" be true! On what planet? % }
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All the best!
I have seen that quote! I have come to realize that people aren't looking for facts in their political arguments. So offering facts is usually not appreciated :) "Arguments" are more like narratives. The narrative is more important than any facts included or added to the story. After all "Any story worth telling is worth embellishing." I almost misattributed that to Mark Twain haha
That's a good quote, I'm sure someone said it, or something much like it! :-)
I don't know if you know of Miss Manners? She writes a column on etiquette. She says that if someone asks your opinion on a controversial subject what they really want is to tell you theirs.
I'd have to agree that facts seem to be pretty much optional. I'm going to have to try to remember that.