Since Trump was elected it seems that anyone I’m speaking with who wants to bring politics into a conversation, and who doesn’t know me well, and who (I’m guessing) doesn’t like Trump, will make a remark about “these days” or “the situation” or something along those lines, and expect to continue (or not) the conversation in a political direction based on my response. At least that’s how it seems to me in my purplish part of the country. I don’t react when this happens. There may be a brief pause in the conversation. We continue with our nonpolitical topic or move on to another one.
I’d bet that many of the readers of this blog have had similar experiences. My question is whether this type of experience is the inverse of what politically left-of-center people experienced when Obama was president. Is it?
Discuss.
With some of my children. One daughter who is a lefty and an FBI agent, I talked to about the election last September. She said “I won’t vote for Trump but I won’t vote for Hillary.”
I thought that was interesting and indicated something about the FBI. I think Comey was facing a possible agent revolt when he made his famous and weird announcement about Hillary.
I know few people who are not Trump supporters in spite of having lived in California until January,
I have noticed that there is a certain amount of ‘feeling out’ with casual, chance-met acquaintances who may be a circumspect, closet-conservative. Generally, we want to know if this person is a kindred soul, before we move on to being frank, lest a messy relationship-destroying explosion take place.
I really wish that we could develop some sort of standard code word, a secret handshake or something. Save all the fannying-about.
“I really wish that we could develop some sort of standard code word,”
You could start talking about guns.
I am in a very liberal and leftist part of the country. Previously sane friends of the Democrat persuasion have become deranged about Trump. I had one guy has never been politically fanatical tell me he wakes up every day and hopes he will hear someone killed Trump. He prefaced this with “I could not do it” for practical reasons, not moral ones. But that it would be good if someone murdered the President was such an obviously good thing that it was assumed all normal people agreed with it. People start conversations by referring to Trump as obviously horrible, as if everybody agrees with that. In Oak Park there are yard signs that say: “HATE HAS NO HOME HERE.” In other words, if you are a Trump voter, or a Republican, you are HATE and get the fuck out of our town. Nice.
Trump deranngement is pretty bad in the San Jose CA area…
It was especially awkward for me recently in the ICU. New nurse after shift-change brings up Trump out of the blue and all about how she doesn’t like him… “But that’s fine if you do”. Look lady, I am fucking dying here I don’t want to hear this shit. As much as I wanted to tell her Muslim-convert ass off, I wanted to live more than I wanted to prove a point… I just shrugged and said I don’t do politics… As much as I disliked Obama I would not have appreciated someone that ragged on him to a complete stranger within 10 minutes of meeting them… Shows a clear lack of judgement.
–Ed
I’m having enormous fun teasing acquaintances by approving of Trump – or, rather, approving of Trump defeating the traitorous racketeer Hillary.
Better a deplorable than a despicable, eh?
The potty mouth sure comes out on this subject. The F bomb is now the standard of emphatic expression. We are becoming them.
My fervent prayer for 8 years was that no one kill Obama. I wasn’t concerned that he die, but I realized the havoc that would have followed from such an act. Apparently some haven’t considered what happens if some one takes them up on their fantasy. Unhinged is not too strong a term.
Death6
My family in Chicago are all on the south side except for one niece.
They are all Trump supporters. Like so much of this, I suspect it is mostly class based. My family, even some who are quite well off, are “lace curtain Irish” and do not see themselves as elte sorts. I do have two cousins who are in Michigan and Ohio who I have recently gotten in touch with through genealogy and both seem to be Democrats,
He’s wonderful. He exposes well America’s deep state and he is so ignorant the steering wheel is being taken out of his hands. The people doing this are not very smart either, and we have the prospect of America losing preeminence gracefully, through comedy. Not a thing I could have predicted.
He is forcing Germany into Russia’s hands and really uniting the world against the USA. Your allies are the Saudis and Israel and perhaps Britain for a while ….. yeah that’s about it. The new cold war is not going well. Russia is just sipping gin and tonics waiting for more stupid.
Something similar to Ed’s experience happened to me. A few months ago during a medical exam we’re talking about insurance and the doctor chimes in, “there’s no way Trump will ever last a full term.” Awkward pause. “Well you know the way he eats his health will give out.” Um, yeah, or someone will likely kill him, which is what you implied in your first statement. It’s a shame because it’s hard to find good internists anymore because of the scorched earth Obamacare regulations.
My experience of the inverse is that I did hear people on the right also mention the violent death of Obama, especially during the dark days of the recession. It wasn’t exactly malicious but more like amazement that Obama survived the turmoil intact. It was done in theoretical terms such, “Well you know in the old days ruining the country would be considered treason. I can’t believe someone hasn’t has revolted.”
It was never said openly in mixed company with the assumption everyone else was also in agreement by default. The Left now thinks that it only takes scary reports on Fake News Network for there to be grounds for execution, and everybody watches the same thing right?
There was more self-awareness of the implications on the right. There was more politeness and propriety. Maybe it’s because we conduct more business meetings and have a better sense of decorum.
It is not a new phenomenon. Years ago I lost one person who had been a friend since elementary school. Retired Navy Commander. I was one of the sideboys at his retirement ceremony. But late in George W. Bush’s term I started getting phone calls from him at zero-dark-30, with him drunk and screaming “Bush lied people died”. Got old quick.
The effort of feeling people out, for or against what you are is vital. Consider, right now, elections have no effect on government policy or conduct. The Left ignores when it loses and resorts to violence with impunity. The Republican Party devotes itself solely to protecting the Democrats in all things, being at open war with both its own president and everyone who is not a Leftist.
If electoral politics have no effect on what happens, it becomes moot and other forms of politics will eventually come to the fore. It may not involve consent, but it will settle things for at least a while.
It will be helpful to know who the Democrat “antifa” Night Riders are ahead of time. And to be ready for them. On both a local and an international basis, you have to know who your allies are and who they aren’t. Most of NATO are not really our allies. We have to make our policy reflect that. Domestically, there are those whose goal is to strip the Constitution from the American people. We have to deal with that reality, and not assume good faith on their part.
Just keep your own notes as to who is likely to attack you in the future and who is likely to defend you.