Discourse is Dead. Long Live Discourse.
"You and me will all go down in history, with a sad Statue of Liberty, and a generation that didn't agree..." - System of a Down
I am too young to remember a time when both sides of the political isle in America could agree on anything. As if that isn't sad enough, it's gotten worse in every election since I've been paying attention. In 2000, I was only 17. My birthday was about a month after Election Day, so I couldn't vote, but for some reason I still paid attention. I wore a "Go Al" sticker on my shirt which I made myself. I was met with constant belittlement and disappointment, even from teachers. Only one teacher asked me, "Can you vote?" I replied, "No, I can't - I'm only 17." He was wholly disheartened by this.
It only got worse in 2004. In fact, for all of Dubya's presidency, I was constantly told to shut my mouth. "He's the President," they would tell me, "and we do not question the President." I find it funny how these same people now scream from the mountaintops about how much they hate Obama. I was going to specify the Appalachian Mountains, but I feel that's unfair to hillbillies. They're not as racist as the Tea Party.
I think that's all it boils down to, really - just race. I can't fathom anything else that would cause people to act this way. You'd have to be brain damaged in order to actually believe anything Mitt Romney says. He's been caught on tape making totally contradictory statements from week to week. I mean, it's horrible, but at least racism would make sense. It's a real thing and a real problem and it would explain why people so detest a man like Barack Obama who has done everything in his power to help them.
I continue to feel isolated wherever I go. I live in a very conservative area, and it seems to me that conservatives are far more outspoken. I was recently visiting longtime friends, and all I heard is how Obama was poisoning America. About 20 minutes into the rant, the question came up, "Are you a Democrat or Republican?" My answer to this was no lie, "I am an Independent." Then the raving continued, never giving me a moment to get a word in edgewise. It is like that wherever I go... I would try to debate, but I just typically give up, because the people are far too intense for my taste. I'm not going to be able to change their minds anyway.
I've also recently been told about how Romney's plan will save me money and get me better jobs and so on and so forth. Well, I'm doing far better under Obama than I ever did under Dubya or would've under McCain. I also lived for 3 years without healthcare. While it's a bit late for me, I fully support ObamaCare. Or wait, was that RomneyCare? Republicans: Facts are not based on faith. Facts are facts, and you cannot change them. History happened, and no matter how much you want to claim that Ronald Reagan was your demigod, he was actually a moderate.
I know people are always going to disagree, but you should not base your beliefs on a complete lie. Yet that is what keeps happening. Sure, it's true, the Democrats do it too... But the Republican lies are pretty much right there on tape. Look at the Paul Ryan thing; he essentially breaks into a soup kitchen just for a photo op? Tea Party nuts are terrified of a black man, yet *they* are the ones breaking and entering! That's sickening. The worst part though, is that the Republican base not only believes the lies, but they shout them in everyone else's faces! It seems like all they are interested in doing these days is talking out of their asses about stuff they do not even understand in the first place.
I do have a few moderate or slightly more conservative friends who are willing to engage in civil discourse. This is refreshing. They have valid enough points and are willing to meet halfway. I give them a lot of credit. More often than not, however, I am chastised for even having a differing opinion. Typically most people will just shout in my face that I do not understand anything... Usually these are over-privileged rich people who have no idea what I've gone through in life (though I'm not even really that bad off). Why would you presume to know me, let alone what I should think? Because their leaders told them so? Are they really that incapable of thinking for themselves? On a side note, I find it funny the way Obama dishes it back out at these people. He does reach across the aisle all the time, but when called for, he's not afraid to trade blows. Republicans don't seem to be able to handle the concept of a Democrat who actually fights back.
I've gotten it all, "idiot," "libtard," "Democrat," etc... Yes, I'm including "Democrat" in that list because I am NOT one. People seem to assume that you can only have two slots in which to fit. That has never been the case with me on anything, but that's another rant for another day. Today, my question is, what happened? Why are things like this? I've been picking heavily on conservatives, but I've known liberals who are just as loud. Nothing is going to get fixed by yelling at each other. In a sinking boat, which works better? Trying to figure out who's to blame for the leak, or actually getting everyone to the lifeboats in an orderly manner?
Personally, I'm voting for Obama, because he's shown he cares about everyone, even enough to have dialogues with conservatives. But maybe I'm wrong. Health care, women's rights, gay marriage, religious freedoms, and so on... Maybe none of that matters. Maybe the solution really is to let Mitt the Shit R-Money control our money. After all, that's the bottom line, because Paul Ryan said so.
It only got worse in 2004. In fact, for all of Dubya's presidency, I was constantly told to shut my mouth. "He's the President," they would tell me, "and we do not question the President." I find it funny how these same people now scream from the mountaintops about how much they hate Obama. I was going to specify the Appalachian Mountains, but I feel that's unfair to hillbillies. They're not as racist as the Tea Party.
I think that's all it boils down to, really - just race. I can't fathom anything else that would cause people to act this way. You'd have to be brain damaged in order to actually believe anything Mitt Romney says. He's been caught on tape making totally contradictory statements from week to week. I mean, it's horrible, but at least racism would make sense. It's a real thing and a real problem and it would explain why people so detest a man like Barack Obama who has done everything in his power to help them.
I continue to feel isolated wherever I go. I live in a very conservative area, and it seems to me that conservatives are far more outspoken. I was recently visiting longtime friends, and all I heard is how Obama was poisoning America. About 20 minutes into the rant, the question came up, "Are you a Democrat or Republican?" My answer to this was no lie, "I am an Independent." Then the raving continued, never giving me a moment to get a word in edgewise. It is like that wherever I go... I would try to debate, but I just typically give up, because the people are far too intense for my taste. I'm not going to be able to change their minds anyway.
I've also recently been told about how Romney's plan will save me money and get me better jobs and so on and so forth. Well, I'm doing far better under Obama than I ever did under Dubya or would've under McCain. I also lived for 3 years without healthcare. While it's a bit late for me, I fully support ObamaCare. Or wait, was that RomneyCare? Republicans: Facts are not based on faith. Facts are facts, and you cannot change them. History happened, and no matter how much you want to claim that Ronald Reagan was your demigod, he was actually a moderate.
I know people are always going to disagree, but you should not base your beliefs on a complete lie. Yet that is what keeps happening. Sure, it's true, the Democrats do it too... But the Republican lies are pretty much right there on tape. Look at the Paul Ryan thing; he essentially breaks into a soup kitchen just for a photo op? Tea Party nuts are terrified of a black man, yet *they* are the ones breaking and entering! That's sickening. The worst part though, is that the Republican base not only believes the lies, but they shout them in everyone else's faces! It seems like all they are interested in doing these days is talking out of their asses about stuff they do not even understand in the first place.
I do have a few moderate or slightly more conservative friends who are willing to engage in civil discourse. This is refreshing. They have valid enough points and are willing to meet halfway. I give them a lot of credit. More often than not, however, I am chastised for even having a differing opinion. Typically most people will just shout in my face that I do not understand anything... Usually these are over-privileged rich people who have no idea what I've gone through in life (though I'm not even really that bad off). Why would you presume to know me, let alone what I should think? Because their leaders told them so? Are they really that incapable of thinking for themselves? On a side note, I find it funny the way Obama dishes it back out at these people. He does reach across the aisle all the time, but when called for, he's not afraid to trade blows. Republicans don't seem to be able to handle the concept of a Democrat who actually fights back.
I've gotten it all, "idiot," "libtard," "Democrat," etc... Yes, I'm including "Democrat" in that list because I am NOT one. People seem to assume that you can only have two slots in which to fit. That has never been the case with me on anything, but that's another rant for another day. Today, my question is, what happened? Why are things like this? I've been picking heavily on conservatives, but I've known liberals who are just as loud. Nothing is going to get fixed by yelling at each other. In a sinking boat, which works better? Trying to figure out who's to blame for the leak, or actually getting everyone to the lifeboats in an orderly manner?
Personally, I'm voting for Obama, because he's shown he cares about everyone, even enough to have dialogues with conservatives. But maybe I'm wrong. Health care, women's rights, gay marriage, religious freedoms, and so on... Maybe none of that matters. Maybe the solution really is to let Mitt the Shit R-Money control our money. After all, that's the bottom line, because Paul Ryan said so.
