Anonymous wrote:I think the main problem is they like to rant and they hate to listen. Why on earth do they feel they have the right to monopolize the conversation? Why don't they feel they have the obligation to carefully consider what others at the table have to say? Why are they so self absorbed? I guess it is senility. Or maybe they were poorly raised. Dear parents: please teach your children how to carrry on civilized conversation before they get to this horrible point!

+1 holy mother of god this is every gathering with my parents and their siblings. It's just hours and hours of being talked at. Unfortunately, I never mastered the art of sleeping with my eyes open.

Anonymous wrote:Could be worse. They could be conservatives and have FOX on all the time.

Welcome to my life.

Yep. Wait until your MIL loooooves Trump.

"Hillary Men" can't carve the turkey.

Anonymous wrote:I straight up told my FIL he was rude when he wore a Sanders button to a wedding. He said, "It's just a conversation piece."

I said, "The conversation should be about Karen and Brian today, not you pulling focus with your political views."

I'm a Democrat, but I think loonies on both sides of the aisle are equally obnoxious.

+1000
The only fun (?) for me is that I work at a place that is a favorite target of conspiracy theorists from both (or maybe all) sides. AWESOME!
I find that people who (1) can't keep their mouths shut about politics for 2 hours or (2) have more than 3 political bumper stickers on their cars are insufferable even if I agree 100% with their opinions / stickers.
Sometimes I liven things up by making side bets about who will be the first to bait someone at the dinner table with a political remark.

If it makes you feel any better, OP, we're all conservatives (myself included) and it's just as bad here.

"I don't follow politics at all. I'll start paying attention when it's time to decide in November." Walk away.

Could be worse. They could be conservatives and have FOX on all the time.

Welcome to my life.

Anonymous wrote:my husband found the best way to bring political conversation to a halt is drop this gem of a line from The Big Lebowski: "Say what you will about the tenets of National Socialism, but at least it's an ethos!" Barring that, I start whipping out the commie-speak. Then all the sudden everyone wants to talk football.

I suspect most of the offenders are so poorly educated that they won't know the common name for National Socialism.

Anonymous wrote:I think the main problem is they like to rant and they hate to listen. Why on earth do they feel they have the right to monopolize the conversation? Why don't they feel they have the obligation to carefully consider what others at the table have to say? Why are they so self absorbed? I guess it is senility. Or maybe they were poorly raised. Dear parents: please teach your children how to carrry on civilized conversation before they get to this horrible point!

This is my father to a T. Up until his kids started to marry and move away, he'd lord over the dinner table ranting about politics to people who generally agreed with him. The constant "amens" from others fed his ego for years. Fast forward 10 years, there is no one left to listen and agree with him. He now tries to start political conversations with me, my husband, in-laws... and no one takes the bait. He throws around incendiary words and phrases from FOX like liberal progressive commie socialist trying to get someone to debate him and is often met with blank stares.

Alas, poor guy just can't take a clue and talk about basketball for once.

my husband found the best way to bring political conversation to a halt is drop this gem of a line from The Big Lebowski: "Say what you will about the tenets of National Socialism, but at least it's an ethos!" Barring that, I start whipping out the commie-speak. Then all the sudden everyone wants to talk football.

My homeless liberal BIL with wi fi he claims he has in his truck, never shuts the fuck up. On and on and on about shit he has no business giving opinions on. He's a lazy bum that knows every free program and is allergic to work. How the hell can you be a 50 something year old homeless genius ?

I'm sitting here and I smell weed on him. He's so f'd up, he has to be on pain pills too. If my husband had not invited him out of sympathy, no way I'd allow him here. He, my husband, always felt the need to help his little brother.

God, he never shuts up ! He's talking about climate change. How the fish he caught as a kid died off because his old fishing holes got hot. WTF ?

He talks non stop about something on alternet ? I think all the dope he does fried his brain.

Lord, give me strength. One more day then he's gone. He's got other family to hit up. I think that's his true job.

Self-absorption and monopolizing won't be helped by turning off the TV. Part of it is raising, part of it is genetic, I think. To some extent they can't help it. For the most part, they can and should be considerate.

I think the main problem is they like to rant and they hate to listen. Why on earth do they feel they have the right to monopolize the conversation? Why don't they feel they have the obligation to carefully consider what others at the table have to say? Why are they so self absorbed? I guess it is senility. Or maybe they were poorly raised. Dear parents: please teach your children how to carrry on civilized conversation before they get to this horrible point!

KEEP THE TV OFF! Visiting is about family and friends, not watching the tube. Keep off devices also.