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Janinej9's avatar

One thing I measure people (particularly politicians) by is if their tribalism causes intellectual dishonesty. It is absolutely rampant in our politics and is common in politics in general.

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Richard Leone's avatar

The moments in my past that I feel the most shame and regret for are the times I joined in the verbal ridiculing, fun-making of someone because it took the focus off of me. I threw that person to the wolves to save myself. To me, that made me worse than the others bullying that person, because I knew first-hand what was happening and exactly what that felt like. I not only do my best to not do that to anyone but to actually stand up for them and treat them fairly, and with some extra kindness. I don’t always succeed, but I acknowledge when I feel I’ve dropped the ball. Practicing tough love on yourself - owning your screwups and insuring you don’t repeat - is a skill my kind should nurture. I respect you for being the person who would refuse to fall into this trap or - by virtue of your nature - would not consider joining is what is clearly bullying behavior towards anyone. This isn’t to say you’re anyone’s version of a saint. I don’t think you’d be above bullying to serve your purpose - for gain, or even simple amusement, But at least you’d be doing it for yourself, and not just to gain or retain acceptance and fit into the tribal collective. Thanks for addressing this topic.

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