Not friends

 In truth, I am not really in the mood to write much. That said, an experience this week is probably worth relating. If you got this link it is probably off my Facebook page or my Twitter feed. I subscribed to both about ten years ago with the hope of keeping up with family and friends. I need to tell you a story about a friend.

The friend in question is a medical school classmate. I have known this person for 50+ years. Over time, on Facebook, our political differences came out. I am liberal; this person is conservative. I am an atheist; this person is religious. In the era of the Trump administration, we exchanged posts and replies disagreeing with each other. We always came back to an equilibrium that acknowledged having met each other in our youth while attending medical school.

This was disrupted by the seditious behavior of Trump, the Republican Party, and the MAGA cult that the Republicans have become enthralled to. We all went through the Big Lie put out by Trump and echoed by his sycophants and disciples that the Presidential election was stolen by Joe Biden. The activity up till 6 January was nasty, deceitful, and antidemocratic (meaning small d-democratic). For me, the events of 6 January were totally beyond the pale. Invading the United States Capitol, disrupting counting Electoral votes with the intent to overturn a free and fair election, and threatening those political opponents was the last straw. There is no legitimacy for the Republican Party and its cult. The GOP is dead. Trumpism though is alive and like a malignant tumor, it poses a mortal threat to our Constitution and our way of self-governance. 

I reposted Jennifer Rubin’s column asking the question, “Just how nuts is the Republican Party?” and appending my own comment on the post: 

As Ms. Rubin notes, we must keep the current Republican party, filled with lunatics espousing crazy ideas, away from the levers of power. To my MAGA FB friends, I will not give oxygen to your sophistry. Until sanity is restored to the GOP and its adherents, they represent to me threats to the Constitution and American democracy. January 6th was proof of the treachery of the Trump cult.

My comment reflected both the inability of this cult to admit there is a problem and my intent to no longer supply oxygen to their sophistry. Within minutes, my friend of 50 years replied with four words: “Ditto for the Democrats.” My response was quick. I did not delete the comment but I blocked this person. I no longer desire acquaintance with someone who, for whatever reason, cannot see facts and truth. Those who attended the rally immediately before the invasion of the Capitol were Republicans and Trumpists. They were incited to commit an act of sedition by the then-President of the United States. They attempted to overturn their activity. I will have no truck with people who cannot recognize this PLAIN FACT.

Social media is a sewer. I love cat videos and posts from my family and real friends. I am unwilling to contribute to the mass disinformation, however, that Facebook and others now spews. We would all be better if social media disappeared.