Elections make people ugly

The day after an election is always so eye-opening. Eye-opening in a way that makes you realize how ignorant people can be. How much people hate to lose or gloat about winning…that they are willing to insult their friends and family who may have different views? Everyone has a different experience with their day to day life and what is most important to them. Everyone has different beliefs about what government should do and be doing. That is the point of elections.

If people thought political ads are nasty, Facebook posts are even worse! To call someone ignorant because of their political views – or assume that they didn’t do any research or understand what’s going on? That’s pretty f-in ignorant. Sure some people vote straight ticket and don’t care who is running or what their agenda is, but just because someone votes different than you doesn’t mean that they aren’t paying attention, or that they are stupid, uneducated, lazy, poor, or some other pretty bad insult to be leveling on your “friends”. Those are all things that I saw on Facebook this morning. Seriously – people are putting the word friends in quotes (“friends”) when referring to people who voted opposite them! As far as I’m concerned, if you’re referring to me as your “friend” and feel the need to put it in quotations, feel free to “defriend” me. I won’t notice.

AND p.s. – OHIO’s votes weren’t the deciding factor – so all of those “I’m embarrassed to be an Ohioan” “friends don’t let friends live in Ohio” “I’m disappointed in anyone who voted for him, especially Ohioans” etc quotes? Yeah, that’s stupid and ignorant. Unless friends don’t let friends live in Ohio because it’s cold or rainy for 2/3’s of the year – that I can understand.

I have close friends and immediate family that very likely voted mostly opposite with me. AND THAT’S OKAY. I don’t think they are ignorant, stupid, gullible, or any of those things. I don’t have the same life or beliefs as them, but that doesn’t make them bad people and it’s certainly not going to make me insult them in a public forum like people are continuing to do in social media.

It’s fine if you want to insult the candidates – but your friends and family? You spew how America no longer has values, beliefs, and morals, and then you post that shit about your “friends”?

Tuesday everyone was like – exercise your right to vote – not matter what way! (and sometimes slipping in a “Go Obama or Romney”. Now people are either like “yay!” or “America’s dumb and if you voted this way you want a hand out or need an IQ test and I don’t think I want to be friends with you!”.  There are also some people who were very vocal about Romney support who are now like – “ok, that’s not what we wanted, but now we need to come to come together to make the best of it”.  That’s awesome and not what I expected from some of them – hat’s off to those who can be gracious at a time when they may feel otherwise (and also because they realize the the President really doesn’t control everything). 

I seriously read a comment from a stranger on a news post that said “I have a brother-in-law that probably won’t get his kidney transplant now”. What?! Did one of the candidates agree to give him a kidney if he won or lost?

The truth is, there are a-holes on each side of the coin and if Romney would have won, people would be spewing hate then too. I just wish we were better than that. In any election it can be said that the losing side should have picked a better candidate. I’m not opposed to voting for different parties if the other candidate is better, and I’m sure there are millions of people who feel the same way.

In other news, Lo thinks Boof may be a republican (we allow her to make the choice on her own) because she was either sleeping or was looking like this while watching the outcome of the election. At least she likes Ohio State!