I work for a company that can only be called "conservative." Many people have called it many other things, but for our purposes, let's just leave it at "conservative." If you have ever read my blog, or my Twitter feed, or been within a 50 mile radius of me (even if I am just flying in a plane over your general area) you know that I am anything BUT conservative. I am a Godless, commie, bleeding heart, tax and spend, any other negative epithet you want to throw at me liberal.
Still, I like my job. My job seems to like me.
I figure discussing politics in the workplace is never a good idea no matter where you work. I figure that my co-workers, many of whom I am sure disagree with me ideologically, are polite enough not to bring it up, so I am as well. I figure no one agrees 100% with everything their company does. I figure where I work is only a part of who I am, not the sum total. I figure anyone who knows me, will know that.
People who randomly call my office? They obviously don't. Take for example the call I took this morning:
CALLER: I'm sick of you trying to push your conservative agenda on me.
ME: Excuse me?
CALLER: Oh, don't try to pretend. You right wing, Christian conservative bigot!
ME: Sir, do you have something specific you want me to address?
CALLER: Specific? How about the fact you think you can step all over people's rights!
ME: I don't think that in the least, Sir. I voted for Obama. I give money to the ACLU. To Planned Parenthood. To the NAACP.
CALLER: You have no right!
ME: Sir, I don't know what right you are talking about. How can I help you?
CALLER: By not trying to silence liberal views. That's what Hitler did.
ME: Sir, I'm sorry you feel that way. Try reading my blog. There are some liberal views for you. And the Hitler card? REALLY?
CALLER: You just don't get it.
ME: I don't know what you want me to get.
CALLER: You and all your Romney supporting buddies. Only worried about your money.
ME: Silence. I wouldn't vote for Romney if I were strapped to an ant hill covered in honey. And money? Honey, I got none.
CALLER: I hope you're happy.
ME: Alright. Have a nice day.
That isn't the first call like that I've taken. It won't be the last. I know there are some who think I am being untrue to myself, and my beliefs by not speaking up, by not asserting myself. Maybe I am. Or, maybe I just know the time and place to do it.
And I know it's not my office.
No matter how many names I am called.
Monday, August 27, 2012
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13 comments:
What a hoot that call must have been. Like you, I just try my best not to get into political conversations with... well, pretty much anyone. I just don't like to fight with people, especially unreasonable ones. Maybe that makes me unwilling to stand up for my beliefs. Maybe I just don't believe strongly enough. Meh. I figure... most of the people in my life know how I feel and work is just one part of my life. It pays my bills (mostly). It doesn't define me.
Oh my. I can so relate. I mean, how many liberals do you know who have MY job? Besides me?
We are few and far between, my friend.
I feel your pain. I too am a flaming, as-far-left-as-one-could-be liberal working for a conservative organization. Just how conservative? Our dress code requires women wear pantyhose with a dress or skirt. What. LOL.
I am clearly the liberal minority at my place of employment. I have a composter in my backyard for goodness sake. But, much like your job, people usually keep politics out of the workplace and I generally like my job.
But every once in a while something will come up and my liberality (whoa, I did NOT think that was a real word) will be revealed and I'm reminded just how fringe I am compared to most people here.
This is why I'm scared to go back to corporate America at any time in the future. I've grown so accustomed to working in an ad agency where the majority of folks are liberal nutbags just like me. And we wear jeans to work.
I'm not sure I understand why someone would call you personally and attack you for your organization's beliefs? Are you a liberal in charge of customer complaints for a conservative organization? That would seem like the job from hell.
People who go out of their way to CALL you are fucking insane. They should stick with a good ol' email diatribe.
Tell Dad to stop bugging you while you are working.
This post makes me so thankful I work for a bunch of bleeding-heart liberals.
See, I feel like I'm in the closet whichever side is doing the ranting. I'm a very very liberal Christian. I mean, I voted for Kucinich in a primary AND I teach Sunday School. So when I'm around liberals I'm always sort of mumbling about what I do on Sundays (well, I try not to but the impulse is there) and when I'm around a group of Christians who presumes that just because my Sundays are indefinitely booked I'd like to hear their latest Obama joke... well... yeah. Awkward.
When I worked in newspapers, we were constantly getting calls and letters from both sides, accusing us of being too liberal and too conservative. Mainly the callers were nuts.
I'm the reverse. I'm a moderate Republican working for a very liberal organization (State of Connecticut) and the only solid yapping/complaining I hear on a daily basis is from the general public and co-workers about the following items:
1) Incredible amount of money being spend by our boss (Democratic Guv'nor) foolishly and unwisely.
2) Incredible amount of chutzpah that our labor unions (another pillar of Democrat weakness) have towards the rank and file.
So yes, you may be a liberal, but perhaps you should start looking at things from the realistic point of view people who have suffer from the consequences of the current form of guv'ment.
I used to work as the newsroom admin at a fairly conservative newspaper (Erin used to work for the same company!) and it was always fascinating what people would call the paper to say.
"There's a pot hole on my street!"
"I'm sorry, ma'am. Do you have a question?"
"Something needs to be done about it!"
"Do you want to write a letter to the editor? Or are you looking for a number for a public agency to report the pot hole to? I'm not sure if I understand."
Also what people assumed about people who worked at the paper, simply because of what was written on the editorial page, was always fascinating.
And now that I work at a LEGITIMATELY conservative company (we make church software. so.), I laugh and laugh at what people in Oregon consider to be "conservative."
I thought I had it bad with the work calls from people who refuse to believe that I am not Greyhound, nor do I have any information regarding Greyhound policies & schedules. But you win the crazy prize for yours.
Ugh, not sure I could handle interacting with Joe Public. I used to have a rule that I didn't discuss politics on facebook because I didn't like it when other people did that, but then I realized they weren't keeping their end of the bargain and they were usually pretty stupid too. So I now I teach them something (or they just hide me, which is what I do to people who spout off things I disagree with).
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