I read my then apolitical wife, she isn’t now, Obama’s ‘Yes we can’ speech. Which turned out not to be his words anyway. This would have been at least a year before he was elected. I said ‘this guy just got elected President’. My wife, ‘was there an election?’ ‘No. But this speech alone will win him the Presidency, and the fact he is half black.’ She loved it and said he sounds amazing. I said, ‘Okay. Let me read you the first sentence.’ Explain it. She explained it to me. ‘Okay, here is the second sentence. Explain that one.’ She did, but hesitantly as they were both vague statements which could mean anything. After the third she said ‘he actually isn’t saying anything is he?’ All evocative fluff which one could apply twenty different meanings to. Later that evening we were at some (now ex) friends for dinner. Obama came up as his speech had been printed in our paper. First, why? A pre nomination stump speech from an unknown politician in the US running on its own page on a Canadian daily? Second, why was he suddenly a big star? Out of nowhere? At any rate the hostess, a hard core lefty was so into him it was weird. I said his speech meant nothing. And I said ‘I am in business. I know when smoke is being blown up my butt. The speech is misleading, which means he is a liar.’ I conceded it was possible he did the speech as an attention getter and would then fill in details as he runs for the nomination. Which is fair enough. I said ‘I will wait and see but at this point he has lost my trust and has to earn it back.’ She ripped me apart. Very rudely. Now, this might seem obvious such a thing would happen. But this was 2006 or so. US politics was followed in Canada, but it wasn’t a blood sport then. It was ho hum news. Half the time most people might know one of the people running for each party’s nomination. And that would be all. Certainly not obscure names not heard before. I was called a racist! ‘Own it, William. You’re a racist. Fine. But at least admit it.’ We subsequently had a few more dinner parties. Each one more stridently political. We went on some 10 k walks together. But I was done with her. The Lib husband was okay. But she dominated more and more our times together. My wife remained friends with her as they hiked regularly together. COVID changed all that. She of course became a COVID Karen. My wife was not. Sort of worried about it. But I laid out why she needn’t fear anything. Within a year of COVID and their friendship was pretty much over. When Liz refused to be vaxed, that fully ended it.
It all changed with Obama. I am not saying it wasn’t all politics all the time. And lefties and righties could be friends. Not now.
I read my then apolitical wife, she isn’t now, Obama’s ‘Yes we can’ speech. Which turned out not to be his words anyway. This would have been at least a year before he was elected. I said ‘this guy just got elected President’. My wife, ‘was there an election?’ ‘No. But this speech alone will win him the Presidency, and the fact he is half black.’ She loved it and said he sounds amazing. I said, ‘Okay. Let me read you the first sentence.’ Explain it. She explained it to me. ‘Okay, here is the second sentence. Explain that one.’ She did, but hesitantly as they were both vague statements which could mean anything. After the third she said ‘he actually isn’t saying anything is he?’ All evocative fluff which one could apply twenty different meanings to. Later that evening we were at some (now ex) friends for dinner. Obama came up as his speech had been printed in our paper. First, why? A pre nomination stump speech from an unknown politician in the US running on its own page on a Canadian daily? Second, why was he suddenly a big star? Out of nowhere? At any rate the hostess, a hard core lefty was so into him it was weird. I said his speech meant nothing. And I said ‘I am in business. I know when smoke is being blown up my butt. The speech is misleading, which means he is a liar.’ I conceded it was possible he did the speech as an attention getter and would then fill in details as he runs for the nomination. Which is fair enough. I said ‘I will wait and see but at this point he has lost my trust and has to earn it back.’ She ripped me apart. Very rudely. Now, this might seem obvious such a thing would happen. But this was 2006 or so. US politics was followed in Canada, but it wasn’t a blood sport then. It was ho hum news. Half the time most people might know one of the people running for each party’s nomination. And that would be all. Certainly not obscure names not heard before. I was called a racist! ‘Own it, William. You’re a racist. Fine. But at least admit it.’ We subsequently had a few more dinner parties. Each one more stridently political. We went on some 10 k walks together. But I was done with her. The Lib husband was okay. But she dominated more and more our times together. My wife remained friends with her as they hiked regularly together. COVID changed all that. She of course became a COVID Karen. My wife was not. Sort of worried about it. But I laid out why she needn’t fear anything. Within a year of COVID and their friendship was pretty much over. When Liz refused to be vaxed, that fully ended it.
It all changed with Obama. I am not saying it wasn’t all politics all the time. And lefties and righties could be friends. Not now.
Sorry. Can’t edit. I am saying it is all politics now, all the time.