Time is our most precious commodity. It is good to ask ourselves if it is worth our effort to engage with certain people. Consider the following:

Over 60 million people voted for Trump in 2016 and over 60 million voted for Clinton. That leaves around half of each political party not understanding the other half. A good portion of each of those groups is set in their ways. Not much will change their minds. However, we have seen something called the WalkAway Movement emerge over the past few years. Their Facebook page has 188,881 followers at this time.

The WalkAway campaign, also styled #WalkAway, is a social media campaign that was launched ahead of the United States 2018 mid-term elections by Brandon Straka, a hairstylist from New York City. According to the campaign’s website, the campaign “encourages and supports those on the Left to walk away from the divisive tenets endorsed and mandated by the Democratic Party of today.” ~ Wikipedia

Considering some states were won by a narrow margin I suggest it is worth engaging those with whom we disagree. This is most important in the days of Big Tech. See: Silicon Valley “is doing all it can” to help Democrats defeat Republicans in the fall elections. If you are over 50 you likely see the effect Big Tech is having on the minds of people. Youngsters grew up with these things and are not aware of how they have been lied to. If you are dealing with younger leftists be gentle. It is like dealing with someone who belonged to a cult.

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The next question would be is a particular person worth your time? Here is a general approach. Take it for what it is worth.

Stick to one question at a time. Insist the other person to stay on topic. It is often the habit of those who are confronted with facts to divert to another subject. They typically see they are losing an argument and move to their next objection. If you cannot keep the person on the topic then you may not want to waste your time. However, if you are confronted with a question that is justified give a straight answer. Some criticisms may have merit. Conceding a point does not lose a debate.

For example, I thought Trump was sunk when I first heard the Billy Bush secret recording from 2005. That was until I spoke with Women for Trump and heard their point of view. Although it was a political hit job, held from 2005 until Trump ran for President in 2016, it was true. Women for Trump explained that what he said was also true. Many women go nuts over a star and let them get away with murder. They also told me I would not want to hear how women talked about men when they were not around.  Also, consider that Democrat President Bill Clinton set the standard for future Presidents. He was even re-elected after the fact. They said it would be a nothing burger in a week. Women for Trump turned out to be right.

There are two basic types of people you will be engaging with, ordinary and ornery. The ordinary person will listen and engage in a reasonable question and answer tone. The ornery ones already have their minds made up and nothing you do or say will have an impact. If you have children you know exactly what I’m talking about. Children who are throwing a tantrum cannot be reasoned with. You put them in the corner and wait for them to calm down. With adults that act like this, you simply walk away.

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Two types of discussions; accusations, and policy.

Objections will generally fall into one of two categories. First will be the issues that have nothing to do with policy. These are accusations like calling Trump a racist etc. Accusations have been hammered into the heads of people by the left-wing media like CNN, NBC, ABC, CBS, etc. It is all over social media too. It is done so much by so-called news outlets that people think it is true.

I want to digress for just a moment. Wouldn’t it be great if things were clearly labeled News or Opinion? That way young and untrained people on the left and right could distinguish between the two. Have you noticed a lot of people can no longer tell the difference?

The accusation that tops the list at this time seems to be “Trump is a racist.” Thanks to the RNC Convention I’ve created a post with extensive videos from blacks that support Trump and say he is not a racist. Maybe the most impressive is Hershel Walker who has been a close friend of Trump’s for 37 years. Here is a link to the post that dispels the idea that Trump is a racist.

Before you let your leftist friend claim Trump is a racist, demand they read and watch the videos on that post. If they can still walk away saying Trump is a racist there is nothing more you can do. You may ask your leftist friend if they don’t believe these black folks are they themselves racist? I mean why wouldn’t you take the word of well known black people who know the man personally? You can suggest there is something more to the racist claim like their understanding of the actual definition of the word. PS Webster is changing the definition so be careful. Someday the word racist may mean any white person.

Merriam-Webster’s current definition of racism

1. a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race

2. a) a doctrine or political program based on the assumption of racism and designed to execute its principles, b) a political or social system founded on racism

3. racial prejudice or discrimination

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Another method you can use is to stick to policy rather than accusations.

The temptation for emotional people is to live in a world of accusations. Ask leftists and independent thinkers to answer which policies they disagree with you may find most people don’t disagree. They have simply been slowly brainwashed to focus on accusations and not consider policy. Here are some examples off the top of my head:

• Do you support a strong military to deter enemies rather than having to engage in war?
• Do you think NATO should pay as they promised for their share of a common defense?
• Do you believe veterans should have the healthcare they earned?
• Do you believe employees of the VA should be held accountable for the service they give veterans?
• Do you believe we should not spend trillions of dollars in Afghanistan and Iraq while our infrastructure and schools suffer?
• Do you believe we should bring manufacturing back to the United States?
• Do you support fair and equitable trade agreements with other countries?
• Do you believe we should not pay for illegal immigrants while our own people live on the streets?
• Do you believe our economic policies should focus on the less fortunate of all races rather than some?

The list could go on and on. However, if they answer yes to all or most of the questions above then why would they support Joe Biden or any Democrat? It is as simple as that.