happyhoix
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Post by happyhoix on Sept 20, 2020 9:19:56 GMT -5
I got trapped tonight by DH's family. Ugh. Normally I just move to another room but we were sitting at the table. I did not have nearly enough beers in me for that crap. It was birthday cake and gifts for his niece. I do wonder if they notice I never say anything political and I don't agree with them.... I never talk about politics around my SIL but she seems to think she can convince DH and I to come to Trumps side by throwing out comments I think she heard on Rush or Fox. She’ll try to start a discussion but t won’t take the bait, although sometimes DH does. SIL’s DH will be poking her and shaking his head at her trying to get her to shut up, but I think she believes she can magically convince us that she’s right. She’s not convincing us and we’re not convincing her. That’s America in a nutshell.
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Sept 22, 2020 12:44:37 GMT -5
We made it through, as we all very carefully did not bring up anything political. We even let it go when my Dad said he was waiting to buy a car to see if Biden gets in office, because he thinks he will get a tax credit for buying an electric car. And then my sister said "Those jerks just want to give everyone money." I did not ask why Trump’s tax breaks were good and a tax break for people rich enough to buy a Tesla was bad - because I don't care about her answer. And they did not probe any further when I spoke my criticism of charter schools manipulating scores and cherry picking students.
Not a great night, but not a bad night.
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wvugurl26
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Post by wvugurl26 on Sept 23, 2020 13:36:33 GMT -5
My brother in law called to invite us to a book signing by Trump Jr. Hell no.
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Sept 23, 2020 16:03:11 GMT -5
My BIL just posted a picture of their collection of Trump banners, sign, t-shirts and hats.
I hope that my son has an out of town tournament for Thanksgiving.
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NomoreDramaQ1015
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Post by NomoreDramaQ1015 on Sept 23, 2020 16:10:47 GMT -5
My brother in law called to invite us to a book signing by Trump Jr. Hell no. Go but bring a copy of Michelle Obama's "Becoming" for him to sign instead.
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Post by The Walk of the Penguin Mich on Sept 23, 2020 20:15:52 GMT -5
Those Trump sons make me want to take a shower. Am I the only one?
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wvugurl26
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Post by wvugurl26 on Sept 23, 2020 20:24:25 GMT -5
I'm not going anywhere near them. They seem creepy and slimey.
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dondub
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The meek shall indeed inherit the earth but only after the Visigoths are done with it.
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Post by dondub on Sept 23, 2020 20:54:26 GMT -5
Those Trump sons make me want to take a shower. Am I the only one? Well I want to hose them down with special emphasis on the hair goo.
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haapai
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Character
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Post by haapai on Sept 23, 2020 21:25:29 GMT -5
My maternal grandmother died in April. All four of her children survived her. Unfortunately, they cannot be in the same room together anymore.
Grandma had held the family together for decades. Three of her children had homes or summer homes near her. There also was a family cottage used by many members of the family and extended family. All four of these properties will be going on market or sold within the next year.
I'm not sure if I will ever see several of my cousins again. There just isn't a place for us to meet anymore. Even funerals and memorial services are unlikely to bring us together again. Almost everyone lives out of state and still works.
Right now, not having any reason to be around either of my mom's brothers or their spouses feels like a blessing. The same thing goes for half of my cousins.
My dad's family is a different story. They all live in different states but they all vote similarly. They'll probably continue to meet up with each other at fairly regular intervals once this plague fades. They've already got plans to meet up in September 2021 in a state where none of them live and drag most of their kids and grandkids along.
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happyhoix
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Post by happyhoix on Sept 24, 2020 6:15:12 GMT -5
My BIL just posted a picture of their collection of Trump banners, sign, t-shirts and hats. I hope that my son has an out of town tournament for Thanksgiving. I misread this as ‘sign, t-shirt and hate.’ Makes sense both ways I think.
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happyhoix
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Post by happyhoix on Sept 24, 2020 6:19:57 GMT -5
Those Trump sons make me want to take a shower. Am I the only one? Right now I’m especially pissed that little Eric is ignoring a subpoena to testify in court about the Trump Inc corporate taxes. He says he’s too busy. I’m wondering what would happen if I ignored a subpoena. Why is Eric allowed to slide on this?
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Tennesseer
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Post by Tennesseer on Sept 24, 2020 10:11:59 GMT -5
Those Trump sons make me want to take a shower. Am I the only one? Well I want to hose them down with special emphasis on the hair goo. There's Something About Mary hair goo?
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dondub
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The meek shall indeed inherit the earth but only after the Visigoths are done with it.
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Post by dondub on Sept 24, 2020 11:00:03 GMT -5
Well I want to hose them down with special emphasis on the hair goo. There's Something About Mary hair goo? Could be.😎
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Sept 24, 2020 20:08:39 GMT -5
My BIL just posted a picture of their collection of Trump banners, sign, t-shirts and hats. I hope that my son has an out of town tournament for Thanksgiving. I misread this as ‘sign, t-shirt and hate.’ Makes sense both ways I think. LOL. I was thinking about this, as I did not specify which side of the family I was talking about. I was thinking that my husband's and my family represents just about all the Trumo voters. • The old lady who is scared of everything. She lived rural-ish her whole life, but now is in a retirement village full of other conservatives. Believes a few conspiracy theories. • The old lady who thinks Trump is awful, but Biden is a socialist, and wants open borders. And that whole BLM thing is bunk because whites are superior, at least culturally. • The lifelong Republican who is embarrassed, but the market is good, but things are bad, but Biden is old, but, but etc. He may be a Lincoln Project turn-tail. Nobody is sure We may never know. • The hard-core evangelical who thinks no sacrifice is too much as long as we get pro-life judges, school vouchers and a promise to keep Christianity the official religion of the USA. (If he can get rid of those sinning gays, that would be good too.) • The blue collar worker who hates immigrants, but has a Mexican grand baby (but that is different). We are missing a current Rural person. We also don't have anyone from the South. But, I've got the general message covered.
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Bob Ross
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Post by Bob Ross on Sept 26, 2020 13:19:01 GMT -5
A small victory. My mom has confided in me that she thinks I'm correct about Trump, and that she will vote third party. Not that it matters in our red state, but at least I can respect her again. I think her opinion on Biden is still pretty polluted from years of misinfo and Fox News (puppet of socialism, radical left, etc) but since it was never my intent to prove otherwise, but simply show her how disgusting Trump is, I've met my goal. My father, on the other hand, is too far gone to save. He spits back Trump excuses verbatim, like how Trump's lies about the pandemic were the right thing to do as to "not cause a panic". Sometimes I get a glimmer of hope so renew the debate but after our last shouting match, I'm done. He most recently said that "all media lies" and all that matters are "what he himself knows" (sound familiar?) so no amount of facts and truth can debate that. He let his own self-inflicted grievances completely merge into the Trump message. What a shame.
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sesfw
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Post by sesfw on Sept 26, 2020 15:01:23 GMT -5
at least I can respect her again.
Sad that you allowed something as stupid as politics to come between you and your parents.
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Sept 26, 2020 15:28:09 GMT -5
at least I can respect her again.Sad that you allowed something as stupid as politics to come between you and your parents. Unfortunately, when someone becomes passionate about something, it is no longer stupid. If one person is deep in anything it can cause them to damage relationships. When two people are diametrically opposed and equally passionate, it can drive a huge wedge between them, unless they make a conscious effort for it to not divide them. This is true of people who come out as gay. People who marry someone that are abusive, and the family or friends can see it. Religion, politics, even eating - vegan, etc. I know someone whose relationship with his father was seriously damaged because he chose to be a musician and Dad did NOT approve. If it matters to someone, it is no longer stupid.
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pulmonarymd
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Post by pulmonarymd on Sept 26, 2020 15:31:02 GMT -5
at least I can respect her again.Sad that you allowed something as stupid as politics to come between you and your parents. So people can spew hate filled, fascist, misogynistic, conspiracy laden bile without consequences. If people want to be civil, then common ground can be found. If they want to always be antagonistic, why bother
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plugginaway22
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Post by plugginaway22 on Sept 26, 2020 15:40:35 GMT -5
Interestingly, I am a democrat with very conservative republican parents and we have managed to stay civil the past few years, but barely. Now that my father is dying from cancer, all that crap has gone out the window, and my sister (also dem) and I are there frequently with both parents and believe me, in the situation we are in, politics does not matter. Relationships become more important now, sad that it has divided families.
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oped
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Post by oped on Sept 26, 2020 15:56:05 GMT -5
at least I can respect her again.Sad that you allowed something as stupid as politics to come between you and your parents. It isn’t politics. It’s morality. It’s fundamental tenets of humanity. And when you differ on those? How can you pretend any longer?
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NomoreDramaQ1015
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Post by NomoreDramaQ1015 on Sept 26, 2020 17:32:37 GMT -5
at least I can respect her again.Sad that you allowed something as stupid as politics to come between you and your parents. I had someone I considered a good friend call me a baby killer. Oh not specifically but a long winded "funny" post about liberals. But I'm supposed to be the bigger person? I'm supposed to smile and be polite to somebody who calls people those kind of things? Nope if you think I'm that kind person due to being a liberal then why does he even remain friends with me? I figure I'm doing him a favor.
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justme
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Post by justme on Sept 26, 2020 19:12:17 GMT -5
I would love not to have to pull back or stop talking based on politics anymore. I would love to go back to where I just rolled my eyes at people on the other side and thought they were silly or a little stupid.
But the Republicans decided to make fighting against human rights and basic human needs as their platform. They stopped talking about just politics and thus made many things that are political that never should have been.
So until those things are no longer political, yea my idea on your worth a human will be greatly tied to your politics.
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Bob Ross
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Post by Bob Ross on Sept 26, 2020 20:04:22 GMT -5
at least I can respect her again.Sad that you allowed something as stupid as politics to come between you and your parents. I never cared about their political opinions until now. But this time is different, and if you can't see why by now, no one's gonna be able to explain it to you. I truly, honestly believe that watching them go down the path they were on was akin to watching one's parents attend Hitler rallies in 1930's Germany...or if that analogy is too much for you, it's like watching them be brainwashed into the very toxic cult of personality of a malignant narcissistic sociopath. If you think that idly sitting by and saying nothing in such a situation just to keep the peace is the right tactic, then we are so far apart in opinion as to make any further discussion moot.
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dondub
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The meek shall indeed inherit the earth but only after the Visigoths are done with it.
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Post by dondub on Sept 26, 2020 22:31:24 GMT -5
at least I can respect her again.Sad that you allowed something as stupid as politics to come between you and your parents. I never cared about their political opinions until now. But this time is different, and if you can't see why by now, no one's gonna be able to explain it to you. I truly, honestly believe that watching them go down the path they were on was akin to watching one's parents attend Hitler rallies in 1930's Germany...or if that analogy is too much for you, it's like watching them be brainwashed into the very toxic cult of personality of a malignant narcissistic sociopath. If you think that idly sitting by and saying nothing in such a situation just to keep the peace is the right tactic, then we are so far apart in opinion as to make any further discussion moot. Oh it could be explained to her. It’s the ‘getting it’ on the other end that’s the issue,
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tbop77
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Post by tbop77 on Sept 27, 2020 6:25:06 GMT -5
at least I can respect her again.Sad that you allowed something as stupid as politics to come between you and your parents. I had someone I considered a good friend call me a baby killer. Oh not specifically but a long winded "funny" post about liberals. But I'm supposed to be the bigger person? I'm supposed to smile and be polite to somebody who calls people those kind of things? Nope if you think I'm that kind person due to being a liberal then why does he even remain friends with me? I figure I'm doing him a favor. I hear that all the time in the Senate race in KY, they may not like Mitch, but they are not voting for a baby killer.
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Sept 27, 2020 11:58:16 GMT -5
I think the Dems should be a little "bigger tent" about abortion. They should have a full fledged, well thought out portion of the platform about 'virtually eliminating the need for abortions through education, better general Healthcare, access to birth control, increased research into new forms of birth control and increased punishments for dead beat Dads. Throw in a bunch of rape legislation and cover that problem too. Then, people who are uneasy about the religious ramifications of abortions could use this portion of the platform as cover. And, they might be able to make repubs look like assholes, because "all they want to do is make it illegal, which won't stop it from happening. We want to help women by making sure it never happens to them - because no one wants an abortion."
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happyhoix
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Post by happyhoix on Sept 27, 2020 13:53:22 GMT -5
I think the Dems should be a little "bigger tent" about abortion. They should have a full fledged, well thought out portion of the platform about 'virtually eliminating the need for abortions through education, better general Healthcare, access to birth control, increased research into new forms of birth control and increased punishments for dead beat Dads. Throw in a bunch of rape legislation and cover that problem too. Then, people who are uneasy about the religious ramifications of abortions could use this portion of the platform as cover. And, they might be able to make repubs look like assholes, because "all they want to do is make it illegal, which won't stop it from happening. We want to help women by making sure it never happens to them - because no one wants an abortion." And by promoting adoption. I have an adopted niece. I saw a show where they interviewed young pregnant girls and I was surprised at how many of them said they would never consider giving their baby up for adoption, I’m not sure why that has such a stigma. So many ways we could be eliminating abortions with carrots, not sure why the GOP wants to focus just on a stick.
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Sept 27, 2020 15:39:21 GMT -5
I think the Dems should be a little "bigger tent" about abortion. They should have a full fledged, well thought out portion of the platform about 'virtually eliminating the need for abortions through education, better general Healthcare, access to birth control, increased research into new forms of birth control and increased punishments for dead beat Dads. Throw in a bunch of rape legislation and cover that problem too. Then, people who are uneasy about the religious ramifications of abortions could use this portion of the platform as cover. And, they might be able to make repubs look like assholes, because "all they want to do is make it illegal, which won't stop it from happening. We want to help women by making sure it never happens to them - because no one wants an abortion." And by promoting adoption. I have an adopted niece. I saw a show where they interviewed young pregnant girls and I was surprised at how many of them said they would never consider giving their baby up for adoption, I’m not sure why that has such a stigma. So many ways we could be eliminating abortions with carrots, not sure why the GOP wants to focus just on a stick. I understand what you are saying, but that could be a sticky political message to push too much. Adoption is still a huge, tramatic experience for the young mother. And it goes to that elistist thing where poor people don't deserve families, but should provide babies for couples who have resources. That isn't necessarily how I think, but it can be a hard message to navigate. Prevention is less controversial.
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happyhoix
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Post by happyhoix on Sept 27, 2020 17:07:13 GMT -5
And by promoting adoption. I have an adopted niece. I saw a show where they interviewed young pregnant girls and I was surprised at how many of them said they would never consider giving their baby up for adoption, I’m not sure why that has such a stigma. So many ways we could be eliminating abortions with carrots, not sure why the GOP wants to focus just on a stick. I understand what you are saying, but that could be a sticky political message to push too much. Adoption is still a huge, tramatic experience for the young mother. And it goes to that elistist thing where poor people don't deserve families, but should provide babies for couples who have resources. That isn't necessarily how I think, but it can be a hard message to navigate. Prevention is less controversial. I’m not saying adoption should be mandatory, like it used to be for pregnant teens. And certainly prevention should be the first line of defense. But if someone does get pregnant there are a lot of things we could be doing to make other alternatives more attractive.
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Sept 28, 2020 13:16:05 GMT -5
Adding prevention as the #1 priority would be a practical and easily accepted stance. Mandatory or highly encouraged are not technically the same, but execution of that theory can go poorly, fast. I'm with you that adootion is a lovely thing, but if the democrats put "encourage young pregnant girls to give their babies up for adoption" will absolutely, 100% be used against the democrats. It will backfire.
I am sure there is a way to successfully incorporate increasing acceptance of adoption into the execution, but maybe that concept isn't a written pillar of the core beliefs of the party. It is a live wire.
Edited to add: Was adoption ever mandatory? I think it was just strongly encouraged? Was there ever a law?
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