JPF Home Page Forums General Messages General Message Forum A word about my absence...

I think that's a good thing? Promoting empathy and compassion on and from both sides...

I realize that certain strategies simply DON'T WORK and accept that and am looking for other ways.

If facts can be met with alternate facts, why keep trying to push facts, as if facts/alternate facts are EVER going to further along a discussion?

Has anyone ever been shamed into changing their minds? Sometimes it feels like that's what some liberals are trying to do.

Just looking for other ways to attempt a sincere dialogue...and as hard as it might be to some, the only place I can see to start is to accept that everyone is entitled to their beliefs and opinions, and that certain opinions that are in a minority can be hard to have in this society that can persecute those in minorities.

I am trying to not make the same error I see a lot of liberals making here. Many are pushing conservatives away before a conversation can actually happen. Everyone needs to be shown respect.

The "chiding" at the end..yeah..that's my guilt ridden Catholic upbringing, rearing its ugly head, lol...I am a flawed human being for sure..but I'm trying..

The sad truth may be..few really want dialogue, real honest to goodness dialogue cuz that's HARD and can threaten one's beliefs. And I mean myself as well...

When I've been wrong, and it's often..it's always hard to face that..

And most of the time, no one changes their beliefs on account of what anyone else says. That's more from direct experience, in some way. Each of us are on our own adventure, and we can arrive at different places sometimes, and sometimes it's like my favorite Edward Albee quote, "Sometimes a person has to go a very long distance out of his way to come back a short distance correctly."

Mike