A old friend of mine just scared the shit out of me on the phone. She is one

[Maraya1969]

of those people that think Obama is just trying to destroy out nation and that Hitler is in his back pocket and black people are trying to take over the world using intimidation.

And I never knew any of this!!! And I've been friends with her for over 20 years!!

I kept trying to change the subject and I finally did but the conversation was strained after that.

I don't know how I can keep being her friend now. She has me afraid the world is going to end even though I know it is not. And she even told me she was a Democrat! She also calmed down a little when I informed her that there are black people in my family but I think she was shocked at that.

It was like talking to a crazy person and now I feel crazy. My whole body is shaking.

[LeftyMom]

1. Wow, racist and conspiracy theorist...

Since you've known her for years, and this is apparently a new development (I kinda doubt a friend of 20 years could be nuts for that long without a hint,) it might be a good idea to see who's feeding her this crap. Church, the guy in her life, emails from some nutso relative?

[Maraya1969]

2. I really think it is those emails even though when I brought it up she said

no it was all her own...."things I learned on my own"

But it has to be those emails. This is a good reason to rebut them when you get them. People follow like sheep sometimes.

[Schema Thing]

3. From personal experience of late

I think we (society collectively) tend to minimize just how many of our members are truly bat-shit crazy.

Have some chemical imbalance and then throw a plethora of bad beliefs into the mix and before you know it, people are only acting sane.

[Maraya1969]

4. I remember now that she told me she was diagnosed bipolar once. And I'm bipolar

but I take my medication and she doesn't. Maybe I just witnessed manic behavior in her for the first time.

And then I realized that when a person starts with the words: "I'm not racist but" you know they are flat out racists who don't want to accept that is what they are.

And now I realize that I am very intolerant of racist people because I have no desire to be her friend anymore

[Schema Thing]

8. weird coincidence

I'm dealing with literally my oldest friend - do I want to be friends with him anymore. Oddly, I only found out recently that he is bi-polar; it explains some things, but I don't know if it explains what we argued about, which is race. The funny thing is that he is pro-Obama, and probably (in his little world) pro-black people. But when someone says that "it did them a favor" talking about slavery, I just effing don't know how to overlook it. I know what he's trying to rationalize (that history is-what-it-is, and black Americans have a better time of it than black Africans), but it disgust me anyway.

[ghostsofgiants]

5. The proper response to such ridiculus claims: "You're an idiot."

[YDogg]

6. heh

good answer

[ghostsofgiants]

7. Sometimes it needs to be said.

"We've known each other, what, 20 years? I love you and everything, but seriously, you're a fucking idiot."

[Pale Blue Dot]

9. A cousin of mine, who I thought was liberal and progressive,

once asked me why I was so upset about Bush, since it would have been the same or worse with Al Gore.

We've barely spoken since.

[Left Is Write]

10. Wow. I would also find that unsettling.

[OmahaBlueDog]

11. The thing is, it doesn't sound crazy to them

For reasons I won't bore you with, I got doses of the Laura Ingraham show this week. They had substitute hosts spouting a lot of talking points along that line.