Talking Religion & Politics, 5-2010

Mom always told talking politics and religion was bad manners. She was born in 1933. She did not vote until she was in her forties.

My Great-Aunt Elsie liked to talk politics, and she did so with me. She was born in 1907, and died the same year as my mother. I miss intensely talking to her. I can only imagine what she would have thought of Bill Clinton and the modern Republican Party.

Mom was a brutal realist in many ways. After she died, I thought she had an eating disorder as a kid. Her father died in Cobleskill, New York in 1942. He left home in 1937, and never came back. My grandmother and mother saved the postcards he sent to my mother. When my trunk was stolen last year, the postcards were lost.

My mother disagreed with me about drinking. Baptist do not drink alcohol. Well, for that I am not a good Baptist - even if I hardly drink now, a sip is as bad for my stomach as is a quart. Mom and I disagreed about many things. I think I worried her more than I offended - I wonder if I justified her worries.

The one political discussion I remember with Mom was about Geraldine Ferraro. Mom worried that Ferraro might become President and during menopause set off a nuclear war. My Mom could be very intelligent about many things, but all I could say was uh-huh. I told my great-aunt about this, she exploded that it was silly. What she thought about was wrong about Ferraro was that she was too brassy. (My great-aunt did have one other problem with Ferraro - she was a Democrat. My great-aunt voted straight ticket Republican!)

I had one religious discussion with my great-aunt, but way too many to remember with my mother. My great-aunt shocked me with the assertion there was no devil. I am not so sure if I agree with The Exorcist version of devils and demons, but I have seen evil done. I have seen a general hum of misery and miserableness, some self-inflicted and some not. More than enough vileness exists out there; I went swimming in it for a while, which is why I am where I am now.

I never really talked religion with anyone outside my family for years. I did not do so with the soon-to-be-ex. Too complicated, and I really had enough people yelling at me about enough things. (Here where no one talks tome and I talk to no one, and, but for the white noise in my head, all is well) that I did not need to add religion to the mix. I will say only this about my religious views - they are closer to David Hume and John Stuart Mill than anyone else.

Now, I will go back to following my mother's advice on talking about religion. She probably wishes I had followed her advice on other things, too.

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[I changed the title here to include politics. I thought it stated the topic better. I will later, which is some times before the publishing of this post and after its writing, talk more about religion. You see this my clicking on the religion liknk below. sch 11/1/22.]