Looking for cooler heads to respond to this......

[honkydonkey]

I've had a myspace page for a couple of years now (don't hold it against me please, lol). Over the past year I have used my blog as a place to vent about many different things. As you can imagine over the past few months my main bitch has been John McCain and Sarah Palin. I have a cousin on my friends list who is a major neocon. Her own parents can't even stand to be around her because she is so extreme in her views. Well, I ignored her for a while but I finally began to respond to her more crazy blogs. I was nice and respectful but apparently I really pissed her off last time and suddenly another family member writes their first blog ever and it is clearly addressed to me (even though he claims it's not). I would like to respond to this guy but I don't want to come off as a bitch or know it all. I'd really like some input. I guess what pisses me off is that he is basically saying that anyone who puts their politics out there is stupid and that your political beliefs should be private. Ummm, I thought blogs were a place for people to vent their feelings and I don't hold a gun to anyones head to make them read what I have to say. My blog is there for my enjoyment more than anything else. Well, here's what he said. Tell me what you think.

First off, let me start by saying this is not directed to anyone. It's just my observation from talking and listening to people.

No one really wants to know your opinion about politics, specifically, the presidential race. They ask your opinion just so they can share theirs. I don't talk much about politics. You won't hear me screaming my views. I prefer to live my views. If you can't tell what kind of person I am by the way I live my life, you don't really have any need to know about my political views.

I don't believe either party is right about everything. You can't go far right or far left on everything. Moderation is good in a lot of things. Now I don't just ride in the middle of the road, but sometimes that's the best answer. I never vote all D or all R. I vote for who will do the best job.

One thing I think we'll all agree on is that people are sick of the negative attack ads on TV. I think the reason these are used is because the candidate has ran out of good things to say about themselves so they start blasting the other person. We tell our kids not to raise themselves up by tearing others down, but that's what politicians do.

Would the government be so quick to help Wall Street if this was not an election year? Maybe they would help even more. I don't know. I do feel like things happened awful quickly. They were all saying "We've got to do something before the election."

I could go down the ticket and tell you who I'm going to vote for, but I don't really want to. There will be some Ds and Rs and I won't apologize to either side. I won't base my vote on race or sex and only on what I think that person has to offer the USA. I won't ask anyone their politacal views just so I can blast them and the tell them mine. I'll keep it all to myself and laugh at how silly people look when they throw it all out there.

[notalemming]

1. Doesn't look all that unreasonable to me...

I even agree about the attack ads...

[honkydonkey]

2. I guess you would have to know the back story.

Yes, I actually like this guy. That's not the point though. The point is that I'm being told that I'm wrong for talking about what I believe in. No matter how nice you put it, it's still wrong. And people not speaking up about their beliefs is part of the reason this country is in the shape it's in now.

[Lex]

5. Bottom line: you have a right to post what you want, and he has a right not

to read it.

I'm always suspicious of anyone who tells someone not to talk about how they feel about any matter whatsoever.

[honkydonkey]

6. That's how I feel about it.

It's his right to keep his views private if he wants but I like to talk about it. And I can't help but think that his comment was rude because he said it was laughable for people to put their views "out there".

[Lex]

8. Even people I don't agree with I would never tell them they shouldn't talk

about their views. It seems . . . un-American or something.

[prayin4rain]

3. that doesn't seem addressed to you to me....

maybe just write a blog that explains that people can choose to read your blogs or not. reading to much into myspace blogs is a bad idea... even if this were some kind of passive aggressive attack on you... ignore it and more importantly ..push it out of your mind. these types of attacks are only attacks if you let them be. comment on his blog ... "i agree with you completely ... character attacks are a sign of desperation"

[Arugula Latte]

4. "You can't go far right or far left on everything."

The thing is -- the "far left" is never represented. When was the last time something "far left" made it through Congress and was signed into law?

[Caliman73]

7. The best thing to do ...

Is to continue blogging your own experience. It makes no sense to respond to this guy. People will choose to read your blog and respond positively or negatively. If anything is written directly attacking you, then respond to the issue at hand. Take a cue from Obama. While McCain was furiously responding and pointing and basically pounding the table, Obama, just spoke his mind. He calmly told people what he thinks about things. That is what you need to keep doing. As you said, your blog is about where you are. People's responses are about where they are. If someone comes straight out and calls you (IE. a Communist or something), the calmly explain to them what a communist is and why that description would not fit. Otherwise, just let things roll off. If you get into a war of words then you distract from your own process and message.