Fake News paints a picture of conservatives all being religious, church-going, anti-abortion gun enthusiasts, but this is a fallacy. Like many Fox talking heads, media conservatives who do belong to such groups do little to dispel this myth. They go along with it happily, as though other kinds of conservatives do not exist. When did you last see Tucker Carlson or Anderson Cooper interview an atheist conservative?
As a result, you rarely hear about the hundreds of millions of non-religious, gunless, pro-choice conservatives worldwide.
If you are one, you will probably have to hold your own against mobs of Lefties, including family liberals, neighborhood Democrats, and school-friend socialists. Lefties tend to operate in gangs or groups, to work on individuals – like a cackle of hyenas. It makes sense because it is less dangerous for them. For this reason, individual Righties see more bigotry from the Left than their counterparts.
‘Coping’ with Lefties is not as tricky for religious gun-toting conservatives, as they receive plenty of support from fellow church-going gun enthusiasts and are not targeted by Lefties as frequently for that very reason. While liberals and Fake News criticize them as a group, individuals are picked on less often. For this reason, there is a good incentive for many to choose a churchly, gun-toting lifestyle.
Urban conservatives, whose ‘faith’ lies in their abilities as educated, moral human beings, often find themselves on their own while being harassed by Lefties. Their gun is a smartphone, and their heaven is modern technology and science, which sets them apart from god-fearing, gun-loving libertarian, anti-abortion Christian country folk.
They may be the only conservative in a family or street full of liberals or a workplace full of lefty co-workers. For them, spending Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year surrounded by ‘the enemy’ is not much fun.
If you are such a person, continually having to defend your position in the face of jeering, sneering socialists, there are ways to remedy the situation.
Solutions
Life teaches you that often the solution to a problem involves sacrifice. Medicines often taste bitter; antidotes frequently hurt a little. So it is in this case – the answer will require some work and sacrifice on your part. Many young independent conservatives endure irksome conditions far longer than they need to.
- Handling debates
If you regularly meet with groups of liberals (family, friends, neighbors), you probably know they use underhand tactics while debating. One is the technique of interrupting you as you arrive at your main point, and they often achieve this in tandem with others. For instance, John says we should increase taxes, and you say that would increase unemployment. John asks how. You begin to answer, and as you reach your conclusion, John’s wife, Sue, cries out, “Did anyone see the Academy Awards last night?”
“Wasn’t it great?” John replies. “I loved Meryl Streep’s speech!”
“Yes,” laughs May, your sister. “She really gave it to Trump!”
As people laugh and talk, your closing point goes unheard.
Prevent this primitive censorship by making your comment as short as possible, so others have no time to orchestrate interruptions. For instance, John asks, “How?”
You reply, “Bosses sack workers they can’t afford to pay.”
John asks, “Why?”
“Higher taxes make wages less affordable,” you explain.
Rather than give a paragraph of words, stick with short, punchy single sentences. When you say that public servants always waste money, Sue asks, “But why would they do that?”
“Because it’s not their money,” you answer.
These short replies bamboozle the Left. They have no time to interrupt or censor you, so they wear the answer like a pie in the face. Note – you may not always be able to compose such short replies on the run, so figure them out beforehand and rehearse them. Summarize your arguments in the fewest words. Memorize these to use when a mob of lefties surrounds you, and make sure they are indestructible. When you hear other conservatives doing the same, write their short replies down to commit to memory. This technique will make it hard for liberals to censor you during conversations.
Another favorite Lefty technique is to study up on a particular subject and then ask questions on the topic to prove you unworthy. For instance, John may read a book about Obama, and when you criticize the ex-President, he might say, “Heh, I bet you don’t even know what Obama studied in College.”
“Er, why, no,” you say, tentatively.
“Political science and Law,” John declares. “If I were you,” he continues, “I’d leave politics to those with some knowledge on the subject.”
Fight Fire With Fire
The remedy to this childish logical fallacy is not to answer the irrelevant question but immediately fire back a trivial query of your own regarding a subject about which you are familiar. John asks, “Heh, I bet you don’t even know what Obama studied in College.”
You reply, “What was Ayn Rand’s first published book?”
John looks at you, speechless.
“‘We the Living,’ published in 1936,” you announce, “and I have plenty more questions where that came from.”
If you know someone who uses this bullying technique often, memorize a few factoids to throw at the annoying wretch to shut them up once and for all.
John won’t try that technique again since you beat him at his own game. The point is that anyone can memorize some information and spit it out at dinnertime – it does not qualify them as a better debater.
You can fight fire with fire in this situation. If you know which news sources your political adversaries enjoy, you can study those on the morning of the day of the get-together. You may read some of the stories they are likely to absorb, to acquaint yourself with the details. When they inevitably bring those talking points up at the party or meal, you can correct their mistakes. People reciting news rarely get the details right. John will say, proudly, “Did anyone see that Hillary opened the Chicago museum today?”
You say, “Er, actually, it was not Hillary, but her daughter, Chelsea.”
John turns red.
Stick To Your Guns
Sometimes a group will use the force of numbers to bully you, only to call you a loser should you submit. For instance, you might say you preferred the old days when women looked after housework and men earned wages because, that way, children had full-time mothers. They might decide to test your mettle by asking you to help the women with the dishes. If you sheepishly go over and do dishes, they will use this event to call you a hypocrite in the future. The answer is, don’t budge. Remain seated and say, “No, thanks.”
It will shock them, but it will earn you their silent, unvoiced respect.
If you are female and have the same view as the guy above, and women call you a slave to the kitchen, ask them which would prefer; fixing car engines or laying sewer pipes to washing dishes. “Go ahead,” you say, “Put your hand up if you would favor replacing roof tiles or taking on some angry thug with road rage over changing a diaper?”
Then watch as the women recoil in shock and embarrassment, unable to say a word. Rub it in. Say, “None of you dare to do a man’s work. You’d much rather cook, clean, and mother children, which is why you should be doing that. There’s nothing wrong with those things; they’re natural. Learn to love your nature!”
Peer Group Pressure
Another favorite technique of Lefties is to toast the enemy right in front of you, putting enormous pressure on you to raise your glass to celebrate something you ideologically oppose. You might be sitting at a table with ten liberals, and the host stands up to say, “I propose a toast to Stan, who has found employment at Democratic Underground, the far-left website where conservatives are banned.”
Everyone lifts their glasses to toast Stan, who sits there grinning like an idiot, and they all expect you to raise your drink. If you sheepishly follow suit, you will be their laughing stock forever. On the other hand, how can you be so bad-mannered not to participate in the toast?
The answer: Do nothing. The mob will finish the toast without you. If anyone objects to your lack of action, say, “I cannot toast someone working for the DU because I find it a repulsive organization. I hope Stan quits on day one.”
Your response is not bad-mannered, but your host is ill-mannered to put you in this situation
- Hostile families
Suppose you are a conservative in a family of liberals who continuously attack your beliefs. In that case, you may think that you can convince your siblings or parents over time and that eventually, they will see reason. Think again. Political views are damn near impossible to change. Frequently the political arguments worsen with time as people become more settled in their ways and passionate rivalries turn bitter. While you may debate reasonably, Lefties tend to double down on their convictions, often turning to aggression, sabotage, and misinformation in their dealings with you. In worst-case scenarios, this may lead to you being set up or framed by your opponents, which may result in violence, injury, and even murder.
After years of increasing tensions and in-fighting, a conservative may ultimately move far away from their liberal family, only to wish he or she had done so sooner. My advice in this situation is to move early, while your siblings and parents are still relatively friendly. You may then save your relationship with them, albeit at a distance. That distance needs to be enough to put off frequent visits – so one or two thousand miles might be best. If you think more visits will not hurt, you can adjust the distance down.
Try and do this before finding a partner. If you take a wife or husband with you, they may become homesick for their own family, causing complications further down the track. Also, aim to move to a conservative area to get along with most of your neighbors.
- Hostile co-workers
If you are a conservative surrounded by lefties at work, you have a dilemma. On the one hand, you need your job, but on the other, you have to endure continual conflicts, not just on birthdays, vacations, or barbecues. If you cannot find other employment (the best solution) and have to stay put, say little. It is too much taking on co-workers every day and suffering the damage they will do to your career. Keep quiet and avoid political discussion. Do not agree with the mob, but do not take them on either. Set your goals for the long term – surviving the current position until you have an opportunity to leave.
How do you avoid entangling debates in this situation without compromising your own beliefs? Be neutral, like Sweden. Refuse to be dragged into discussions. Avoid going to parties or meals with them. When asked to vote or toast someone or something you dislike, say, “No offense, but I’m neutral, like Sweden, so just leave me out of the whole confabulation, thanks.”
Sure, they’ll think you’re weird, but you won’t offend anyone and thus should be relatively safe. At the same time, you won’t have supported the enemy, so you can still look at yourself in the mirror.
You would do the above for your wife and children’s sake. If you are a warrior-type, you can take them on hammer and tongs, but do not be surprised when they destroy your career within that workplace and haunt you in the next. In my case, I spoke my mind and took on unions. That is why I had to start my own business eventually. Working next to lefties while telling them what you think about their views is not conducive to a long-term working relationship. Escaping them and working for myself was a great liberation, which I highly recommend to those who can do it.
Conservative Allies
Many independent conservatives are like lone wolves in that they do not go around actively seeking pals. Lefties routinely make as many friends as possible, as it fits into their swarm mentality, but lone wolf Righties are battle-weary and distrustful. They want to be left alone to do their work and not let people get too close, which comes naturally after decades of abuse by Lefties.
Nonetheless, real allies and friends are valuable, and if you can meet one or two, it will help you in the long run. Do not expect to make many, as they are a solitary species for reasons just explained. If you find one, you are doing well.
