Is it a good idea to go through life only seeking and accepting allies? Is that the best way to live a good life and to flourish?
Naturally, even I am not fool enough to suggest we never need allies, but I have started to wonder whether our age has not turned into an age of allies? Consider how people on the internet so routinely seek out information bubbles. That is, websites and news sources that almost never challenge their views, opinions, or thoughts on any topic.
Then again, who among us has not been dumped and frozen out by at least one of our 600 closest internet friends for one or another trivial reason?
Dumped, frozen out, and usually vilified.
“I swear by both the testicles and the ovaries of the gods, Sarah, you’re a liar for thinking chocolate ice cream is the best.”
“Think of they children, Ivor! Think of their tender, impressionable minds the next time you state which real life café is best!”
“Great Pillars of Fire, Huguetta! Could you ever possibly be more wrong about lipsticks.”
“Commas, Kat, commas! Lose those excessive commas or drop dead!”
Granted I’m exaggerating, but by how much? How much of an exaggeration is it these days to say people have become intolerant of differences?
Perhaps instead of always seeking allies to call “friends”, we should now and then seek out a few of those good folks who are willing to tolerate the differences between us and them.
I forgot to tell you Paul…. I am actually an alien, ……I hope our differences don’t get in the way of truth and of earthling’s fundamental short comings
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😀 😀 😀
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Too true about folks vilifying other folks for ridiculous reasons, or for differing political points of view (which is, of course, a ridiculous reason). I remember being mortified at my first vilification. That was many, many years ago in some forgotten chatroom. These days on Facebook I hew to a peaceful strategy: ‘unfollow’ (but not unfriend) those with noxious and numerous political posts, and only ever entertain my followers with one type of post: pics of me wearing my lastest sewing creation (with an occasional harmless humorous poem thrown in). Boring, I know, but safe. Speaking of sewing, a project awaits…runs off to sewing room
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It’s like the internet brings out the toddler in so many people. I can’t imagine you ever doing anything to deserve being vilified. That’s just not you, Carla.
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If you divide the world into “Winners” and “Losers,” then you have to divide the world into “Allies” and “Enemies.”
But most of the time you don’t have to do that.
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That’s an excellent point, Abbie! Thanks for sharing it!
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You’ll always have an enemy, no matter what, so without allies, you’ll have more enemies, and that’s a sad existence. Plus, it’s lonely without allies.
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Quite true! We need allies, don’t we? But I don’t think of allies as friends, my friend. Allies only stick with you so long as you have common enemy. Friends hang around well past when you have defeated that enemy. And friends need not be twins.
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Friends or not, you’d still have more enemies than allies.
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But I suppose if you have friends, you might not need allies
That’s interesting to think about
but allies will always help you fight the battle, whereas friends might not
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That’s interesting! Do you feel you have more enemies than friends? I myself have never counted.
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Now you’ve got me thinking about it. I live such a quiet life offline that I don’t know of any offline enemies. The closest would be my next door neighbor. But I think she’s just one of those sorts who loves to look down on anyone who is not in a position of power over her. Then she sucks up to them. Not a real enemy. Just disagreeable.
On line, I might have dozens. Or more. Nowadays, that’s the price of expressing nearly any opinion.
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