Unfriending right wing friends

[nondrinker1985]

One of my school mum friends of around 10 years has started sharing loads of Restore Britain/Rupert Lowe posts.

I’m actually really shocked as she’s an Irish immigrant herself.

I’ve unfriended her which is a shame as day to day she’s ok. Also another mum who has been liking and commenting on the Restore Britain posts, they’ll probably tell me they’re not racist but I can’t be arsed calling them out.

I have friends that are right wing, left wing and centre. I prefer not to live in and echo chamber. I prefer to challenged. I agree with some things on the left and some on the right. There is no absolute correct. Or maybe just don’t talk politics with friends. It is one aspect of them.

Better self-righteous lefties than wingnuts like Farage.

I was like this for decades, but it's no longer that simple for me.

The core issues are political in part, but it goes further than that. Issues like misogyny, equality and racism transcend politics and are far more fundamental than simply right or left.

I have friends and family - all in their 70s and 80s - who still vote Tory. They're nice people who have found the lurches to the right by the Tories really hard to navigate. They abhor Reform and Nigel Farage. They say that they have no natural political home, but stick with voting Tory, because that's what they've always done. We can, as we always have, share a glass of wine and debate the reasons we vote how we do: education, NHS, etc. That's how it should be.

Factually, people who vote for Reform are voting for a party that welcomes candidates holding racist, homophobic and misogynistic public opinions. Anyone whining about 'yeaahh but the illegals' while not giving a shit that their candidate is spouting toxic bile about policies that erode women's rights is showing who they are.

It's been said a million times, but it's true: not all reform voters are misogynistic, racist and homophobic, but all misogynistic, homophobic racists are Reform voters. Or, or course, Restore voters now, for those delightful people even further to the right of Genghis Khan, and who will hopefully split the hate vote nicely.

Factually people that vote for the left are voting for a party that welcomes candidates that want to take more and more money from working people to pay for other people to have endless kids that they can't afford.

Factually they are voting for a party that talks tough "smash the gangs" whilst doing absolutely nothing but watching the arrival of young men from violent countries rise and rise. What makes Syria, Afganistan and Sudan rough places to live? The men - and they are coming here unimpeded.

These aren't facts though. Net migration has fallen under a left wing government. Syrian and Sudanese men are not coming here 'unimpeded.' You might subscribe to that view, but it definitely doesn't make it a fact.

It IS a fact about Reform candidates holding those views I referred to - its on their own social media and filmed coming out of their own mouths.

Do candidates for office talking about the erosion of women's rights bother you in the same way?

Factually, people who vote for Reform are voting for a party that welcomes candidates holding racist, homophobic and misogynistic public opinions.

But many are voting Reform exactly because they don’t want men coming from Afghanistan, Syrian, Sudan etc who are culturally holding “racist, homophobic and misogynistic opinions”.

People are voting for Reform because they stand against racism, homophobia and misogyny? Okay.

Factually, people who vote for parties on the left are voting for mysogynistic, homophobic, child mutilation cult supporters AKA "trans rights" supporters.

Now what?

I would do the same, I’m pretty open to other peoples opinions but far right are just well….

Maybe actual facts again? Before the culture wars and the jostling for political positioning on the issue of trans rights, it was the Tory party who laid the legislative groundwork for trans rights. They are probably more left wing than the average Reform voter though, so perhaps you're genuinely - factually even - correct.

Maybe actual facts again

Are you trying to parody the exact sort of cult supporter I'm talking about?

It's funny either way.

I categorically do not make friends with people that don’t share roughly the same fundamental values, I can’t look past opinions I feel are abhorrent.

Don’t get me wrong I don’t want to live in an echo chamber, I have friends from all walks of life, cultures, political parties and religions and enjoy a healthy debate but when people’s opinions are hateful I can’t respect that.

Why are the left wing so intolerant of other people opinions?

Of course they are. The miniscule amount of people that have been sent back to France (one in one out) show that they have no difficulty being back again the following week.

Being racist isn’t an opinion.

What about the self righteous righties? In my experience the capacity for self righteousness spans the political spectrum. If you want friends who aren’t self righteous, you probably need ones who just aren’t very interested in politics.

Exactly this

For the same reasons as the right wing are so intolerant of other people's opinions.

Labour brought in the Gender Recognition Act 2004 ignoring all issues raised and that have now come to pass.

The very same people?

Moving on, what about your opinion on voting for candidates that support women's rights being eroded? Many hard-line right wing regimes begin with oppressing women.

How can any woman can vote for a party that shrugs its shoulders at toxic misogyny is utterly perplexing to me.

I'm left wing, but I have friends who are Conservatives, (two actually in politics). I draw the line at bigotry and/or racism though.

Same. My close relative worked at the heart of the Tory government. I've discussed politics happily with right and left leaning friends for decades. Different politics is one thing: racism, homophobia and misogyny are not political opinions, as a pp mentioned above.

Yes unfriended these people. Anyone I know who supports those parties are not my friend I take it personal because these parties would deport my husband in a blink of an eye and maybe my adult dc

I could say the same thing about the antisemites who vote for the Green Party.

How can anyone vote for a party that shrugs its shoulders at toxic antisemitism is utterly perplexing to me.

I guess there are similarities on both sides.