My brother (who lives in another state and I rarely get to see) just sent me a comedy video. It is entirely comprised of taking shots at my political beliefs. The act is entirely political.
I love my brother, but I cannot understand why he would send me this. I rarely (if ever) talk about politics with my family or friends because I know there are different people with different beliefs. It hurts my feelings that he would send me this.
I will likely just not respond to his message. I refuse to argue with anyone I love over politics. I just need to vent because I am hurt and feeling disrespected. He can't be bothered to message me just to ask "what's up?" or "how are you doing?" but he can do this???
BTW I think if we all got rid of the political labels, we agree on more than we disagree with...
I'm sorry he did that. I don't talk politics with my parents or brother because we have entirely different beliefs. FWIW, I might be tempted to respond and with something like, "I'm sorry you felt the need to disrespect me by sending this to me. I'd much rather receive a quick how are you or what's up text," and just see how he responds. I'm wondering if he thought he was being funny and wasn't thinking it through.
I can understand how this hurt you. I would feel the same way. I don't talk politics with my brothers either. Our parents are long gone, so that is not a concern. My older brother and I agree to not post political crap on Facebook. My younger brother posts some of the most vile nonsense and passes along misinformation. Facebook even labels it as such. Because of this I have unfollowed him. I look at his page from time to time to see what he posts.
I agree with Greyhound Girl. Send him a quick note. See if you can come to an agreement like my older brother and I have.
I agree to not get in an argument over politics. I, too, would just ignore it.
If you don't discuss politics with him, does he know your leanings? Could it be that he thought he believed the same as him and sent it? Or did he intentionally send it, knowing you would disagree with it?
You describe it as a comedy video. I think it's likely he genuinely thought it was funny, and was trying to be cheeky by sending it. Like the kind of "teasing" that siblings sometimes do with each other.
You could ignore it, or respond telling him what you just told us- that he hurt your feelings by sending it and you feel disrespected.
Your brother sounds like mine. My parents have banned the discussion of anything related to education in their home because of my brothers attacks on education. He enjoys “researching” (posting on Facebook to see what gets posted in response) current issues in education and then presenting his inflammatory suggestions as ideas he has shared with local districts all the way up to the department of education.
He is a realtor and overweight, I got in trouble because I said “I would think you would support education because a well regarded school district means homes are easier to sell at a higher price resulting in a fatter commission check for you.” I emphasized fatter and my mother got mad.
friends since the 1960s when we were all children. We refer to each other as "brother and sister." Last year, he started sending me private messages on Facebook, all sorts of conspiracy theories and other bizarre videos and alleged "research." I asked why he would do that, when he clearly knows where I stand. He said it was because he loves me and wants me to get on "the right path." Yuck. I told him that if he really cared about me, he might try calling or stopping by or inviting me to dinner (he is retired and lives maybe 15 miles from me). I see his sister and niece and nephew regularly. No response. Then I stopped responding to his ridiculous messages and put him on "acquaintance" versus "friend."
You say that he doesn't send things often. Is it possible this is a hack on the platform he sent this to you from? I get weird things from people I am friends with who seldom post who have been hacked. I may have missed something and could be offbase. Just a thought. Also, it may be something he sent to a lot of peopleas a group message (to all his contacts/friends) and didn't just single you out. Not great, but perhaps not as stinging as sending personally to you and you alone.
He sent the video on a text message. I wish I could explain better the "comedy" act but it really isn't comedy. There are no jokes or punchlines, just 2 people commenting and laughing about the opposing political party. He knows my political beliefs. His wife constantly brings politics into the conversation knowing that our 80 year old mother disagrees. I've commented that I agree with our mom and we've talked about certain things but don't like to talk about politics when we get time to visit.
I responded to his text by asking if he had heard about a classmate of ours that recently passed. He did. I said that the classmate's sister had also recently passed and commented that I am so thankful we still have each other. He agreed. I just ignored the video and hoped to remind him that in the bigger picture, we love each other.
Religion and politics. Guess what? My wife and I don't agree on either.
We love each other AND LIKE EACH OTHER because we agree not to talk about it. I keep my comments to myself and so does she.
people who think they know my political beliefs tend to be very vocal in their criticism of me. I don't publicize my beliefs, but they go out of their way to criticize what they think I support or don't support. They usually are wrong. To me, it's none of their business who or what I support.
Linda2671, My mother's friends do the same thing to her. She supports one party and they 100% embrace the opposite party. They always make comments such as, "The ______ party is so dumb. Why would anyone support them?" My mom says nothing. They make the most outrageous comments about current and former politicians. Things that you don't ever read about in mainstream media. Makes me wonder where they actually get their information.
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07-26-2020, 01:32 PM
