A caller to Politics Done Right said he lost his friend of thirty-five years because of Trump. I told him why one should not let politics get between friendships.
Do not lose your friend over a politician
I get great live calls from the listeners to my Politics Done Right program on Pacifica Network’s KPFT 90.1 FM Houston. This call touched me more than most because it is something I have had to deal with, both with both friends and family.
The caller was sad that he had lost his friend of 35 years. He said his friend was a devout Trumpist that would not listen to reason.
I told the caller about my experience with a good friend who was about to dump me for similar reasons.
“I told them I am not willing to lose our friendship because of a politician that doesn’t care about either one of us,” I said. “So I looked at him and said, ‘I will take the crap from you. I will let you go on and say whatever you want. All I ask is that you listen to me sometimes. But our friendship is going to remain.’ And it worked.”
I made it clear that it worked but that it simply would not work with some. The caller said it was too late for him and his friend. After all, his friend was now far away in Alaska. He said maybe if they were closer, it could.
The thing is that it is never too late. So I told the caller to reopen communication. Text him and let him know you still think about him. He may not hey a response, but he would be planting seeds. The caller liked the suggestion.
We should not fear keeping the dialogue open even if it is unsatisfactory. We cannot be sure of the outcome if we try. But we are sure of the outcome if we don’t. How can we let self-serving politicians break up well-established relationships? WE MUST NOT!