but how do we ???

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I grew up with a guy...since we were very young...we have seen tragedies together, laughed and seen a great deal of joy along side each other...I have buried his mom and watched his kids be born...we got to be middle aged at the same time..he is rich or at least I think he is...he has all the trappings of wealth...poor people like me tend to think anyone with anything is wealthy by comparison...but here is the rub McDuff...we have so many loves...music, art, food ...I am a liberal and then a democrat...he is a liberal/conservative republican...the liberal part is easier than you would think to reconcile...we both favor women's rights..racial equality, immigration fairness and gay rights...but I would never, ever vote republican and he would never ever vote democratic...we both understand the fruitlessness of a third party in a national election...i always found  Ralph Nader  more than annoying, sniggling votes away from my candidate...and he thinks Ron Paul is a well meaning, impracticable nutbag that could cost him the election...He dislikes Obama, not because he is black...he laughs at the "birthers", calling them idiots...no he despises Obama because he is a democrat...he despises the tea party and all it stands for...he understands the supreme court will be wrong for a generation if idiots like Romney and Ryan get the helm...he was not a fan of bush 2...but alas he is born and bred...republican and so like the "dude" he abides !!!  and in that lies our quandary...how do we... two life long friends, who have forged a generational bond meet in the middle... move our country forward...if the United States was a microcosm of our 40 year old relationship we would and have found the common ground that allowed us to drink, laugh and cry together...the lesson is how we do that as a nation!!! 

Comments

  1. AnonymousSeptember 2, 2012 at 10:15 AM

    One of your best, Keith. I also have some close Republican friends, and I try not to think about how our votes will always cancel each other out! Having them in my life is so helpful in me trying to resist the urge to condemn all Republicans. When I am on one of my rants, I try to remember to rail not against Republicans, but against all far-right wingers, which IS a generalization I can condemn! Just like having a son-in-law in the Army, after a lifetime of Quaker pacifism, I consider it a gift to have a friendship with someone with such contrasting beliefs; it's taught me to listen to what they have to say, try to understand how they can believe something so 'wrong'. I must say, I have an easier time understanding my Army SIL than I do someone who can vote for Romney/Ryan! Keep writing - I always enjoy your words.

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