when you guys go out, do you talk politics?

LikeAnOpeningBandForTheSun

The last thing i want to do after a hard day of work is talk politics at a bar, but a couple of friends of mine always want to talk politics. very annoying. I'd rather try to hit on the waitress or bitch about my boss. Whats gonna get solved talking politics over drinks?

I prefer to talk politics on message boards when i should be working.

bleh...

Abookamongstthemany

Yes, I do. I love picking people's brains, seeing where they stand. I live in SC so my views are often quite different than the people I'm around. It makes for interesting conversation. Also I find that people say learned something they didn't know before, so there's that.

Nevermind

I talk about them quite frequently. But I wouldnt consider what I say being politics. Its more like discussing what politics are doing to you.

Abookamongstthemany

Nevermind wrote:

I talk about them quite frequently. But I wouldnt consider what I say being politics. Its more like discussing what politics are doing to you.

Yep, that's it.

DriftingByTheStorm

no.
never.
unless i am asked specificaly.

LeilaMoonTurtle

yes
y not?
if it is the only topic not good
but if it is part of diff topics
no prob

g under p

Don't like to bring it up however if friends bring it up and says something off the wall, I'm all in.

Peace

Byrnzie

MrSmith wrote:

The last thing i want to do after a hard day of work is talk politics at a bar, but a couple of friends of mine always want to talk politics. very annoying. I'd rather try to hit on the waitress or bitch about my boss. Whats gonna get solved talking politics over drinks?

I prefer to talk politics on message boards when i should be working.

bleh...

No, not usually. Although I did get into a conversation with an American girl lat night about politics. She seems to have a tendency to just blurt out any old crap and will then argue her point just for the sake of it. Fucking annoying.

But normally I just wanna get drunk and laid when I go out.

fuck

Not especially. Usually when something big just happened, we'd talk about it though.

But it'd be a topic amongst several others, so it's not like we meet up JUST to talk about politics. That would suck.

FinsburyParkCarrots

Never.

melodious

I don't really go out into a social scene, but my place of employ is most definitely a center for such conversations as my employer likes CNN news..I try to convey my position as often as possible, but without interfering with the scope of my responsibilites within the workplace. I mean, if someone starts saying something...I always try to reciprocate.

peace

melodious

_FiveAgainstOne_ wrote:

Not especially. Usually when something big just happened, we'd talk about it though.

But it'd be a topic amongst several others, so it's not like we meet up JUST to talk about politics. That would suck.

yes...this is why i like to join with others to deviate from hard-core, empassioned debate. The only debate we should really be having is working on some of the conflicts that Humans experience within.


life is full of adventure....and so many topics to explore...

Jzacur

Depends....I generally do not like discussing political topics with people who would rather yell at me than speak. I do not have a problem with people who have differing views from me, just when people find it necessary to be more bombastic than possessing substance. But all in all i find politics to be a fascinating conversation and it can show a lot about people.

I define politics in this situation btw as current events, situations in the world and peoples POV of them, and stances on some government issues etc so it is not just strictly election talk. I figure I should clear that up because anyone that is spouting off about elections all the time usually makes my ears bleed.

sponger

One rule of thumb that I try to live by when discussing politics amongst friends or amongst casual acquaintences is to stay consistent with my underlying beliefs so as to keep the conversation grounded.

I think the problem with a lot of political conversations is that sometimes people including myself have the tendency to get wrapped up in sounding more knowledgeable or more insightful, which results in the actual purpose of the conversation being lost in the process.

I guess you could call it last word syndrome. But, sometimes it is not just that which is the problem. I think the bigger problem is the rush that we get from over-intellectualization. It's a method by which we detach from our feelings, producing a mild sensation of intellectual numbness.

I remember the analogy from the book The Prophet by Kahil Gibran (sp?). In one of the passages, he says something like if life was a sailboat, then our passion is the sail which pulls us forward, and our logic is the rudder which keeps us guided.

The rudder and the sail act in unison to keep the boat moving forward with purpose. In a political conversation, our analytical tendencies are the rudder and our personal beliefs are the sails which drive our interest in politics.

And if carried out correctly, a political conversation will ultimately have two results: A better understanding of the points of view of others, and a better understanding of our own points of view.

Because it is when we are mindful of our most sincere intentions that we most effectively utilize our capacity to be self-critical as well as critical of others. We let go of our preoccupation with appearing knowledgeable, and by doing so become even more knowledgeable by admitting into our own consciousness the possibility that we may not always be correct.

Of course, I don't think that should be interpreted as not wanting to play the devil's advocate. It's common sense that we further our own intellectual capacity by completely immersing ourselves in a viewpoint that is not our own, not matter foreign to our belief system those viewpoints may be.

But, I think when the opportunity arises when we get to exchange points of view with others who are equally if not more passionate about their views as I am about my my own, the most progressive stance to take is to in fact remain consistent with the framework of our own mindset for the sake of keeping in mind the concept of consistency in it of itself. and please keep in mind that I just snorted a few gaggers of OC just minutes prior to typing this post, so that if you are left with the feeling that this is one of the dumbest posts you have ever read, you know I am not typically given to writing such thoughtless gibberish.

baraka

sponger, nice post above!

As far as debating politics with friends, my debating partner was really my dad. Since I was a teenager, we would debate issue. This time of year would have been much fun as we would be discussing the candidates, their positions, etc. Sometimes my sister and mom would leave the dinner table because we were in a spirited debate. When i was away at college we would debate on the phone for hours.

As far as friends, not so much. It comes up from time to time, but it doesn't dominate conversation usually.

melodious

sponger, nice post above!

I second that motion!!!

I remember the analogy from the book The Prophet by Kahil Gibran (sp?). In one of the passages, he says something like if life was a sailboat, then our passion is the sail which pulls us forward, and our logic is the rudder which keeps us guided.

wow! i was actually thinking about you, sponger...

what lovely words...thank you