Good Morning.
When I was growing up, there were three topics that were absolutely off limits: religion, sex, and politics. You didn't talk religion because the Protestants didn't like the Catholics, the Catholics didn't like the Protestants, neither were particularly
cordial to the Jews, what were then called the Moslems lived somewhere with a lot of sand, and Ghandi was a man who was calm and pleasant but kind of odd. You didn't talk about sex because it was a private matter between two heterosexual adults who slept, amply clothed, in twin beds. Sex was a health issue like other conditions that weren't discussed, including psoriasis, acid reflux, and gout. As for politics, you left your views on the kitchen table when you ventured out of the house. Most people had no idea whether you were a Republican or a Democrat unless you wore a campaign button, and even then people weren't nasty as long as you didn't talk about why you were a Republican or a Democrat unless it was because your
grandmother and everyone else in your family was a Republican or a Democrat.
Obviously a great deal has changed because those three subjects are discussed more than anything else today, with the possible exception of the weather. The religious contentiousness has abated in some quarters, but sex has become a national sport where people find a companion in a drinking establishment or on the Internet. People still get married but take a lover rather than a vacation to relieve the boredom of whatever bores them. Politics has become a game with no rules of fair play and no limits on the amount of viciousness that can be thrown at an opponent.
Here are some issues you should not discuss even with your next of kin:
Abortion. Some people believe human life is sacred because God has a hand in creating it. Others believe that with an intelligence endowed by their creator or from some other source they should have the ability to decide what to do with their bodies. Please leave this one alone. It's an intensely private matter that can get people throwing plates at each other.
Capital punishment. Some think that civilized people do not execute even uncivilized people. Others believe the state
has the right to impose the ultimate penalty upon those who commit heinous crimes. Some don't care if an execution gets botched as long as the job gets done. Leave this one at home also.
The environment. Some are in total awe of the planet Earth and want it protected. Some believe that human beings are given dominion over their surroundings and should use it to enhance their circumstances. In my state if you want to get clunked over the head by either side, you bring up the Keystone Pipeline. Move out of the LA smog to a small town by a crystal clear lake in northern Maine, but don't talk about why you did it.
Immigration: Some believe the United States is a melting pot and should welcome people from a variety of backgrounds, preferably under legal conditions. Others are convinced that the
country should look like the signers of the Declaration of Independence, albeit without the wigs. Don't talk about this incredibly complicated situation even with your closest friends and relatives. They won't agree with you, whatever your point of view.
Other thorny issues include war, taxes, health care, term limits, charter schools, gay marriage, welfare, campaign finance laws, and farm subsidies. Don't get into them with either your mouth or by wearing a T-shirt with a slogan on it and don't put a bumper sticker on your car that will get you run off the road into a ditch. I'd even go so far as to say that it's time to dump the yard signs for the candidate of choice. The last time I put one out, the guy across the street shook his fist at me. I was not a bit pleased, but I try to think his holiday decorations are tasteful. Not so much.
Best regards,
Elisabeth
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