Loved reading this one, as I do many, but in particular this one. From the content to the flow and prose all around a lovely read. Thanks for all you do and sharing yourself with us!
Bravo, Aidan! Your mental and emotional maturity really shine through in this article.
I have engaged in similar conversations across political boundaries via a non-profit called Braver Angels. They have been most worthwhile, and I too have discovered a surprising amount of common ground thereby.
This is so inspiring, I have such an emotional response when speaking with someone of another party and this has inspired me to encourage a more open dialogue and do more research on making my points clear while giving myself the ability to listen to the other side without trying to form a “come back plan”. Much love for all you do Aidan!
“When I brought up the fears that LGBTQ+ folk are feeling currently, she said, "of course you're worried about that, that is your community," but it's not hers. She is voting for things that will directly affect her community. She even said that while she may live in Florida, Climate Change isn’t as big an issue to her because she will have less time to experience it than I will.”
I am…having a hard time having empathy with this. We’re not talking about a NIMBY situation with where a pot shop opens in a town or a homeless shelter. You’re expressing fears about the very real threat of violence and discrimination based on a candidate’s positions and rhetoric and her dismissing those as unimportant because, well, that doesn’t affect her is morally and ethically bankrupt. That would be akin to you saying that it’s unimportant if a candidate was proposing to have law enforcement target all religious organizations because of the seeming propensity of religious leaders to victimize their congregants, regardless whether there was any evidence of wrongdoing by a given individual or organization. You do not strike me as someone willing to dismiss such an unconstitutional proposal by an elected official or candidate, while she seems willing to ignore it regarding your concerns.
I applaud your willingness to engage and to do so as objectively as possible. And I’m glad you found common ground on some issues. But this piece really just reinforces my view that those supporting the GOP candidate are no longer acting in good faith and within an ethical framework.
I definitely agree with what you're saying. In my opinion, that kind of "not my community" thinking leads to some morality that I find highly questionable. Were it a different conversation I definitely would have pointed out the hypocrisies I heard more aggressively. But at the end of the day I know how to debate and I know (usually) how to sway people with a good argument so I really wanted to stay true to my objective for this conversational experiment which was to simply to data gather even if it meant biting my tongue occasionally. And I did the whole thing to gain empathy, yes, but to also learn how to better strengthen my arguments for when I talk to people who I can convince to vote for Harris/Walz!
As always, serious and thoughtful work, Aidan! Gay Buffet always impresses me, especially your elevation of local gay charities while on tour. Thanks so much for your work on behalf of our community. ❤️
Loved reading this one, as I do many, but in particular this one. From the content to the flow and prose all around a lovely read. Thanks for all you do and sharing yourself with us!
Simply Awesome Aidan. Brave and open minded ❤️❤️❤️
Bravo, Aidan! Your mental and emotional maturity really shine through in this article.
I have engaged in similar conversations across political boundaries via a non-profit called Braver Angels. They have been most worthwhile, and I too have discovered a surprising amount of common ground thereby.
Well done!
—Fondly, uncle Eric
This is so inspiring, I have such an emotional response when speaking with someone of another party and this has inspired me to encourage a more open dialogue and do more research on making my points clear while giving myself the ability to listen to the other side without trying to form a “come back plan”. Much love for all you do Aidan!
“When I brought up the fears that LGBTQ+ folk are feeling currently, she said, "of course you're worried about that, that is your community," but it's not hers. She is voting for things that will directly affect her community. She even said that while she may live in Florida, Climate Change isn’t as big an issue to her because she will have less time to experience it than I will.”
I am…having a hard time having empathy with this. We’re not talking about a NIMBY situation with where a pot shop opens in a town or a homeless shelter. You’re expressing fears about the very real threat of violence and discrimination based on a candidate’s positions and rhetoric and her dismissing those as unimportant because, well, that doesn’t affect her is morally and ethically bankrupt. That would be akin to you saying that it’s unimportant if a candidate was proposing to have law enforcement target all religious organizations because of the seeming propensity of religious leaders to victimize their congregants, regardless whether there was any evidence of wrongdoing by a given individual or organization. You do not strike me as someone willing to dismiss such an unconstitutional proposal by an elected official or candidate, while she seems willing to ignore it regarding your concerns.
I applaud your willingness to engage and to do so as objectively as possible. And I’m glad you found common ground on some issues. But this piece really just reinforces my view that those supporting the GOP candidate are no longer acting in good faith and within an ethical framework.
I definitely agree with what you're saying. In my opinion, that kind of "not my community" thinking leads to some morality that I find highly questionable. Were it a different conversation I definitely would have pointed out the hypocrisies I heard more aggressively. But at the end of the day I know how to debate and I know (usually) how to sway people with a good argument so I really wanted to stay true to my objective for this conversational experiment which was to simply to data gather even if it meant biting my tongue occasionally. And I did the whole thing to gain empathy, yes, but to also learn how to better strengthen my arguments for when I talk to people who I can convince to vote for Harris/Walz!
As always, serious and thoughtful work, Aidan! Gay Buffet always impresses me, especially your elevation of local gay charities while on tour. Thanks so much for your work on behalf of our community. ❤️