# Differing Opinions... It's okay!! **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 3, 2004, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differing-opinions-its-okay/258060 "2004-08-03T01:30:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 3\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![CrazyCatLady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dfb087/32.png) [@CrazyCatLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrazyCatLady)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2004, 7:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differing-opinions-its-okay/258060/21 "2004-08-04T07:39:16Z")
> [@trublmakr](#): > > I just got home from work, and 2 more emails from her re: yesterday. > Seems she was _EXTREMELY_ offended at the well-off, white, Midwestern, conservative Republican comment. I wrote her back saying I didn’t mean it as an insult, but rather as a demographic. Because she IS all of those things. I’d never even think of insulting her. But for some reason, she equates my saying that with the treatment of her by her abusive ex-husband of many years ago. She says I bashed and belitted her and is all up in arms about it. I don’t understand. > But, I’m trying to kiss ass to the extreme to make up. I love her dearly, we’ve been the best of friends for 18 years and see eye-to-eye on everything but politics. > I ended my email advising her to either let it go or let me go- I’m not going to argue about an innocent comment that was taken the wrong way. > So, we’ll see. Jesus Christ on a wheat cracker, is she my cousin Allison? She gets those wild hairs up her ass periodically, where she takes some innocuous-seeming comment and turns it into the end of the freakin’ world. You’re so horrible and mean to attack her like that, and that’s the last time you’ll treat her like a doormat, yadda yadda yadda, piss-moan, piss-moan. These snits are pretty self-limiting usually, which is good because anything short of groveling that you say in the interim is just fuel on the fire. I’ll bet dollars to doughnuts that you have at least two more pissy emails detailing what an abusive asshat you are by the time you get home from work. ---
**Author:** ![Sisyphus\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bc79bd/32.png) [@Sisyphus\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sisyphus_Stone)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2004, 7:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differing-opinions-its-okay/258060/22 "2004-08-04T07:58:54Z")
We all, each of us, live in alternate realities. What are my certainties are others’ uncertainties. Where I express cynicism and doubt, others will ‘know’ the truth of it. Where others’ realities approximate our own, it is with some comfort and confidence that we can exchange viewpoints, knowing that little disagreement will materialise. This is our comfort zone where we learn little and understand others’ realities even less. Where we diverge with others’ realities and where we still communicate our divergencies is our discomfort zone. This is the learning zone where we make breakthroughs in understanding and knowledge about other realities. Converse with your friend as if she has the essential dignity that you would accord one of similar realities to your own. You’ll be surprised how much you will learn. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2004, 8:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differing-opinions-its-okay/258060/23 "2004-08-04T08:11:29Z")
> [@trublmakr](#): > > how can people think like this?? Well, you could take the philosophy that… > [@](#): > > Differing Opinions… It’s okay!! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differing-opinions-its-okay/258060.md?page=1)