Manners

I don't care who you voted for or why you voted for them. For the most part, I don't really care how you feel about our new President, either. I'm not being rude, honestly, it's just that most people feel one of two ways about it - they love him or they hate him. Those who love him are ecstatic about the possibility of a change coming to the USA & those who hate him are angry & afraid of what that change will entail.

I get being angry, I spent the past 8 years angry & afraid if what was happening to the country that I love. I didn't turn into a 12 year old & start spreading lies about former President Bush, however. I didn't proclaim to everybody within earshot that I hate Republicans" or anything else. I don't, just for the record, there are people that I love who are Republican & people who are Democrats that I can't stand. I judge people by who they are, not who they vote for. The point I'm trying to make is that, until I had to start choosing between paying bills & buying groceries, I shut my mouth & kept my anger & fears to myself, or only mentioned it to Troy or my close friends.

I have heard so many outrageous lies & allegations about President Obama since he announced his candidacy that it truly makes me ashamed to not only live in this state, but part of the time, this country as well. I'm so tired of the double standard that says that anyone who doesn't walk the GOP line should just shut up & deal with it, because we're too stupid to choose a good President, while they are allowed & encouraged to say whatever the hell they please, no matter how ridiculous & untrue it may be.

I should have known it was going to be a bad night on Pogo last night when I read some woman's profile & it was ragging on President Obama misspeaking at a campaign rally in Oregon, saying he had now been to "57 states & had a couple more to go" & her comment about it was "What? The 57 states of Islam?" First, it doesn't matter. He can be whatever religion he wants to be, our country was founded on that principal, you have the same freedom to believe whatever you want, too. He even has the freedom to be Athiest, if that's what he wants to be & it has no bearing on his Presidency. Second, he has attended the same church for 20 years, he is a member of Chicago's Trinity United Church. Yes, his father & stepfather were Muslim & he lived for part of his childhood in a mostly Muslim country, but he attended secular & parochial schools while he was there. If you're going to hate, at least get your facts straight & learn to think for yourself instead of letting reactionary idiots like Limbaugh & Hannity think for you.

Shortly after I read the profile she & some guy started Democrat bashing & talking about how stupid they are & how immature because some people hissed & booed Mr. Bush (for the record, I'm not a Republican or a Democrat) & they were going to boo & his the President every chance they got. Okay, but they were going to do that anyway. I muted both of them & made the statement that they had expected everyone who opposed Mr. Bush to shut up for 8 years & now they expect us to shut up while they bitch about President Obama for at least the next 4 years. I didn't say anything else, I sat there & played my game until another person came in making racks on how the President was "still on food stamps" & changed his named to"o-bum-a." I assumed she meant the fact that his picture will be on food stamps (making him literally on them) until she changed his name. I have a lot of friends on food stamps. I was on food stamps for a long time. None of us are bums. Falling on hard times doesn't make a person less than someone else & in my opinion, that type of behavior shouldn't be tolerated. So, I didn't. I spoke my mind & I left.

It really did bother me. I'm not a rude person & I don't act like a middle school girl. Namecalling never solves anything & it certainly won't give them the president they wanted. Yes, this country also guarantees us the freedom of speech, but that doesn't give a person the right to be rude or irresponsible with their words. Try treating people how you want them to treat you, you know? They all go on & on about what great Christians they are, but they sure don't act like I always imagined Jesus would act.