I am a fairly opinionated person. I generally keep my opinions to myself as some of them are not very PC, and I have no wish to offend anyone. I believe that if someone wants my opinion they will ask for it. To force my opinions on to someone is (in my opinion) tantamount to bullying, particularly when the opinion is voiced in an aggressive fashion. However, it would appear that one of my friends does not share this view.
The various political parties have been taking part in a series of debates where the leaders of each party come together to argue why they are the best party to rule our country. This is the first time they have done this type of thing, although I am aware that this is common place in the US.
At the end of each debate there is a poll to see which party is in the lead and likely to receive the most votes on May 6th (election day). After last nights debate it was deemed that David Cameron (Conservative Leader) had performed the best. My friend responded to this on their Facebook status by saying (I've removed my friends name from this quote) "..... is wondering what retards YouGov have sampled?!". (YouGov are the online company who put the poll together), implying that only someone who is mentally challenged would vote Conservative.
This was just one of a series of comments and possibly doesn't sound like much to complain about, but I was shocked and disappointed by this. The use of the term "retard" is unnecessary at any time, and why does someone have to be so aggressive. Is it not possible to voice your opinion without offending and alienating people - in this instance, your friends? As far as I am concerned these are the words of a bully. This person is aggressively forcing their opinion on to their Facebook friends, and making their Conservative friends feel that they are wrong for having their own opinion.
I am so disappointed in my friend. I am shocked that they could behave like this and I now feel very differently towards them. Hopefully once the election is over we can put this behind us, but until then I shall keep my distance.
I feel better for venting. Thanks for listening. :)
