I have always asked myself how people interact with radical Bush supporters, because I don't know any and if I did I probably couldn't stand to be in the same room with them.
Years ago, before my first visit to the US, I read in travel guides that you shouldn't talk to Americans about politics. I never understood that because I never had problems doing that with the people I met during my travels. I must have talked to and befriended only those with the same mindset. Of course the internet then showed me the other side of the coin and I was happy not to know anybody who thinks and spews hate like a freeper.
But today I witnessed a first hand account of hate talk when my husband chatted online with his sister in Ohio. I told him to ask her who she is voting for and he didn't like the idea because he doesn't talk politics with his family. But I insisted and he tried to steer their idle chitchat into the directions of politics.
Big mistake.
We still don't know exactly what my sister-in-law thinks because her boyfriend must have looked over her shoulder and took over the keyboard.
Here is the conversation (screen names changed and bold emphasis by me).
Let's call my sister-in-law's boyfriend "Bob" (no disrespect to anyone called Bob).
...
husband: we just regularly discuss politics here...
sister: lovely
<snip>
sister: Bob says you should go visit www.scaryjohnkerry.com
husband: we can send you a few links of our own.. a bit more real newsish instead of propaganda - if you like :D
sister: www.gop.org and watch the kerry on iraq link....Bob says more newsie.....
sister: I'm not sure I want to get in the middle of this conversation....
husband: lol
sister: #-o
husband: um....
sister: hehe...your still invited to Thanksgiving, though
sister: you should definately come...it
sister: will be fun
husband: so is Bob a staunch supporter then?
sister: he says he's patriotic
husband: where is the rolls eyes smiley
sister: 8-|
<snip>
husband: i think if we get [Caipirinha] and Bob in the same room there will be some kind of explosion ....
sister: excellent
sister: that should make for fun times
sister: so should I plan for 2 more at the table?????
sister: :-P
husband: maybe!
sister: Woohoo <:-P
<snip>
husband: oh - im trying to copy a smiley
husband: >:
husband: there... hehe "bring it on"
(Here "Bob" jumps in)
Bob: Hey j., this is Bob, Tell her Kerry is a Terrorist!:D
husband: um - how about you tell her? ok?
Bob: she might not like me then
Bob: hahaha
husband: steve - you missed out on this...
link to Keyes' sweat napkin
husband: :D
Bob: r u really going to vote for flipper?
Bob: he will get us nuked
husband: grrr - dont get me started.. go back and listen to all bushes campaign speeches again and we will talk
Bob: listen to kerry on iraq and how he is not true to his word.
Bob: he wants to do away with our military and put under UN control
husband: you should read what they were voting for....
husband: none of that is in there... read read read
Bob: Kerry says he will put a stop to companys going overseas but yet his wife has like 53 companies out of the country
Bob: everybody supported him after 9/11 did everybody forget that
Bob: it will happen again
husband: you guys watch fox news mostly?
Bob: no i watch everything..... Don't take it wrong , I don't agree with everything bush has done but I think kerry will just get us into more trouble like Clinton and Carter
husband: hm - trouble like jobs, a strong economy, a protected border, good relations with our allies.... trouble like that
Bob: I think our military should be well funded and that we should support our troops whether we agree or not. I hat seeing our troops getting killed every day and would rather see them bomb the out of those people every time they have an uprising
husband: we are both strong supporters of the military and i think we should NEVER have gone to iraq... that would have protected us much better...
Bob: kerry is a Liar. he flips and flops depends no what you want to hear. says he an enviromentalist too. I dont think soo!
Bob: I dis agree i think we should have taken Saddam out
Bob: I believe he was partially involved with 9/11
husband: saddam was powerless.. he has been so for years.. and we were bombing them daily since the gulf war... not enough bombs for you ....
Bob: when they went into baghdad he had a big mural with the twin towers on it and had 2 planes flying into them with Iraqs emblems on them.
Bob: I personally think we should kick their butss stick a straw in the ground and suck that country dry of oil, then proceed into syria and do the same and then go to Iran, and when we are done stop by France and give them a spanking too. and then go an send a few missles into Korea too.
Bob: oh and Clintons monica missles don't count
Bob: I also think we should cut off foriegn aid and close our borders. We do need to bring back manufacturing in this country.
At this point my husband just stopped typing. We were both fuming and everything we could have said wouldn't have changed his mind.
Now he is sitting here with a headache and hopes he didn't ruin his relationship with his sister, because she and one of his other four brothers are the only siblings he talks to regularly.
I'm not sure why I'm posting this, but it was a real eye opener for me to hear all this crap from someone in the family. And I noticed how hard it is to counter all these talking points he spewed with short answers from our side. I envy people who can do that and have a lot of respect for all the Kossians who are quick with their responses. I just get mad and want to punch them, and it's a good thing we don't plan to visit family in Ohio in the near future.
My husband says people like this guy are the reason he left Ohio the day he finished college. And he never looked back. Maybe I shouldn't have told him to bring up politics with his sister, he knew better.
The one good thing to report is that at least his mother doesn't plan to vote for Bush this time.
Rant off. It's beer thirty.
Bad spelling and grammar due to being one of those furriners