What are you going to do to promote healing if your family is split over this election?

[1Hippiechick]

It's bad enough to have Republican family members, but I am truly more concerned about RACIST family members, and I have some, unfortunately. So, for me, regardless of the outcome, I have to focus on healing.

[sendero]

1. Nothing...

... my parents and some of my siblings are wingnuts, and I don't talk about politics with them, ever.

[PermanentRevolution]

2. Luckily, it won't come up

My whole family are Democrats. I do feel for you split-party families, though.

[MNDemNY]

3. Divorce, disownment, and shunning.

[gabeana]

4. Luckily for me I don't have any republicans in my family

on either side, even on my ex wife side of the family, the one thing we never fought about was politics, In 2004 we had money saved to take our kids to Kerry's inauguration even though we were legally separated, This year I did not plan so as not to jinx

[CatBO]

5. We've been broken up for many years, this won't change...

My mother and brother are hateful, evil, racist bigots. It will never change. I don't want to "heal" the family. I wish we weren't related.

Fortunately, my father is an intelligent, kind person. And my sister, well she died before she could see what evil her twin brother turned into. A blessing in disguise I guess.

[hlthe2b]

6. After the past 8 year wide schism.... that's an interesting question

Can you heal intentional ignorance?



(actually I suspect most of the REPUGs in my family have come around already)

[RagAss]

7. We're all Dems......God has been good to us !

[Juche]

8. Don't know

My mom, dad and my brother's wife are all wingnuts (my brother himself is a fairly rational conservative, my other brother and myself are liberals). I really am not sure.

The problem is the wingnuts are grossly deluded about civics, politics, what the candidates stand for, etc. They literally live in a cocoon of ignorance and misinformation. I guess the best thing to do is let time take care of it because in a year they are going to find alot of their ignorant fears about Obama (he will bomb Israel, he is an al qaeda double agent, he will raise their taxes, etc) are unfounded. But explaining it to them in person is pointless, they are too dogmatic.

[ItsTheMediaStupid]

Euthanize the Republican members

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[rucky]

9. They're terrified. I'll pray for them.

promise not to turn anybody gay (on purpose), and try not to kill any babies.

[amyrose2712]

10. Yeah I ignore mine...

but, I have that luxury, only my uncle I think. And he thinks he is Libertarian, personally I just think he is racist and loves his guns.

[jazzjunkysue]

11. Pointing and laughing.

It worked for them 4 years ago.

[expatriate]

12. I learned long ago that "healing" my family is a waste of time.

My brother is a rampant bigot and Republican, a true Bushbot. He's been like this since he was a little kid, and would determinedly wait up until the television stations went off the air (they used to do that in the olden days) so he could stand at attention and salute while the National Anthem, complete with pictures of warships and warplanes was played. He's gotten worse since and is now the most jingoistic human being I've ever had the misfortune to meet. He's all for marching out all those with dark skins and having them shot, and I am not exaggerating.

Why would I want some person like that in my life? Just because we had the same parents (supposedly), that doesn't mean we're going to automatically get along and love each other. I wasted years trying to "reach" this guy. It's been wonderful since he wrote me off. No more pretending.

Give it a try. Not having to kowtow to someone else's mental garbage is very refreshing.

[1Hippiechick]

17. I could have written your post about my younger sister. n/t

[morillon]

13. I'll try to push them to pay attention to what's going on.

And pray that something happens to bust up their cult network, aka the "Mighty Wurlitzer" right wing noise machine.

[TXDemGal]

14. My brother and SIL are racist, one-issue (the A word) voters

I miss my nieces but since they all live 1300 miles away, we don't have to cross physical paths that often. Earlier in this election process, I told him I wouldn't be discussing politics this time around (unlike previous years, when I tried without success to help him walk toward the light).

Truly, I hope they can heal themselves. Otherwise, they may choke to death on their own bile.

[murray hill farm]

15. I have told all of the repug members of my family...

all along that I understand that they must vote their conscience (right to lifers) even though it is clearly against their own best interests to do so. Most have gotten by at one time or another...and some still need and benefit from government assistance. I have told them that i admire their willingness to sacrifice themselves and their personal lives to support their conscience with their choice. Tomorrow I will tell them all that I am sorry that they didnt get the president of their choice......but, on the other hand (although none will admit it)....maybe they did once they thought about it.

[Bake]

16. I'm waiting for an apology.

The vilest thing I heard this whole campaign came from my father, who said:

"I'll tell you who I'm NOT voting for -- I'm not voting for that damn n****r!"

So Im waiting for an apology. I was shocked, and saddened. I wasn't raised that way.

Bake

[KSDiva]

22. I WAS raised that way. By Democrats.

And they refused to vote for Obama because he's black.

I'm not sure I'll get over it. I was always taught that our values meant more than anything, but apparently race trumps all.

[Bake]

25. My father was a lifelong union man and Democrat

Then he retired and suddenly became "conservative."

Bake

[theothersnippywshrub]

28. My late father was that way.

He was very conservative (he thought the Wall Street Journal editorial page was too liberal) and he also was a bigot. We argued about politics many, many times and it would get really heated and sooner or later he would reveal his bigoted side. There have been many times since his death that I wish we could still argue politics.

[Dappleganger]

18. Politics is off the table with my father...

everyone else votes pretty liberal (independent/democrat) and has for years, and they are all ecstatic about the possibilities with Obama.

The biggest trouble we're having now is our kids are being teased in school for being Obama supporters (students AND teachers, ugh). We live in NW St. Johns county in FL and it's very republican, unfortunately. However, this year I noticed the number of Obama/Biden signs has significantly increased over the number of Kerry/Edwards signs from last time, so there is hope. I told the kids to be the better person, to smile and be gracious because we had 8 years of living with their gloating and we don't have to stoop to their level. They can save the gloating for home, hehe.

[mrcheerful]

19. Well it's like this, I broke up with the afro american girl I was dating for 10 years

5 years ago and started living with my SO, who is blonde, blue eyes,soon after the break up. Well, mom and dad didn't care either way, but 90% of the family didn't approve that I had been dating a afro american. My SO happens to be suffering from impulsive compulsive disorder and digs her arms up leaving nasty scars. First words out of the families mouths when they met her at dads funeral, is she on crck, those look like crack pipe burns, to my mother, they didn't have the guts to ask me.

In their minds black girlfriend = drug use. New gf with scars on her arms = drug use. Needless to say after my dad was laid to rest on september 16th, and I never expect to see them again.

[jillan]

20. I don't know what I'm going to do.

I'll be anxious to hear from all of you how you handle these people.

[Mz Pip]

21. Depends which one

I have a cousin who I am on decent respectful terms with. He does not like McCain and doesn't beleive all the crap about Obama. We'll be fine.

My cousin-in-law will get a sarcastic email thanking her for all the horrible crap emails she forwarded me because I really believe al that negative bullshit helped Obama win. That will piss her off.

[TexasObserver]

23. Re-education camps. Make them move to the city, get bus passes, interact with non whites.

Maybe force them to read books and newspapers.

Not allow them access to Fox News or Talk Radio.

[Poseidan]

24. I will give them a simple explanation

Universal healing is for socialists. They will receive none.

[youthere]

26. I only have a couple McCain supporters in my family...

and by far the worst is my stepfather, the NRA loving, Liberal-hating, women-should-be-barefoot-and-pregnant, racist stepfather. I plan to rub his face in it every waking moment of my life. This man cannot imagine a fate worse than having "one of them" lead this country. Matter of fact...I'm planning on calling him the second McCain concedes and just keep repeating 'PRESIDENT OBAMA PRESIDENT OBAMA PRESIDENT OBAMA PRESIDENT OBAMA PRESIDENT OBAMA PRESIDENT OBAMA PRESIDENT OBAMA PRESIDENT OBAMA PRESIDENT OBAMA PRESIDENT OBAMA PRESIDENT OBAMA PRESIDENT OBAMA HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! " into his answering machine. He'll get used to it eventually...not President Obama..just me taunting him.

[AuntPatsy]

27. Believe me for some, there is nothing you can do.

[Obamarama]

29. Absolutely nothing. I have come to the conclusion that my sister is a hopeless Republican defector.

She sure as hell didn't grow up in a Republican household. How and why she ever went over to the dark side is unknown to me.

For eight years, I've had to listen to HER. Now it's her turn to shut the fuck up. I've come to the conclusion that she's really just a cold-hearted bitch and have accepted that just because we came out of the same womb we don't have to like one another.

She's not going to change. I'm not going to change. Why mix oil and water? We have little in common anymore and quite frankly the more I see how she operates, the less I want to do with her.