So yesterday I had my first Facebook fight. It was HILARIOUS!! I really must commend all who participated. This all started when Big Budha let us all know that David Archuleta was going to sing at half-time for the Blaze first home game this year. I commented and said,"Booooo!" That was all it took to start the fire storm. I can't believe how sensitive they all were; how upset they were that someone had the temerity (a word they probably wouldn't know the definition) to disagree with them. They were, in a word, pissed. So, I decided to have a little fun with them. This went on all day yesterday. I was called a bunch of dirty names by people who purported to be members of the LDS church. I was berated by housewives who probably have little crushes on David. I was told that no one liked me, including my mom, and I should shut up. All this because I had the gall to express my opinion of something that is very trivial at best. I spent the day defending my position and telling everyone why I don't like American Idol and David Archuleta but they were intent on saying that by doing that I was insulting everyone that watches that show. I was told sarcastically that I knew better than millions of people and I could probably walk on water. Of course that post was horrendously spelled so I hope I got the gist of it. I had very few defenders of my right to express my opinion in this country but I did have one. I immediately made her my facebook friend. Even though she didn't agree with me, she did defend me. That was nice.
So let's take this a step further. When someone presents a dissenting opinion in this country they are shot down and called all kinds of things like un-patriotic and obstructionist. We are told that we don't love our country and we want the terrorists to win. I wonder what people would say now about such luminaries as Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and George Washington. I don't believe one of them would agree with where our country is right now. They would be ashamed that our country is not only commenting on foreign governments' policies but that we are actively inserting ourselves into their countries and interfering with their governing practices no matter how corrupt or evil they are. They believed that we should only get involved when we were directly threatened. That has happend twice in our history: WWI and WWII. Every war since then has been "illegal" in essence. Now I don't want terroists around anymore that you do but we have to have better intelligence before we go rushing into a country or else we get stuck in wars that last way too long and don't really accomplish anything other than upsetting the locals.
Now I don't want to turn this into a political debate but I do want to point out how our country has changed. We can't post opinions about anything without insulting someone or being called names because your a dissenter. I hate that freedom of speech has been handcuffed and thrown down the stairs. It apparently only applies to people who make up the fact that they are being stifled by the "mainstream media" when in reality they are just spouting entertainment for the unwashed masses. Yes, I'm talking about Hannity, Limbaugh, and our precious Glenn Beck. These people have more power than any one individual in this country because they control what some very vocal supporters believe. It's scary to think about that. There are millions of people in this country that can't think for themselves but, rather, rely on some radio show to tell them what to believe.
So let me get back to Idolers. Tara, I'm not talking about you or, for that matter, most people who watch the show. I am talking about a select few, I'm sure, that must have everyone agree with them. I don't care what you believe as long as you are educated about it. Do some research and make sure you know what you're talking about before you go spouting off opinions. Insults and put-downs don't count as cogent arguments. Think for yourself so that you can truly be free and let all others believe what they want. Hopefully it won't cause any big Facebook fights.
Thanks for reading.
