Can I tell you a secret? I unfollow some of my family and friends on my Facebook feed so I won’t see the political rant they post. I don’t do this because I don’t love them, I do it because I need some peace in my life. The biggest reason I do it is because of politics.
Sorry, not sorry.
Now, more than ever in my life, I really feel the divide that political rant and affiliations have put on us. I have felt this approaching for years and I honestly don’t see an end in sight. I feel like it is one extreme or the other, and I really don’t seem to come across people who find themselves in the middle like I am.
Can you care about the environment and be a Republican? Yes! Can you be pro-life and be a Democrat? Yes!
And here’s some other news – there are more than two political parties! You do you, and you can be and believe in whatever you want to. That’s the beauty of being a human and having a choice. Each one of us is unique in our own way and no one should be judged, criticized, hurt, ousted by our family and sent to an island for exile or worse, for that choice.
Although, sometimes that island looks pretty good to me.
I will sit down with anyone and have a civilized conversation about politics, no matter where either one of us stands on the issues. But, if you escalate to huffing and puffing and are visibly angry about the whole thing (like to the point where your face looks like a tomato, that weird vein on your forehead is protruding out and I’m mentally running through a list in my head of people around us who may have some blood pressure medication or a Xanax that I can throw in your mouth while you are escalating because I’m honestly thinking you’re going to physically explode), I think you may have a problem.
There’s no reason to act that way. I get it. You’re “passionate” about your beliefs. But, we are also adults. We can calmly end the conversation, agree to disagree, and both move on with our day. It doesn’t need to turn into a political rant.
I’m not going to refuse to speak to you because of your beliefs. I’m not going to tell other people that they shouldn’t talk to you, that you are a horrible person or you are going to hell because you believe in something I don’t believe in. We are in 2019! Why does this need to be so extreme? Why does this need explaining? Why does this problem still even exist?!?
We live in a world where, unfortunately, news of a shooting, some kind of deadly attack, the latest illegal drug activities, and other horrible events can reach us in just minutes after they happen. Yes, I agree we need to be aware of these things, and in a way, they help us live our lives accordingly. I’m tired of watching the news, full of sad stories, anger and violence, only for them to end it with a little sixty-second feel good story. That is not enough for me. I can only take so much negativity. And I can only control so much negativity that comes into my life. My Facebook feed is where I find a lot of negativity that I can control. I don’t want to feel more stressed after some mindless scrolling. I want my feed to be a place of positivity.
If we all just shared one more happy news story, a good review on a business, or how the car in front of you paid for your coffee this morning, we all might be a little happier when we set our phones down at night.
