It's not Liberals or Conservatives. It's Trump.

Liberals aren't the problem.  Neither are Conservatives.

Trump is the problem.

Read dystopian literature.  Watch dystopian films.

He's the one who ushers in dystopia.

This isn't about bipartisan politics.

This is about an unqualified demagogue and despot.

Hey Trump supporters?  Right now... He's doing unthinkable things to people that in no way affect you.  It's no wonder you're so cavalier about it. 

It's easy to insult people that are affected by things when those things don't affect you. 

It's easy to attack things you don't care about. 

These people are losing things you don't need. 

And really... It is oh so noble for you to chime in on the usefulness of what you're not using.

But if you did want, need, or relied on it?  You'd probably sing a different tune.

I guess I'm asking Trump supporters to practice more mindfulness.

You aren't affected this time... But when Trump comes after you?

The same Liberals you cursed will stand beside you.

The Conservative Hypocrisy

"You need to shut up, stop crying, and accept Trump is your President and give him the respect he deserves."

Do I?

How many times over the last 8 years did I hear Republicans call Obama racist terms?  They disparaged him.  They disrespected him.  Many called him the Antichrist.

Was he not our President?

How many times did I literally witness Conservatives watch Obama come on screen to address the nation and hear them say things like:

"I can't stand this piece of s***."
"If his mouth is moving, he's lying."
"I can't stand this mother f***er."

I've lost count.

It happened.  Again and again.  For 8 years.

And guess what?  We let you.

We let you criticize.  We let you disparage.  We let you say whatever you wanted.

We didn't like it.  But we let you.

And that freedom is a two way street.

I will tell you what I didn't hear.

I never heard a Democrat say "Mmmm.  Conservative tears are so delicious."

On social media?  I never saw "You are not allowed to dislike Obama, you crybabies.  Shut up."

It's hypocrisy.  An unfair juxtaposition.

The same people who spent 8 years saying "F*** Obama" are the same people telling us we can't complain about Trump.

You know what I don't do?

I don't walk into a room full of Conservatives watching Trump and say, "Look!  There's Hitler!"

I don't bully the same Conservatives who bullied me.  The ones who continue to do so.

My opinions on Trump don't divide us.  Your opinions on Trump don't divide us.

How we treat the people who think differently than we do does.

All I want is the same right we afforded you for 8 years.

To freely state opinions.

I'm not even doing it to the same degree I witnessed. 

Trust me, it's hard not to.

Sometimes?  I wonder why I don't debate every Trump supporter the same way they do me.  Why don't I insult them?  Why don't I tell them they're wrong and un-American?  They do it to me.  Why don't I?

Because two wrongs don't make a right.  And logic like Hammurabi's will leave the whole world blind.

You want to tell me about rioters, crybabies, and libtards?

Let me tell you about what I've been personally subjected to by Conservatives, the alt-right, and more.

I have been called stupid.  A loser.  A communist.  A socialist.  I have had my disorder mocked.  I have been told to kill myself.  I have been told that I'm using air that real Americans deserve.

Before my settings were more private... People would go through my pictures.  Afterwards?  I had my daughter mocked.  My ex girlfriend mocked.  My family and friends mocked.  There was nothing sacred.

Then, I was bullied by the leader and 2 followers of an underground KKK organization on Twitter.  The creator of Anti-racist Hitler.  Horus the Avenger.

The experience made me physically ill.  Literally.

I wish this was the worst of it.

I had my life threatened.  I have dealt with fake accounts. 

I have been sent photos of war victims.  Gruesome photos.  Things I still have nightmares about.  Images I still see when I close my eyes.

For every one positive message I get, I receive 10 threatening or hateful ones.

Just because I'm speaking my opinion.

I am not rude.  I only speak with conviction.

I am not a bully.  I only defend those subjected to them.

I am not asking for much.

I am asking for less latitude than I gave.

If Trump does something wrong, I want to hold him accountable.

If Trump says something immoral, I want to ask him to apologize.

If Trump tramples on rights, I want to point it out.

I just want to speak without being bullied into silence.

Enough is enough.

Let us speak.

Trump's Press Conference and CNN

Trump refused to answer questions from CNN.

“Your organization’s terrible," Trump said.

“I’m not going to give you a question, you are fake news."

The reason it was disturbing to watch Trump's press conference?  The reason this refusal is so paramount?

A President should be ready and willing to approach and address all questions from any person, regardless of their biases or support.

In fact, it may be more important to answer questions from your critics than from those who support you.

Your supporters will not ask you the toughest questions.  Especially if it sheds a negative light on you.  They'll protect that eventuality.  They will pander to you.

We need the exact opposite of that.

The ability to answer the questions he doesn't want to answer is imperative.  He owes the American people that.  His supporters, his critics, Republicans, Democrats, Centrists, the press, and every man, woman, and child.

And the way he treated the press?  Shameful.  Not presidential.  Completely disrespectful.  Very unbecoming.

In the end, it's not about who asked the question. 

It's about allowing the question to be asked.

Conservatives versus Liberals: Traditions and Change

(Someone claimed that Conservatives were moral and loyal to tradition... and Liberals sacrificed individuals for "the greater good."  This was my response).

That is incorrect.  But an interesting contention.

Conservatives hold loyalty to outdated ideas.  It's all about tradition.  A refusal to change, despite better options.  It masquerades as keeping with morality, but it's a flawed morality.  A very, very flawed morality.  And a stubborn arrogance that will not yield to new evidence, opinions, or progression.

The thing is, stagnation breeds disease.  And Republicans?  They're standing still.

You can dig in your heels and refuse to move while the world changes around you, but the world will keep going.  Time will keep moving forward.  Ideals and new philosophies will emerge.  Conservatives call these threats.  They aren't.

It's a deep-seated narcissism.  A belief that no idea is better than their ideas. 

Every new train of thought is deemed radicalism.  Buzzwords become defenses.  Words like "Socialism" and "traitor" are thrown at anyone who thinks differently than their preconceived notions. 

Could you imagine if society refused to move past the "moral code" of the Romans?  We'd have people cheering on the deaths of slaves in the greatest Coliseum of the Midwest.

Now, there's nothing wrong with having traditional values.  The best moral lessons from Aesop's Fables still hold up today.  For good reason.

So don't abandon the wonderful ideals of the Republican party. 

Just don't act obstinate to all the ideals outside of it.  Cus some of them are pretty great too.

Oh, and I'm a Centrist.  So... These are thoughts from a neutral standpoint.  Even if they appear left-wing.