I decided (more than once) that I would not discuss politics with friends. I have good friends who I value and believe in but it seems like political discussions just ruin the flavor of the friendship. For the handful who don’t know me intimately, I’m a conservative voter. I actually tend to favor Liberatarism over Republicans but the basis of my thought process is less government, in particular less Federal government. I just can’t see that the Federal government is ever going to do much to help me from Washington. For example, how can you say that the Federal government is fair to receiptants of Federal funds (like Medicare or Social Security) to those in rural Kansas vs those in NYC? The same dollar amounts are used but a dollar in rural Kansas has a different value than it does in NYC (through the principal of cost of living factors). But I digress….
The real issue of this blog post is to say that when friends discuss politics, it always seems to come down to a tone of “I believe I’m much smarter than you are for voting how I’m going to vote”. My feelings have definitely been wounded during these kind of discussions. For example, Liberals want to take care of others through health care plans and welfare programs, while Conservatives believe in higher levels of personal responsibility. It seems like when you have a discussion of this nature, often the conservative proponent is accused of being heartless and uncaring while the liberal minded person is accused of giving away hard earned money. And usually both parties walk away wondering where the intelligence and/or soul of their friend has gone to.
Thus it is usually easier to say nothing. Honestly they aren’t likely to change my mind on how I feel about politics and I doubt I’m persuasive enough to change theirs. Yes some people change their views over time through persuasive arguments but not often enough to risk my friendships.
And for the record, I have met a lot of phenom women who are *gasp* Liberals and I still love them anyway. (Inside joke that I shouldn’t make but damn it the original comment did piss me off.)
What Did You Say?