Oh, politics

[urbpan]

I dislike conflict and argument, so I try to avoid discussions of politics.

Facebook is the worst, because while 99.3 percent of your facebook friends will ignore your politics post or "like" it and move on, that one relative or friend from high school (or friend of a friend--how is he even seeing my post?, that's creepy!) will jump in and you will have the some discussion over and over again.

Part of the problem is that the "sides" are fully entrenched, and every talking point is preapproved and predigested by our pundits and proxies. I've never seen a political disagreement move one side or the other a single inch. The point seems to be to shut the other person up, to make your point louder or funnier, or with more help with friends, until exhaustion or awkwardness takes over.

And I'm still doing it, even though I keep vowing to stop. The current argument is about voter disenfranchisement. I somehow managed to stay out of the recent flaps about Marriage Equality and Chicken Sandwiches.

I believe Soundgarden said some good things that pertain to all disagreements, but that now seem particularly pertinent to the "Christianity versus Marriage Equality" disagreement:
Pray, if you want to pray
If you like to kneel
If you like to lay
Hate, if you want to hate
If it keeps you safe
If it makes you brave
Don't come over here
And piss on my gate
Save it just keep it
Off my wave

Comments

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

Since, as you say, no one's opinions are ever changed, it's like performance art for the like-minded, with occasional disses and challenges, which give you a chance to sharpen up your humor and put-downs.

Which, okay, that can be fun, and for some people it's a lot of fun, but meanwhile there are actual problems and issues, and that style of interaction doesn't help *at all* for coming up with shared ideas for making stuff better.

[elainetyger.livejournal.com]

This is why I stick to videos of bears scratching their privates and cats riding things.

[urb-banal.livejournal.com]

I know. There are a lot of subjects that are just too complicated to send them off in a quick blurb. I don't think facebook is the place at all to do something like that. There are lots of things that are context dependant too.

I try to stick to cute pics of pets.

[deathling.livejournal.com]

There is so much hate on all sides. I'm sick and tired of it.

[yummykit.livejournal.com]

very recently, i posted something in regards to the continued lack of marriage equality in america and a member of my extended family went off on me. he accused me of discriminating against him for his beliefs and when i said he had misinterpreted my words, there was just no shutting him up.

it was a pointless argument and it resulted in me deleting the entire post. he was literally trying to "save" me and i was speaking to a brick wall about how discrimination = discrimination.

it made me want to jump off a cliff or at least take a break from facebook.

[plantmom.livejournal.com]

Yup, I do that a lot. At the age of fifty-six, I've learned how little is gained by trying to change anyone's mind. But a video of a dog swimming with dolphins? Yes, please!

[anais2.livejournal.com]

Keep on posting- if you help educate just one person about the nefarious politics in this country, you're part of the solution.

[grace-batmonkey.livejournal.com]

I'm stealing this tactic.