Hello Steemians,
picture source: https://steemit.com/beehappy/@jeanelleybee/bee-happy-a-positive-thought-winners-some-happy-thoughts-for-everyone
I have a good friend, who uses Facebook quite a lot and she is constantly, dare I say, frustrated with some folk. They comment without any evidence to back up what they say. I have tried to encourage Tina (that's her real name, and she's known as 'T' by everyone she knows) to join us here on Steemit for a few reasons. Mainly, because of what Steemit is and what it represents. What Steemit offers and what it has the potential of becoming. Also, because of the community on here and the way that the Steemit community integrate and sort matters out. Because she can be rewarded, either with praise or financially, for her thoughts and feelings, rather than attacked, argued with by vacuous folly followers and Devil's Advocated regularly. The images featured in this post are relevant to Tina's post.
picture source: http://anotherangryvoice.blogspot.co.uk/2017/04/contrasting-tory-propaganda-with-actual.html
I'm hoping that by sharing one of her recent Facebook posts, it might show you that she is wasted on Facebook and ought to be on here, if not all the time, then at least, initially, using Steemit, because, as we know, it is quite a leap from Facebook to here, pre-critical mass. I am not saying that I agree with T's points in her post, and she knows that, but I agree with the essence of her post completely. I just think de-centralisation is the way ahead and we may just be cracking it here together, but I digress, as usual. I would like you all to join in, if you could, to show Tina that she is welcome here. I know that there are many introduce yourself posts to browse, but I want to send this to Tina and show her just how welcoming and genuinely nice Steemit is and can be. There are disputes, but they are handled so well on here, and you don't get the butterflies regarding what you have said, like you do on Facebook, as folk on here are truly excellent, barring the obvious odd nobbler :).
picture source: https://www.pinterest.co.uk/explore/spiteful-people-quotes/?lp=true
Here is Tina's post and I hope that you like it. I hope, as I did, that you enjoy reading Tina's composition :).....
A Note To Tory Voters(Be self aware, be honest n be brave)
I have strong principles me, the things I feel strongly about I ensure I am well informed on and I try to impart that information on others , this is how we support a cause . That does not mean that my opinion cannot change given a change in circumstances or in light of new information , as most of you know I wasn't always a Labour supporter. Some call this kind of thing a "u turn" I call it personal growth. Our lives and the world around is not in stasis , it is in flux , we have to be fluid in our thinking in order to objectively analyse changing situations in the world . We currently have a situation where the government of the day has no mandate to govern for a number of reasons , no majority , a dirty deal ,proven press bias, internationally condemned for human rights violations ,yet for me the main reason I believe the conservatives have no mandate is their voters !! These people have absolutely no idea what is going on in the world or in their own country , don't want know and don't actually care ! Now to me , when we vote we vote as a collective for the good of ALL citizens , THAT is democracy , THAT is humanity ! When a large proportion of the electorate are ignorant of policy , ignorant of the affect of policy and don’t care that they are , that IMO is an affront to democracy ! I don't like to generalise and make sweeping statements but in this instance my own wealth of experience( I wade in quite a bit if u hadn't noticed) leaves me no other conclusion to come to. Tory supporters are all the same , yes I did just say that and I will now explain why I can come to such a sweeping generalisation .
In my many discussions , including on Tory supporting pages (I try to get out of my own echo chamber , it's how we grow) I get the same exact response from Tories, strangely regardless of the topic being discussed .
First we get the, "I support Conservative coz Blair took us into an illegal war".
So you point out that today’s Labour is not the same party . You remind them of the fact that the conservative leadership at the time was very much in support of the war and only 15 Tory MPs rebelled against their leadership and voted against compared to 139 Labour MPs who voted against, including Corbyn and McDonnell the current leaders of the party ! May , Boris and Damien Green all voted for the war .
Then we get , “Labour sent us into a recession” . So you point out that the government of England did not create the GLOBAL recession .
Then you get , “Corbyn is weak, a clown , a terrorist sympathiser” . You point out the fact that Corbyn is a peacekeeper , a good one , an experienced one and has won accolades for such . You explain how that role requires strength of character , respect from others, an in depth knowledge of the conflict in question and lots of empathy .
Then we have what I like to call the ,“clutching at straws” one, “Corbyn will bankrupt the country with his Utopia.” You show them the fully costed Labour manifesto and ask them to produce the Conservative equivalent that clearly does not exist . You question them as to how we have money for folly( MPs expenses and subsidies, DUP payoff , 10% wage increase for MPs whilst capping nurses pay , the list is endless) but not for basic human rights for all .
Then we have the rather sinister IMO , “Corbyn will open up are borders to mass immigration.” You show them the Labour manifesto’s section on immigration !!
I have no doubt that my experiences will be echoed by many non- conservatives , please correct me if I’m wrong .
Noticing a pattern , yet ????
Their support of the Tories , is based solely on their dislike of Labour . They cannot defend the indefensible so they don’t even try !!! They simply refuse to respond or engage in any way on Tory policy . They repeat the same points above , over and over even after being shown the evidence to the contrary , eventually flouncing off with the inevitable , “ What’s the point , nothing I can say will change your opinion” Well it might if you actually made points instead of deflecting . Or , “The evidence is there , you do the research.” Well u see I research a lot , generally don’t express an opinion unless I have done the research , so that when I make a claim that backs up my opinion , I can back up that claim with evidence (usually more than 1 piece) , I expect others to do the same , if YOU make a claim then it is down to YOU to back it up , if you won’t or can’t then why are you even commenting ???
THEN , when all of the above has occurred and they have still made no comment on actual Tory policy and still have not backed up their claims , they disappear or delete !!!
So , here is the crux of this missive , (yer knew I’d get there eventually) and it’s directly aimed at Conservative supporters . If you cannot defend your party’s policies , if when faced with a differing view you refuse to look objectively at evidence, if you cannot find evidence to support your claims and run away when they are challenged ,then why are you not questioning your whole political affiliation ???
I know what it’s like to have to do that , I know how difficult it is to admit to yourself and others that you were wrong , terribly , terribly wrong . I know what it’s like to suddenly realise that something you believed in your whole adult life was not what you thought it was and is no longer relevant in the changing world . I know that in the last 7 years this country has been systematically raped by the government and that many of my previous views , though some were not so much wrong as misguided ,are no longer relevant in today’s political climate.
So , with this I am appealing to those Tory voters , search your soul , be honest with yourself , if you run away from challenge to your opinion , you have to question why ? I know that many current Labour voters were not always Labour voters , I know that many have never voted at all but I suspect that the majority of Tory voters have ALWAYS voted Tory , regardless of changes in policy , leadership or direction , they still vote Tory . Is that loyalty or blind ignorance ?? Inability to change ones mind is not a strength , inflexabilty is not loyalty.
Your party is destroying lives , it denies millions of it’s citizens basic human rights and has been condemned by the United Nations for doing so ! You can’t keep ignoring it , it will only get worse and affect more people , including you and your’s eventually, you can’t get blood from a stone the poorest have nothing left to take ! You can’t keep blaming previous governments, they have had 7 years and the worst transgressions are all new policies !!! You can’t keep accepting the Tory rhetoric about trickle down economics , it ain’t trickling is it ???
So , what are you gunna do , carry on like the sheep you accuse others of being or actually start questioning your party’s policies and if they stand up to scrutiny , if they truly are policies that are workable , helpful and benefit the country as a whole ??
Start with the NHS !!! Why would you believe the party in control above actual NHS nurses and doctors on the front line , why ???
Thank you for reading this and I hope you agree with me that Tina's words are more valued here than on Facebook.
All of my posts are 100% original content (or picture linked/sourced directly, if used). 100% of all curator rewards will go to the curators of this post, because I don't upvote my own work and all rewards are powered up 100% for Steem Power. I'm here for the long haul, to learn, share and grow with you. Thank you :).
Wow, what a post! She has a strong voice and as such will probably always incur the ire of verbally abusive people. Those that aren't capable of discussing a difference of opinion without resorting to childish measures. I've seen a few instances of such here, but not to the explosive degree that I've heard about on other sites. Here's to her moving on and to us being able to say hello to her here! Come on over, Tina!!
Hi @brisby. T certainly does have a strong voice :). Tina's from Liverpool and she'a very much a proper old school Scouser, as we say. She's honest, headstrong and has a lot of opinions, based on proper research. We have different views, but I respect Tina's opinions on many issues, and she's been a very good friend to me. It is Tina's insistance on fighting for a better future that meets such negative projections and behaviours from others. I feel Facebook's designed to cause so many issues, that any decent argument or point of view gets lost within the web of bullshit. Private messaging, Secret Groups, Closed Groups - Wow, division and inclusion tools or what? Ha, ha, ha, ha.
Anyone with an ounce of creativity, something to say or just decent folk are the people I want to introduce and promote Steemit to and Tina has tons of it. Facebook is used as a 'social' networking site, amongst other things, and it is where many have invested much time, effort and input into and also have shared themselves to extreme degrees on occasion. I feel that it is desined with an unhealthy, insidious, nefarious undertone to it.
Thanks for your comment, @brisby. I hope you're well and been hugging and tickling your days away :).
Thank you for your response gwb235! I have been hugging and tickling (my children). I hope you've been keeping that smile on your face!
I believe that platforms like Facebook started off with the best of intentions, like many ideas that have gone south. There are some who have found joy and peace of mind and success using Facebook. And there are others who have felt aggressively attacked, harassed, or disheartened as well. There isn't anything that is perfect. We're all human and wherever large groups of us gather, some of our flaws will follow. The oversights that are put in place by the Steemit community help to mitigate a large portion of the unsavory behaviors that some bring in.
Hi brisby. I won't enquire about the children, but I assume that they're happy, having being hugged and tickled. Hugging and tickling children is almost as sensible as hugging trees and tickling mushrooms :).
Yes, I'm still smiling and I hope you're all well and good. I agree with regards to platforms starting out with good intentions, but Fcebook has developed it's design to a state where it appears to discourage creativity. The secrecy and privacy are not healthy, in my opinion. That said, you are right when you say that some folk have found success by using, or through, Facebook and of the general trend of various behaviours and their influences upon such platforms, which might lead them from their initial goal or ideal.
I think it's going to be very interesting on Steemit for the forseeable months and I'm hoping that more and more people come over from Facebook and grow with it. Only time will tell, but we can have our theories in the meantime :)
Thanks for the comment. Take care.
T would definitely gain a strong following here on Steemit. With, of course strong opponents. But that is the price one is willing to pay when voicing strong beliefs both in the online world and the really real world.
Hi @arbitrary kitten. T would love a strong opposition, rather than the plethora of back-boneless, factless political tittle-tattlers. You'd get on with T, and the encouraging comments will really help. Seriously, I think your post will touch T, as I'm going to send it to her. I have been trying to find a way to advertise Steemit to people I know would like it and for whom it would be a massive benefit. Your personal post, 'Steemit saved my life' is a completely from the heart post and such a valuable asset, by definition of it's emotional impact upon the reader.
Yes, there is opposition, but not of the same nature as on Facebook and I have already had really positive complaints from my mild umbrage taking moments. It's been really refreshing. There is some cleaning to do (quite a bit, really) with the naughty Steemians, but a percentage of this is a lack of knowledge, research or understanding and some of it is from a negative perspective, based on selfishness and the 'option' to take advantage of genuine folk, but in time, these will die off very quickly and Steemit will be even better (yes, I know, how? :) )
Thank you, very much, for your comment and support and here's hoping T will join us soon for a good old discussion :).
I am both humbled and honored that you choose to forward my post to T. It truly means a lot to me that you find it to be an emotional and valuable representation of the community of Steemit.
Thank you <3
It's a lot more than that, and I know that T wil appreciate it on all of the levels from which it was composed. I do indeed see it as a valuable asset of Steemit's as it puts the essence of Steemit across so succinctly. It's a brilliant post.
:).
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