It’s the political silly season again and earnest friends who wish to convert me to their political viewpoint are forwarding e-mails that “absolutely prove” everything from President Obama’s religion to the “irresponsible” new health care plan. I’ve asked that nobody send me these e-mails because they’re irritating, I’m not going to change my mind, and I consider it rude when these folks disregard my request. (Warning: if you click through to read the entire post, you’ll be exposed to my personal view of partisan politics. It might be good to stop here.)
Finally I can stand it no longer. I’m replying now. I thought you might enjoy a couple replies. This one is a reply to a person who thinks Obama is a Muslim (which is false; his profession is Christianity):
I’ve been around too long and have seen too much to think this e-mail is the truth. There’s just too much propaganda floating around and too many people don’t stop to think about it.
President Obama has vicious enemies who don’t bother to fact check anything. It’s almost like mob rule. Our country’s lack of common decency concerns me greatly.
I don’t agree with the president on everything, but of course that’s been true of all the presidents I’ve seen. I remain, and will remain, an ardent Obama supporter. I assure you that I get equally fervent e-mails from the Democratic Party–and I ignore those too, nor do I pass them on to others.
When you get these e-mails, do some fact checking. Look at www.whitehouse.gov to see what the official position is. Check the NY Times. Look at the Los Angeles Times. Get a foreign view at www.economist.com (British). Check out Time or Newsweek. Listen to the BBC on shortwave or over the Internet. Get yourself hooked up with Google News at www.google.com/news.
The truth is out there. Sometimes it’s hard to find. But I’ll guarantee you this: the truth doesn’t come in e-mails with lots of exclamation points!
And here’s another one: a reply to someone who thinks the Obama administration is fiscally incompetent:
I am, and will remain, an ardent Obama supporter. So please don’t send these political e-mails to me. There are always at least two sides to every issue, and by and large I think Obama is doing a great job in spite of those who would thwart him at every turn.
Even Rush Limbaugh said that we should respect the office of the presidency. We need to participate in the political process in an orderly way, and the American political landscape these days is contentious and disorderly.
I don’t look to YouTube as a source of truth, nor to e-mails full of exclamation points. There are numerous respected publications available online (NY Times, Washington Post, the Times of London, the Economist, and many others), plus sometimes it’s nice to check the source itself (www.whitehouse.gov) to see what’s really being said.
Anyway, there’s my political statement for now! Grumble: I’m sick of politics! Feel free to comment. I reserve the right to edit comments for spelling and grammar (you’d be surprised). I will not allow any comments with personal attacks or that I consider too contentious. I will likely not approve any comments that tout a particular political viewpoint that I consider false or odious.