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Natalie Burdick's avatar

Simon, I wanted to share some Thanksgiving tips for you and the Hopium community. Given these are NOT normal times, it's important to spread the #GoodNews. Talk about why each of us is personally thankful for Biden and Dems, is a great way to engage with friends and foes.

But for those who don't (currently) share your views, remember that your goal should not be to change minds—an unlikely outcome over the Holiday table.

1) Instead, be curious (when they come out with a MAGA statement, ask them to tell you more about, that will force them to give reasons for their views, rather than only parroting them).

2) Be a good listener; after all, nothing they say will change your mind! But, do encourage them to articulate their beliefs out loud, in front of others, because that forces them to justify those beliefs.

3) And lastly, be patient...

Tr*mp has been spouting hatred with an unwitting national media as megaphone since 2016...prior to that, FOX has been partisan wall of noise since it began in 1996, and it's only gotten more extreme, devolving into a straight-up Goebbels-inspired MAGA propaganda outlet. That's a lot of years of influence to undo and it won't happen this Thanksgiving.

We can take a cue from Cassidy Hutchinson, who highlights that shaming people for their decisions, or highlighting the faults of someone they admire, just forces them to double-down on those beliefs (https://youtu.be/UwK-p0LsUX4?feature=shared&t=116).

Instead, we should all lead with our shared positive values (most importantly the value of our freedoms), and highlight how Biden is a good President, because he too shares those values and has worked to make the country better off (getting checks into pockets, shots in arms, kids back to school, investments in roads, bridges and broadband, cuts to high drug costs like caps to insulin, better wages and RECORD jobs in green, high tech and manufacturing industries), based on those same values.

And final note, the updates from Hopium are something for which I am truly grateful. Thank you Simon!

Gobble Gobble and Happy Demsgiving all!

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PianoManSteve's avatar

Happy Thanksgiving Simon & all....feeling gratitude for the community, the new “silent majority” of the American People who continue to defeat MAGA at the polls when and where we need to, and for Joe Biden with his wise leadership and mature political sensibilities....his ability to both shrug off without vitriol and use to his advantage the criminally unfair lack of appreciation for his accomplishments and stunning underestimation of his capacity as POTUS. This is what winning a protracted and complicated challenge looks like....you don’t win every single battle, and you don’t get everything you want as quickly as you’d like it...but you keep making progress until one day you’re on the other side. We’re winning....let’s keep it up. Much love to you all! 🇺🇸❤️

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