I remember growing up in the 60’s and 70’s and one thing that comes back to me is, people didn’t talk politics like they do now. Hell, I can’t tell you how old I was when I found that my father was a registered republican. When I did, it was no big deal. I wasn’t really interested in politics back then, I wasn’t even old enough to vote. It made no difference to me. My mom was also registered republican, most likely because my dad was. Back in those days, you followed what your husband did, it was a different time.
In the 60’s and 70’s women where still finding themselves, things were changing quickly. Women had only got the right to vote in 1920, but boy there were more changes coming and they were pissed.
As time progressed women became stronger and made their own decisions finally. No longer did they vote the way their husbands wanted, they had freedom. But they still didn’t necessarily yell from the mountain tops that they were republicans or Democrats, they were just happy to have the freedom they deserved and the right to vote for who they wanted.
Most men didn’t scream from the mountian tops either, they for the most part kept it to themselves on how they voted.
Then Facebook happened.
People took to this new social media like wildfire, showing pictures of family and friends, pictures of where they lived, what they did for a living, how many kids and grandkids they had, their car, their dog,their cat, and then it happened. People took to social media to tell everyone who the voted for and why they did so. They proudly proclaimed that their person was the best and anyone else is an idiot. It actually started fairly benign with president Bush, memes and comments about him, at the time people thought he was the worse president ever. Boy were we wrong!
With the the biggest mistake this country ever made, people somehow thought trump was the answer, boy were they wrong.
Facebook exploded or maybe imploded, the jury is still out on that. It turned into trump world, an ugly, mean and full of lies world. Racism became a normal in facebook trump world, lies were truth and truth was a lie. Unlike the 60’s and 70’s we find out more about our friends and family than we needed to, or maybe it was a good thing. Friends who you had for years and never knew their beliefs were coming out as people you didn’t really know after all. I didn’t know that I had racist friends to the degree that was exposed, I didn’t know how gullible some friends were to the lies they were being told. Hell, I found out who called themselves republican or democrats, or Independent. Things in the past that weren’t spewed so openly, were destroying long time friendships. People who you easily forged long term friendships were now calling you names, all because you didn’t have the same beliefs that they wanted you to have.
Trump changed our country, and not for the good. People who now wanted to get into politics saw an opening, to push his hate filled agenda. So they flew flags with his name everywhere, on their homes , trucks , boats. He was their supreme leader, it was clear he had control of them and their hate. If you didn’t support him you were considered an idiot, you were stupid for not seeing what they think they saw. Suddenly you had friends that hated you because you hadn’t joined the cult and it made them even more angry. In trump world it was always someone else’s fault, never theirs. The called themselves trump republicans, they were no longer republicans, they were members of a racist , very angry group of people who swore their allegiance to a mentally ill person who told them the lies they wanted to hear. A sad sad day in America.
The lost friends were collateral damage. Friends of 30, 40 years were no longer, all because of a person who wouldn’t give them the time of day, had them in his clutches. You were not a friend anymore but the enemy.
I lost lots of people that I considered friends, not because we hated each other, but because I refused to believe what they wanted me too and I spoke out. A friend of over 40 years told me I was no longer welcome at his house, all because I wrote a letter to the editor. I wrote about a public politician, who just happens to be his nephew. A politician who proudly proclaimed while campaigning locally as a trump republican. I asked him to his face why he couldn’t just run as a republican. His answer ” because I will get more votes”. Now in office he and his cohorts are still pushing trump politics. And I am the bad guy for writing the truth.
So remember in trump world it’s always someone elses fault, never him or his cult. Those who refuse to follow him are the enemy and friendships no matter how long are the collateral damage, and THEY don’t care, only the leader is right.
Politics, Facebook, and the lost Friends
