Sometimes, maybe, we can better understand the world by looking close to home.

[FryeVRCCDS0067]

My wife, family and I have a 30 year-old friendship with an older lady, dating back to when we all three worked together. The three of us used to have many laughs together, were co-conspirators in boatloads of practical jokes, hid in each others cars after work (we worked third shift), we'd even keep giant squirt guns in our vehicles for weekly parking lot water gun fights after 100 degree work nights. That plant closed in 95 but she, the wife and I stayed friends, our daughters became friends also and spent many nights at each others houses when they were growing up.

Although we seldom see her now we keep in touch by facebook and I've taken her son (in his 20's) shooting a time or two after she mentioned he should learn to shoot, and I, of course, happily agreed. He seemed to have a great time and we went though hundreds of rounds of pistol and rifle ammo. Gotta love that!!

As all here already know, I'm a balls-to-the-walls 2nd Amendment advocate and show it daily by my facebook posts.

The friend mentioned above is black lady who grew up in the same small town I did. She's 10 or 12 years older than I and retired now. In all our families years of friendship, race had never came up except for the occasional pun. Since her daughter and a girl in our family shared the same first name, one was called "ebony and first name" and the other just by first name to avoid confusion.

Now, let's fast forward to the past few years and in particular, the past few months. Suddenly, our old, retired, small town friend has become a racist. Now, frequently when I make a post concerning the "King of Anarchy" in the whitehouse she will reply that it's all because of discrimination, that black people still aren't free. She sometimes implys that I'm a racist. That the good Sheriff Clarke, Ben Carson and other black patriots are being paid by someone to speak against the Anarchy King. That everyone knows Fox News hates blacks. That Trump is a racist, but of course the Anarchy King is not. etc,etc. That only black people can tell who's a racist, whites can't. She actually seems to have lost 20 IQ points. This is not the same lady I have known for 30 years.

If this mature small town lady who has worked hard her whole life can be so manipulated by the anarchy king, imagine how the urban gang members and others from weaker upbringings and backgrounds might be influenced?

I think if you take the above to it's logical conclusion, it's now easy to see what is behind the police shootings, riots, assaults and knockout games which are in the news daily now. As far as myself, that stuff is thankfully pretty removed from me here in PoDunkville which is just how I like it. That doesn't make the loss of a 30 year friendship seem any less bitter though.

[solo1]

You don't mention her age but she might be in the beginning stages of dementia. Folks like that are very susceptible to outside influences.  Not saying that's so, but in any case, it is a loss.

I'm also a big proponent of the 2nd.  Last year I got into an argument with a lady who is on the Board of Works and Safety with me. She voted for Obama(both times) and is a registered Democrat. 

She is on my list for saying politely "Good Morning" but I would not want her for any kind of a friend.  I have to work with her but that's it.

IMO, the presnt POTUS is a divider but he had a great potential for bringing us together.

[FryeVRCCDS0067]

You don't mention her age but she might be in the beginning stages of dementia. Folks like that are very susceptible to outside influences.  Not saying that's so, but in any case, it is a loss.

I'm also a big proponent of the 2nd.  Last year I got into an argument with a lady who is on the Board of Works and Safety with me. She voted for Obama(both times) and is a registered Democrat. 

She is on my list for saying politely "Good Morning" but I would not want her for any kind of a friend.  I have to work with her but that's it.

IMO, the presnt POTUS is a divider but he had a great potential for bringing us together.

I have thought of that and it's one of the reasons she's still my friend even though her posts are sometimes pretty embarrassing for both of us. She's having health problems too, and there again, that makes me more patient. But, she's got to be getting those ideas somewhere, and I think it's obvious were. Hate and resentment are classic motivators, and sadly, I think they're being used very well to divide our country. The only real defense besides voting is to be aware of it. And you're right, the potential for good was certainly there, just sadly unrealized.

[Robert]

Thanks for sharing your story I have one that is similar, that I would like to share with you.

I have known for about 17 years a guy that does some work for me on a as needed basis. We have become what I considered good friends and have alot of the same beliefs. I try as much as I can to keep him busy and have helped him in quite a few ways. Politics between him and me though were always touchy. He is black in his politics and his ideas when it comes to some things. I thought he could look beyond the white and see me as a person and friend but one day it made me question if this is really true.

We were talking about politics and I had to finally tell him he was racist. He thinks O is the savior of the world and Bush is satan himself. I tried to explain the problems that O created and there was no understanding. More over there was no will to understand. I was not surprised but the conversation somehow got to white people and how they used to treat blacks and today the whites are not so different and in the heat of the moment I asked him, so am I in that category? His answer shocked me when he said, yes. So I Said to him with all the things you know I do and I have always treated you with respect you still think I'm in that category and yes was his answer.

I cant tell you how shocked I was and slightly hurt at a man that I called a brother was in fact not, in that moment. I didn't hold a grudge but it did make me feel different though. About one or two weeks later he came and apologized to me and I forgave him but its hard not to remember those words spoken. I dont care about a persons color but when a blindness of truth comes over some people I have to wonder whats wrong with them.

Its kind of nice to be able to tell you this story, kind of like therapy since the original incident did catch me by surprise. I personally extended myself in situations to help this man. I have been a contact point of business for customers for him. I have taken my time and resources and used them to help him in situations that he would not have fared so well. Yet when the issue of color and logic reason and even welfare benefits came up he was black. He is still my friend but I wish those words had not been spoken.

Like anything its easy to talk the talk but not so easy to walk the walk. It has to do with who a person is beyond color or race or religion. Billy Joel sang a song called the stranger, it deals with what is really in a persons heart or who they are. What they reveal what they dont and what we know of ourselves.

[Patrick]

This is a bit like a previous post for another thread. I wrote something and decided not to post it.

When young [ small city 15K souls] I was brought up to be bias. We  had 3 blacks on the payroll for decades. They were there because they were the best at their jobs. We hung around and didn't think a think of color. They even changed how I ate.
One of the fellas also was a preacher at their local church. He had been retired a number of years and when I would see him in public I'd always walk and Talk with him. It got so he was ignoring me and I would pester him until he did talk. I did that very thing one day after he had finished one fine Sunday morning and everyone was standing outside the church talking. I was driving by and stopped to talk with him. He tried to ignore, I wouldn't let him [ polite about it] and even some of his congregation would start shouldering me around. He finally spoke. He had turned racist which surprised me. Its surprising how some folks can change. In his very later years he did change back and we could go to the coffee shop and talk again.  he always was the best transmission man in the area.

In school I sat next to a local black girl in home room. We would sit and talk, nice girl from a good family and drop dead beautiful. I was taken aside and told by classmates in no uncertain terms that that was not to done. I still did.

I played sports in school and of course there were blacks. They were just other guys and we all got along. One night game Joe told our coach to put him in because they wouldn't be able to see him. That cracked everyone up.

I was never bias until the service, what a culture shock.

I think today times have changed and not for the best. It seems there may be an even bigger divide in the black community itself from those that I know and listen to what they have to say.  I feel our president has set relations back decades. I'll stop rambling now.