That's why I have allowed this post to simmer in my Drafts after I wrote it. At one point, I had convinced myself that I wouldn't post it as I thought it was not good form to post a private conversation. However, the more I thought about it, the more I wanted to put this conversation out as a snapshot of how two people allow their emotions to run high and to drive their words to each other out there.
I want to be clear - I don't think I "won" this discussion or that I "lost" this discussion - I don't think I am right & he is wrong.
Rather, I'm posting this because I see it as an example of the times I live in. The gun control debate is highly emotionally charged. It always has been and likely always will be because there is no
My Holy Saturday took an unexpected turn as I found myself in a debate with a man about David Hogg & gun control.
One of my final edits to this draft, before clicking Publish, was to remove the name of the person I was corresponding with. I did that not because I think the man would be embarrassed about what he said. Instead, I thought it was more important to read the discussion and to follow the logic.
I am not saying I was 100% logical in what I said or that I "won" the discussion. I may have damaged my friendship with him beyond repair, which is really too bad.
I put his words in bold/italic to make them stand out from my words, which are indented and have yellow highlighter to make easily identified.
This all started on Holy Saturday. I happened to come across this graphic online, which I then sent to him at Sat 2:42pm. As you will read, I had good intentions about sending it to him.
- (Me) please I friend me and I quit the knight of Columbus get me off that list. Your continued insistence on being right when it comes to children who have been under attack and are fighting for their lives or wanting to save their friend’s lives is inexplicable. But very Christian buddy...
- Unfriend not I friend, typo
- Not very Christian, another typo sorry
- I typed this with a lot of anger so forgive the typos
- I didn't mean to make you mad! I thought it summarizes where you and I land on the subject!
- I understand your position - I really do - but that doesn't mean I have to agree with it.
- No it summarizes yet another excuse for people to act extremely unchristian when it comes to children, like there’s rationale or it’s okay because... no thank you
- Good but I choose not to be friends with people who think that mindset is okay or who condone any of the tactics the NRA or extreme right has used against these children.
- Their children
- Like yours like mine
- They’re not sheep and we raise them to think for themselves
- Sadly now we have to raise them to fight for their lives
- Since we adults are pretty useless and sheep
- When it comes to protecting our children
- Have I mentioned they are children???
- Do you think DH is acting Christian when he tells people who disagree with him to go to hell and to equate those who disagree as being evil?
- I was taught by Jesuit priests and brothers my whole school years, and they would be horrified at what we’re turned into
- You seem to be saying that anything that he says should not be questioned with logic, that he can say anything and not be questioned - all because he is 17.
- The only way DH will grow is to learn. Part of learning means compromise which can't be done by refusing to even listen to the other side point of view.
- I actually like when he fights back, him an Emma and the rest, you’re right, they’re learning how to push back against horrible evil people. They better learn.
- And I said I am not in the NRA and I don't own a gun. I'm not dismissing what he went through and to say it's un Christian to think logically about what he says because he is a kid... Do you think that I am horrible because I disagree with you?
- Since we’re not changing and it’s their world someday. If the caliber of adult that we want them to grow into is what’s on display now then hopefully God will keep them strong and protect against our toxicity
- I totally agree with you!
- I have no idea where your values are coming from, that’s my problem. I can’t judge you but I can be very upset when people so thought I admired are falling for anything that’s a-spiritual which what this whole NRA thing has degenerated this country into.
- There’s no room for both, either we agree with paid off shills for the NRA or we defend the kids.
- There’s no sane argument for weapons of that level of destruction being covered by the 2nd Amendment.
- They’re not protecting the 2nd Amendment, their protecting their business interests.
- When I was a kid I won an NRA award for being a sharpshooter
- I am not defending the NRA.
- Where is THAT NRA these days?
- That’s where all this is springing from.
- These kids wouldn’t have ever had to defend their lives if it weren’t for a hijacked 2nd Amendment by lunatics and shills.
- Then again we have while faiths like the evangelicals that are perfectly fine with a president and his porn star so what do O know
- I know typo
- Whole faiths
- America 2018
- Not even the pope is okay with this crap and he even endorsed these kids recently
- the guy who interviewed DH on CNN said that he didn't correct DH during the interview even when he knew that what he said was wrong... That is my point. If the kid is wrong or says something that I disagree with, I should be able to say it... And not be villainized for it.
- So I can’t understand how people of faith don’t unquestionably have the backs of these kids
- If DH said that the grass is purple would you tell me the grass is purple?
- HE’S. A. KID!!!!!!!!! He can make mistakes, be corrected, absorb what happened and learn from it.
- No
- HE’S. A. KID!!!! What part of that isn’t computing????!
- You said that he is an expert on gun control
- I never fucking said that, recheck this thread or any thread I’ve typed.
- I said he’s an expert from his experience.
- Of that experience and is better knowledgeable that me about what this issue is!!!!
- Or you or any damned NRA member or conservative or 2nd Amendment rights “defender” who had never ever been in that position.
- These two screenshots were a single screenshot on Facebook. For this post, the names have been cropped:
- This is what I wrote:
- This is what he had wrote back
- You unequivocally declared that he was an expert
- Oh boy, symantics. He absolutely is an expert about what I just typed above and thought I was clear about my intention
- I guess I have to cross every t and dot every i in the future
- Sorry for not spelling out exactly precisely absolutely word choice perfect what I implied.
- I think a 17-year-old wouldn’t be an expert on the actual law, but his perspective is absolutely spot on in comparison with any of us.
- If you had said " He can make mistakes, be corrected, absorb what happened and learn from it." At the beginning of all this, I would have agreed with you!!! I read your position as not even being open to the possibility of what you just wrote...
- I'm open to suggestions that he has - I think that is fine for him to go and be an advocate for his classmates...
If I see the man again and if I can, I want to give him a hug and repair our friendship.
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