Regardless of which "side" you're on

[ChinRey]

Since I made such a rude attempt to threadjack this discussion, I suppose I have to try to make it right with an on topic reply too.

As a non-American I see this from the outside of course and to me it seems it's the polarization of the political climate in the USA that is the biggest problem. It's the "If you're Not With Me, You're Against Me" syndrome and that's not new. Every single U.S. president election I have observed has been worse than the previous. I do hope and believe this is the last one in that trend. It's gone so far now that it seems the only way to escalate the trend is to actually start using firearms.

Two important things to remember:

• It is possible and perfectly legitimate to support a politician and still disagree with some of their views and decisions.

And even more important:

• It is actually possible and perfectly legitimate to agree with your opponent every now and then.

[Klytyna]

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ChinRey wrote:

remember when Mr. Safety Catch if off, Mr. Gun is not your friend

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One of the ten funniest video clips I've ever seen on the World Wide Weird... 

An overweight cop in plain clothes (and 100 lbs of excess govt. issue dohnuts), in a school classroom giving a lecture on firearms safety (the whole dont play cowboys with daddy's glock 17 thing) is talking about safety catches, he reaches to his combat grade hip holster for his semi auto service issue 9mm, and shoots him self in the foot...

 

Guns don't kill people... But they sure do help...

[Madelaine McMasters]

Here's the video...

Thankfully the DEA agent was not seriously injured by his demonstration...

http://www.snopes.com/photos/accident/gunsafety.asp

This is one of those things that pains me to see, but not nearly enough to suppress my irony detector's smirk.

[Klytyna]

You have no idea how many years it's been since I last saw that, thank you so much for that archive mining, that's made my day.

Edit: Just watched the clip again, it's longer then the version I last saw, which stopped just after he shot himself... The noise from the kidswhen they thought somebody was going to pass him the assault rifle...

 

"Nuuuuu not that one, not to him! We'll all die this time! Aiiiiiiiiiii"

[FellicityVixen]

I would say that politics these days has gone REALLY overcharged though.  It's really sad that it divides people who know each other, but it doesn't surprise me either.  I would not say it shows their true colours- per say, but their reaction to the situation right now, what they are reading and believing, and how they think their lives may be affected.  I don't think it makes people bad, good, confused, stupid, etc, about this, and I also don't believe most people can agree on ALL things either!  How they deal with disagreements will be telling though, rather than the disagreements themselves.

I think the media has managed to exaggerate the tone of these elections a lot- we have had it really bad in the UK- that I don't believe that any result would have caused no uproar of sorts.

In the UK you only have to compare the media reaction to the (media backed) pro-remain Scottish independence winning, versus the (media backed) pro-remain EU losing.  Both votes were actually super close, but the media has managed to communicate how *it* feels in a very biased way- considering public vote %.  The media is ALWAYS reminding the SNP that "the public voted no", whereas even now, they are trying to work out if triggering Article 50 for Brexit is even legally possible!

It is REALLY hard these days to actually avoid politics in the news, the papers, the internet, etc, but it IS possible to avoid it in conversation.  Methods of doing this could be topic changes, remaining quiet while listening to their opinions, making light jokes about it (but not in a way to insult their side, more like a general safe joke to avoid a deep discussion), thinking of OTHER current events to talk about instead, etc.

[Celestiall Nightfire]

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Derek Torvalar wrote:

One cannot be betrayed if one has no people.

Simple.

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I always wondered who ushered in the inane "Army of One" slogan...

[Celestiall Nightfire]

DEA agent.  Of course he shoots himself.  

That's an agency that needs to be eliminated.  (Although, shooting themselves as the method should be discouraged) 

That agent violated the number one rule of gun safety.  He said, "this is an unloaded gun", then he picks it up and starts messing around with it.  (mistake made)    He didn't personally check to see that the gun was unloaded.  

Number one safety rule:  There's no such thing as an unloaded gun.  You pick it up, you check the chamber, the clip, everything yourself.  Never assume.  Even if it's your gun.  

[Solaria Goldshark]

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Aislin Ceawlin wrote:

With all of the unrest and division in the U.S. right now, who has lost friends and family members to this nightmare? I'm absolutely blown away by some people that I've known pretty much my entire life, this has really brought out peoples true colors. :smileysad:

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I have not lost any friends or family to this "nightmare" .

Returning home tonight from a weekly family dinner, having taken part in a lively discussion, with raised voices, and opinions brandished, there was no love lost among those seated at the table as wine flowed freely and the meal satisfied all.  I count my blessings deep and meaningful as the evening came to an end, and smiles, and laughter, and hugs sent everyone on their way.

No one at the table is usually ever in agreement with another, and in years past during these weekly gatherings feelings would often get hurt, even to the point where someone would walk out, get in their car and drive off.  Me, even being the cause of someone leaving because of what I had said to them.  And still we gather as a family and put disagreements aside.  In years past, not as easy as today, but today more rewarding.  More rewarding because we have learned to listen to each other more than ever.  And that's the thing really.  Listening.  I decided to just shut up.  To wait, and listen more.  And what surprised me, after doing this for a while, was that when I had something to say others listened.  Over time I saw the same courtesy extended from others to the group.

It reminded me that "love your neighbor as yourself" makes a difference.  And it's the hardest place to start.

 

[Bree Giffen]

The election is American democracy at its best. We see it work every four years. Honestly, I think this is the first time the election was won by a true 3rd party outsider candidate with completely unknown expectations. If we dont like what happens in the next four years at least we can all vote with more certainty on what each candidate will deliver.