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Beliefs and relationships

Dan

Joined
Sep 19, 2011
Gender
V2 White Male
As I grow older I've noticed all to often how our beliefs can destroy and create relationships. For example brexit had a near equal split and I noticed it had the same effect on many relationships around me. Friends were now labeling others as racist behind other friends backs, but still kept up a front. Others would simply not talk to one another.

Even celebrities, corporations and politicians have to be careful what they say as they to can risk the results of above.

I'm bicurious how you forum dwellers handle knowing someone that may hold a different belief to your own. How severe does that belief have to be before you no longer wish to associate with a person? Do you think there are times where its irrational to disassociate from someone for holding a different belief to you own?

For me I'm usually more relaxed most of the time. I like to keep people around even if their belief may be against my own values, reasons being I'm often interested in if there is more to their reasoning than what they dish out on the surface.
 

YIGAhim

Sole Survivor
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Apr 10, 2017
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Stomp
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Male
I appreciate and sometimes understand the opinions of others, but try as hard as I can not to pay attention to it. If I'm sitting around talking to a Republican I won't just start arguing. However, if it comes to politics, I'll certainly do battle.
 

Castle

Ch!ld0fV!si0n
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Crisis? What Crisis?
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If a person holds certain beliefs that are dangerous or hazardous to people's well being, even if they do not act on them, then I do not associate with them. I don't go out of my way to antagonize them or put them on the spot for their beliefs unless they are publicly professing or acting upon them. Even still, simply professing certain beliefs is dangerous. Certain ideologies are hazardous. Even deadly. The spread of information has an impact on people and how they behave, so even if someone isn't enforcing their beliefs on others, simply preaching them can be potentially hazardous. Now I am a firm believer that anyone is free to hold or exercise whatever beliefs they want, but the moment they make it some one else's business they open themselves up to being challenged, and people have every right to defend themselves against dangerous ideologies.

For instance, I dislike my cousin for her political opinions. I think she's stupid and her beliefs are dangerous to a lot of people and her actions have harmed a lot of people. That didn't stop me from attending the last family reunion (heck the reunion was my idea and everyone was invited) but we didn't speak to each other much, and since she went out of her way to avoid talking politics I just spent most of the time ignoring her.

At the very least, the best thing to do to people with disagreeable beliefs is to ignore them. It's the same reason we put misbehaving children in the corner to think about what they've done. And from my observations that's the major issue. Not enough children have spent enough time in time out. And it's no wonder there are so many grown adults throwing tantrums that are no different than the hissy fits children throw, with the notable exception that an adult's tantrum is often far more violent and destructive.

The best way to deal with ideologies you don't agree with, is to ignore them. Until such a point as they become a threat to yourself or others, then you must deal with it. Now, this doesn't apply to beliefs or opinions that I respectfully disagree with, but only those that can harm people.

Example 1: I don't like the star wars prequels. You do. We're good. We can be friends. We can even talk about it if you want. We just have to be polite and respectful about it.
Example 2: You're a jihadist. You want to cut my head off. This is unacceptable. Try it, and regret it. Talk about it, and I will defy you word for word.
 
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Ninja

Well well well
Joined
Jul 5, 2017
I'm bicurious how you forum dwellers handle knowing someone that may hold a different belief to your own. How severe does that belief have to be before you no longer wish to associate with a person?

It has to be very severe, my humor can be extremely dark. I can usually get along with anyone, however if their belief is a direct harm to myself or my loved ones, that's where I tend to stop association.

Do you think there are times where its irrational to disassociate from someone for holding a different belief to you own?

The great thing about opinions and beliefs, they're like assholes, everyone has one, and everyone is entitled to their own opinions and beliefs. If they aren't doing me any harm, I'm cool. Actually, I quite enjoy having a large number of friends with different beliefs as me because it can potentially open me up to new, insightful ways of looking at things.
 
Joined
Mar 13, 2018
Location
Louisiana USA
A person is entitled to their beliefs and opinions. You shouldn't judge someone because their beliefs differ from yours. Unless of course their beliefs could possibly lead to danger, but that's a different scenario. You should be able to get along with another person even if their political views differ from your own, or if their religion isn't the same as yours. I've always been a Christian, where growing up, one of my greatest friends was an atheist. Live your life the way you want, and let others live theirs in the same respect. Unless that person is a terrorist douche..
 

Alita the Pun

Dmitri
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Oct 6, 2016
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Nintendo Memeverse
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A Mellophone Player... Mellophonista?
I appreciate and sometimes understand the opinions of others, but try as hard as I can not to pay attention to it. If I'm sitting around talking to a Republican I won't just start arguing. However, if it comes to politics, I'll certainly do battle.
If you’re looking for a republican to battle, you can count on me! :D
 

misskitten

Hello Sweetie!
Joined
Jun 18, 2011
Location
Norway
It definitely depends on the severity and whether it affects someone else. If people disagree with me politically? No big deal, we can debate or we can choose not to, but if they can respect that I hold my opinions, then I can respect that they hold theirs. If people have a different religious viewpoint? No problem. If their beliefs cause them to do something that I view as harmful towards someone else, then I cannot respect it.
 
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I fall relatively in the middle of the political spectrum, maybe slightly left. Most of my friends are in that same general area, though that's mostly a coincidence. I don't really discuss politics with my friends very often. As for people I associate with who have different views, well, since I stand in the middle, I can usually do a pretty good job at reaching out to them and listen to their point of view and get a grasp on why they feel that way. There are instances where this does not work as well, of course. I don't find myself hating certain groups of people--and argue with me all you want, but the left is just as guilty of hating groups as the right is. I cannot justify any of this, and it is all based on generalizations and stereotypes.

The right is collectively assumed to hate certain minority groups, but then here's the part people overlook: the left fuels this by attacking the wrong people, thinking any conservative is racist/sexist. The people on the right that the left attacks are seldom the people who the attack was truly intended for. This just makes the right (including more neutral-right individuals) hate the left (and corresponding minorities) more. Same can be said for further encouraging any sort of bigotry-- hostility in any form directed at bigots will further justify their viewpoint in their mind. I'm not saying this is ok, but this isn't something arguing will fix. People won't reach an epiphany when they're being told their values are ****. As a transman, I could demonstrate not persecuting the people who hate my kind, since if anything, attacking them would just make them assume all trans people are ungrateful. Get it? Shouldn't work that way, but meet human nature. It's a *****.

I try to see an individual as the individual when they share their views. Grouping them in with other people can result in overlooking the parts where their stance may actually differ from other people who fall in the same area on the political spectrum. I can't tell people how to feel about things, and persecutig them for feeling differently than myself would do nothing but harm, and will only push them further away from people like me. I can attempt to share an alternate perspective if they're more in the middle and will actually listen. That being said, most people who fall too far left or right are usually really hard to talk to about political issues because they're incredibly closed minded and deluded.
 
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I have more friends who differ from me in their general political stances than those who are similar.

As a conservative, I have a hard time finding fellow conservatives in my age group (early 20s). I don't mind this, however, and I actually think it's better to have friends who are of different political leanings to get a better understanding of the opposing side's positions and the logic and evidence they use to defend those positions.

In the end, it shouldn't really matter what beliefs people hold as long as their values are the same as yours. If you value education, family, and upholding the sanctity of life, talking to others who hold similar fundamental principles is more important than the specific beliefs people hold on a variety of issues. Insulating yourself from different beliefs on specific issues can be very damaging in gaining an understanding of others.
 

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