The Presidential Debates were on last night in case you missed the armchair quarterbacking on Facebook this morning.
Election time is never pretty around our house but we’ve managed to survive 4 elections together. Honest to God, I think we vote just to cancel each other out. That way – neither of us
wins. Or loses, depending which way you look at it. But no matter that our views are different from each other, we somehow manage to stay civil (and married) to each other. Same can’t be said for a lot of other people in the world.
So, I have one thing to ask…
Can’t we all just get along?
I mean really.. poor Rodney King (may he rest in peace) would not be happy right now that no one is living up to his famous question. People are idiots with the way the act towards each other – especially on social media. Look – if I can marry an Eagles loving, card toting member of the GOP, then you can get along with that long lost person that you just had to friend on Facebook.
I’m not going to rehash what every blogger in the world has written on the topic, but I’ve reached my proverbial breaking point and we’re still a month away from the elections, so here it is.
I don’t care who you vote for. You can vote for Donald Trump, Ross Perot or The Count from Sesame Street (may be the only way he gets to keep his job from what I hear) for all I care. But what I do care about is that, as a society, we have decided that other people’s opinions mean nothing. People apparently cannot say what they believe in without being bashed for it.
When the hell did this happen?
I am all for a good, HEALTHY debate, but when you decide that my point of view isn’t worthy because it’s not YOUR point of view, I have a big issue with that.
I bet right now you think I’m venting about the Rooster. I’m not.
Let’s talk about my husband – aka the Rooster if you’re new around here. Even though he’s a registered Republican, he and I are more alike than I sometimes care to admit. Socially – the man is a Democrat. He doesn’t care if our gay friends get married anymore than he cares if our straight friends get married. If you’re in love and you can be happy – God bless. But he’s still a Republican. And for me, my dad told me a long time ago that once I had a family and was working my tail off, I would vote Republican. While I haven’t gone that far, I will say that fiscally, I have become much more conservative when it comes to politics. Probably because I’m sick and tired of working my tail off and not getting anywhere due to the economy sucking. Disclosure: I’m not saying that’s the fault of either parties. What I am saying is that I don’t vote straight ticket and neither does the Rooster.
But, among my friends he’s definitely in the minority and I have to give him kudos for having some seriously thick skin when he’s around the Dem crew. He’s usually not overly vocal with his opinions around our friends, but he doesn’t sit by and allow himself to get attacked for what he believes in. A lot of people give him a ton of crap for his views and that’s not right. He doesn’t light into them and I don’t think it’s right for them to do it to him or anyone for that matter.
As we continue to get knee-deep in politics and social media, keep in mind that people are going to talk. Facebook is the new front porch to conversation.. people like to hang out there and shoot the breeze. When you were a kid, did you ever have the luck to sit around and hear the elders in your family do the same thing? Were you ever in awe over the amazing stories they told?
That’s where wives tales and folk-lore grew from and those stories are packed with as much exaggeration as truth. Same goes for the stories that people post on Facebook, so when you’re getting ready to jump down someone’s throat for their opinions, remember two things.
1) Have your facts straight. Or at least straighter than them.
2) Everyone’s entitled to their own opinion.
Oh – and one more thing – not so long ago, it didn’t matter who was in the oval office and what your thoughts were on them. You at least had respect for the office itself. Our system may not be perfect and we may have had to “vote for the less of two evils” longer than any of us like, but we still live in a country that gives us the freedom to choose who our leader is.
Show some class and respect.
Kristen
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