The election season is once again upon us. This is when I find the worst in my friends and acquaintances. This is when we forget that whatever our beliefs, we are working for and believe in ALMOST the same things. It is just that our pathway to these results is different. I have a couple of points that I would like to make.
1- Be KIND. There is never, ever, a reason to be otherwise. You may disagree 
with another’s point of view but that does NOT give you the right to attack someone personally….especially in a public forum. I know this is not a huge threat but I have already defriended 2 people for hideous posts. We are a civilization so be civil!!
2- Be HUMBLE– You may not agree with someone else but it doesn’t make you right or them wrong. How about questioning to understand instead of attacking. People are coming from different sets of experiences. My son once said to me that he didn’t understand prejudice. I told him that I didn’t condone it in any form and would fight against it whenever I found it BUT I understood its roots. When my daughter was about to marry a Southern Baptist, I put him through the ringer about his beliefs. I think, that was appropriate and also my RIGHT as a parent. His GREAT response to me was finally, “Maam, there is only one group of people that I am prejudice against, SHORT PEOPLE. They shouldn’t be allowed to breed. Now PLEASE understand that he didn’t mean dwarfs but short people AND he was kidding. He is a 6’6” athlete and my daughter is a 5’10” Division 1 athlete PLUS somehow he has a 5’0” sister. His PERSONAL agenda was to have children who are great athletes.
3- Be PRIVATE- I am sorry, but I don’t need to hear or see your opinions on Facebook. To me it is as invasive as Jehovah’s Witnesses coming to my door. It is no one’s business who I vote for or what I believe and my opinion of you is based on your actions NOT on your beliefs. IF you would like to have a political discussion with me, I would be happy to listen but ASK me first.
4- Be OPEN-And by that I mean LISTEN to both sides of every argument. The ONLY news I listen to is the Sunday morning talk shows AND I listen to 3 different stations. I want to hear the rationality behind opposing opinions. There are points to be made on both sides of every debate. TOGETHER we solve problems. APART we get nothing done.
My last point is to anyone working on a campaign of running for office. Rule ONE in the advertising world is that you NEVER, NEVER, NEVER mention your competition or opponent in any advertising. By doing such, you just reinforce that name/brand in the mind of the voter/consumer. I saw a sign on the highway coming back from the airport earlier this week. It was a huge billboard of a beer bottle. I didn’t recognize the brand but it was SUPPOSED to be an ad for that label. The only verbiage on the billboard said, most people surveyed prefer our beer to Bud Lite. All I will remember from that ad is Bud Lite. How about talking about what YOU will do instead of misleading, usually factually incorrect statements about what your opponent will do or believes. When I am on a listing appointment, I never mention other companies, only what make me unique.
There, I am done except for 2 things. Make sure you inform yourself on the issues and VOTE. Number two, have a sense of humor- this my political sign. Movements and ideas take time and the values of the USA are solid. Don’t take momentary shifts in the wind as the end of civilization. BUT, if you really want to move to Canada, call me first.