Saying this here on DU and on FB [View all]
I have lost several friends now (and my ignore list went up 5 this week on du, 26 ignoring me now).
On FB my friends who are mainly Christian and RW have ditched me, including my cousin, because I am too liberal. The most recent to unfriend me has been a dear friend from high school. His wife and I remain friends (for now)
On DU - well, guess I am too conservative somehow or, perhaps, I have learned that on DU like FB, if you don't agree you are a hater/sheep/evil/etc and so on.
My post to both places:
I have defended gays and their rights. Those who want their religious freedoms - I have been there beside you. Women who deserve the right to make medical choices? I have stood by you as well.
When people have said 'you cannot work for us because you smoke at home on your off hours' I have defended said people and their right to do what they want on their personal time. Same as I had many others who want to smoke pot even though I do not. I was called a libertarian.
I have railed against the wars because I love our kids here in the US and did not want to see them as canon fodder, and I was called a commie, a peace loving hippie, told I didn't know what I was talking about. People told me I hate America and freedom, that I wanted to see us ran over and to fall.
Stood up for single payer, and lost friends over that because I was seen as a socialist who wanted to raise taxes to help those most in need of care.
After this shooting I did not blame the weapon, but the user of it. And somehow, during this, lost friends here and elsewhere. My friends on the left accused me of being heartless, a gun lover, etc, and my friends on the right have accused me of being a liberal because I did not agree with all the crazy fundamentalist over the cause as it relates to god, good, and evil.
Some friends have said I am a sheep because I won't buy into the whole terrorism meme - all the folks in the middle east are out to get me, we need more security, less rights, more intrusion (tsa/etc) - but here is the thing- When I was a kid we could see our family off when they went on planes, even when I was an adult we could do so. We didn't fear such things as much back then - what changed and why is a question I ask - but when I do so am seen as weak. Ask it today about guns, shootings, etc and folks on the right will jump in and say it is because we kicked God out of schools. Ask them why people a world away want to attack us, try to discuss it, and it is not about God but about how evil islam is. Actions no longer have consequences and attempts to discuss actions/consequences means I hate America (unless, of course, I say the action is not praying in school - to which some on the right will tell me the consequence is what we just saw...how does it all work???)
9/11 comes and folks on the right, under Bush, rushed through changes to 'protect' us. And those same folks today are saying to slow down and not make snap decisions when someone goes into a school and shoots up people.
I didn't agree then. I don't now. I have tried to be consistent and tell people to slow down and think about things. No one really read the patriot act/et all, but we were all for changing things in hopes the government would protect us. We rushed into Iraq, mostly out of fear. Some want to rush in over fear and change gun laws even though they are not sure which ones they want to change or how.
I can't 'win' as they say. Ask for introspection, to review things, ask questions to learn and you are called a commie, liberal, rw fascist, libertarian, et al. Search for truth and answers, ask hard questions, and people run and hide or just call you names.
The government was not the solution to 9/11. If anything they contributed to the cause by their earlier actions. We armed Osama and Saddam, trained them supported them.
They are not the solution to our problems when it comes to mass shootings either. So many own guns, so few use them in such a way. The problem is not religion. It is not Islam, Christianity, Atheists.
The problem is people, their greed, their hatred. And that problem is hard to tackle so we work to avoid it by making laws to give those in power more power in hopes they can control others.
I have said it before, will say it again - if you want change - whether it be to stop abortions (I know many who want to outlaw such) or shootings, obesity, etc, using an elected official is not the right way to go about it. Change the hearts and minds of people, work together as friends, family, neighbors, churches, social groups.
All I am seeing now is hatred. Unfriending, ignoring, etc. Discussion - it is not welcome because it appears that folks on the right and the left have adopted their own religion and are sticking to it and anyone who questions it we want to get rid of.
Don't like me, my questions, my views - ignore me now, unfriend me. Climb into your shell, leave debate behind, and cuddle up to your core beliefs without question.
Live in your bubble. I, for one, welcome debate and discussion, even if heated at times, because I want to keep learning and discussing.
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