We’ve been good friends for over five years. Never really discussed politics because it just wasn’t a topic we discussed.
Tonight I thought I was texting another friend telling him about how awesome TDW is and sent a link to the website. Text went to wrong person... omg he INSTANTLY came unhinged after clicking on the link. His immediate response to me was “ Donald Trump plays to a racist base and everything he does is motivated by greed. He absolutely needs to be gone for 2020. Literally anyone else should take his place. Republican, democrat. Doesn't matter. He needs to go“
I apologized for sending the text to him and said I like Trump. His TDS gauge hits “11”. I’m not even going to post the rest of his stuff. I stayed on the high ground and didn’t fall for his attempts to bait me. Eventually I got bored and told him I’m going to bed (which was true).
I’m kind of guessing I won’t be hearing from him anymore. That’s disappointing, but that decision is on him, not me. I learned long ago I can be friendly to people that disagree with me, but when the other person doesn’t behave reciprocally, well... I have better things to do with my time.
If they'll throw you away like that, they were never a real friend.
True. But disappointing, nonetheless. This is a major, major cultural problem we have right now, and we are not far from a terrible tipping point (as the MSM “journalists” rub hands in glee).
Something will happen to set it off. Most people will stay out of it like they have in all of our domestic wars.
Im an elder pede and have never seen this kind of hatred in my life. I've lost a lot of Facebook "friends" for airing my opinions. Other friends that I love know where I stand so we don't talk about it
TDS is a real thing. I've asked some people (on FB) how they manage holding such hatred. It must be exhausing. Hang in. If he has that hatred then he thinks you're deplorable Wear it with pride
Generally speaking, when someone rattles off lines to me like he did, I a) understand that they are “emotionally entrenched,” and b) equally understand that they see me as “emotionally entrenched” as well (“It’s OBVIOUS he’s a racist traitor to Russia, why can’t you see it?! ARE YOU BLIND?!”).
Nobody’s going to emerge the “winner” in a discussion like that. Not ever. So I just choose not to play.
I honestly don't understand this Russia! business. They have an economy about the same size as Pennsylvania. They have a declining birthrate, but they have Muslim problems that are real (Chechnya). They are paranoid about invaders, as they have a right to considering their history. China is everyone's enemy, imho, and yet we let them snake their way into all facets of our country. We are suicidal!
You are not alone. I lost a really good friend to TDS.
It’s Always sad to lose a friend. Take solace in that you handled it very well, perhaps as well as you could have possibly done so ! Politics has become a great divide in the last few years. For some we can’t even agree to disagree.
The suffering has only just begun for this generation.
Lately, when it comes to friends or associates, both new and old, I've started looking at political affiliation as marker of intelligence. I know, that sounds highly partisan and myopic. However, I find it extremely difficult to understand how the Democrats can honestly (key word - honestly) look at the facts and still pursue impeachment, socialism, bizarre gender issues, ban free speech, destroy the rule of law and many other destructive pursuits. I'm sorry, but if someone thinks or feels Trump is guilty of something and deserves to be impeached then my estimation of their intellect and judgment goes pretty close to zero. I don't think I will trust a democrat for the rest of my life and I'll be better off for it.
I believe the appearance of lack of critical thinking skills comes in when people trust the media to deliver truth. Or that they can check CNN against NBC against NPR and think they have diversified inputs. Once one questions the media they still have a lot of work to do on determining "fact" vs "fiction" and building that into their mental makeup permanantly. Most easy to find media "truth" just brings you back behind the liberal veil - so a lot of people never come out. I believe people really need to see a gross, purposeful lie to reject the mainstream media. Once that happens the person needs to continue to take up the yoke and plow for truth. I think it takes six months to a year for people to be able to emotionally and spiritually accept the truth of the lying media and enter a modified worldview. Its pretty hard to accept a giant mechanism that hates freedom and truth. On the flip side, if you have a friend that sees reality and is still happy and vibrant - you have a person that is pretty much guaranteed to be worth knowing and will be an asset to your life.
I absolutely agree. Luckily for me I live in a place where there are few leftists and not many social activists. I did a big dump of FB people when Trump was running for office. All of my family members like him.
He was never your friend, if they're heads are so far up their ass that they freak out at the mere mention of Trump their lost.
Rightists never bail on a friendship with a leftist; but, leftists always do. We value them as people; while they only value us as potential political allies. I had just started what was promising to be a really fun friendship with a colleague in the philosophy dept at my university. Her course was right after mine, in the same class room, and we got to chatting about political philosophy while I was picking up my materials and she was setting up hers. She seemed a real hoot and I was looking forward to a great intellectual dynamic when it happened:
I teach history, and had just finished a section on the atomic bombing of Japan, the US's short-lived monopoly on the tech, and the culpability of the Rosenbergs. She saw my stuff on the whiteboard as I was erasing and said something about the Rosenbergs. "You don't actually believe that Ethel was guilty, do you??!" I responded with: "yes, I do; and I'm glad she was fried right along with her traitorous husband! If she was innocent (which she wasn't because the scientist they were receiving the tech from was Ethel's own brother, David Greenglass!) then she stayed silent. Her silence cost this country 50 years' worth of Cold War misery; prolonged the Soviet Union's unnatural lifespan; nearly caused a MAD armageddon during the Berlin and Cuban Missile Crises; and, cost us trillions of dollars and over a hundred thousand troops' lives fighting against a nuclearized foe around the world!
And that was the end of our budding friendship. She never spoke to me again.
Thanks, pede. It's a terrible future we're engineering right now: when I started teaching at my university 30 years ago, I was one of ten conservatives in a 13-member department. Now, my department has 25 faculty, and I'm one of three remaining. When we three retire, and that's going to be soon, it'll be the end of an era; since our students will no longer get to hear the conservative viewpoint. All of our new hires are parroting the hard-leftist talking points: 'race, gender, class, US slavery, and victim studies'.
Nice of her to explain her reasoning.
Man that sucks when you realize your friend is a superconformist MKULTRA victim with 0% resist-all stats to deepstate hypnoprogramming
?
It still hurts though! I went through it too. Our illusions about Friends" don't die a painfree death. Damnit though. It's sad.
Don't BECOME them.
Far easier to support patriots and Made in USA than to boycott ppl not worth a second consideration.
FreedomFromGovt (3 points) 3 hours ago Rightists never bail on a friendship with a leftist; but, leftists always do.
Quoted For Truth
Lost a ton of “friends” during the election. It was a blessing in disguise.
When someone won't even listen to the other side, it is a sign. Watch that owen shroyer video with Al Green.
Slightly happy ending: he reached out to me yesterday and apologized for going off the rails on me. He said his sentiments weren’t really changed, but his choice of words wasn’t very mature.
I told him I have no intention of defending my politics and no intention of trying to change his point of view, all I ask is that he respect whatever process I used to arrive at my political standing. He was fine with that.
I know some people might think he’s not worth keeping around, but the key point here is that I didn’t attack his politics (which would make him defensive) or try to defend mine (which would make him feel like I was open to my mind being changed). Now he has to begin processing the cognitive dissonance that his friendship with me creates. He knows I’m not racist, anti-gay, misogynist, etc, so I’m either a statistical outlier from what he perceives as Trump’s "base," or there is some other "thing" that has brought me to where I am. From my perspective, this is how you put cracks in the shell of a CNN-fed "woke person." This kind of stuff means he will have to take time to investigate for himself and do some self-reflection. Over time, if he truly starts questioning, the truth will begin to shine through. That path can lead to the kind of awakening that creates a true conservative, whose convictions come from a fundamental internal value shift. Only time will tell.
Each day that passes makes me think that Kurt Schlichter's books will come true.
Blessing in disguise.
Friends - real friends - are RARE.
George Washington once said to have very few friends and only those well-tested.
People following orders and not thinking are bootlicking tory redcoats of yesteryear. They persecute us for saving the country from Chinese takeover. What a bunch of crab-in-bucket losers!
Eyes on your true frens! ❤❤❤