Hopefully your Thanksgiving dinner won’t be like this
An ongoing theme here at Messaging Matters is that a good number of Democrats and Republicans either want to, or have to, continue having relationships with each other. This includes, for example, friends and loved ones. However, perhaps nowhere do political differences become more heated, awkward or unpleasant than at the Thanksgiving table. If crazy Uncle Charlie starts spouting his Fox “News” talking points, and you simply respond with talking points from your favorite liberal website, no one is going to achieve understanding or get along. Moreover, this Thanksgiving, with Joe Biden‘s defeat of Donald Trump in the presidential election fresh on everyone’s mind, threatens to be one of the most contentious of them all. Accordingly, rather than simply passing along argumentative talking points, we have created a Democratic Translator that will let Democrats state their positions in a non-confrontational, plausibly deniable way, so that not just fruits but relationships are preserved for Thanksgiving. For example:
Republican Says: “What do you think about what happened in the election?”
You Say: “I’m just glad it’s over.”
What You Really Mean: “Biden won, and Trump’s frivolous lawsuits are going nowhere.”
Republican Says: “So, it looks like Biden will be president, unless the Supreme Court does the unexpected. Are you celebrating?”
You Say: “I’m just looking forward to less drama going forward.”
What You Really Mean: “I’m thrilled that Toddler Trump, the queen of tantrums, is finally going to be gone.”
Republican Says: “Trump won the election! There was massive voter fraud.”
You Say: “Trump has had the opportunity to make his case in court multiple times in different states.”
What You Really Mean: “Enough with the frivolous lawsuits and conspiracy theories! Trump is a loser, and everyone knows it.”
Republican Says: “This whole COVID thing is overblown. No one should tell me when to wear a mask.”
You Say: “There are a lot of irresponsible people out there.”
What You Really Mean: “Donald Trump is the most irresponsible person of them all, and he’s criminally negligent in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Americans.”
These examples should give you a good start to give similar responses to other topics. The Democratic Translator can always be used if you don’t want to have the unpleasant and futile experience of arguing facts and logic to try to change a Republican’s mind. Happy Turkey Day!
Photo by Lisa Zins, used under Creative Commons license. https://is.gd/RhMnmU
