Hey! How’s it going?! Glad you could make it. I’m Blogger, and I’ll be your writer for today. Sit anywhere you like. Today we’re serving a social problem in a blog. And before anybody asks… Sorry, we’re all out of gossip appetizers. Your writer, who will remain nameless, forgot to order some. You know how it is. So let’s blog!
Ever got into an argument before? No, not the kind of an argument where two or more people are willing to, at some point, let Google decide whose facts or opinions are full of spam and whose are not. -But the loud noisy kind, where careless angry words are thrown back and forth faster than the speed of thought, with a kilo-ton of profanity bombs going off in every direction. If you haven’t… Oh you have? No kidding? Hey, would you mind sharing who won the argument?
No no! On second thought, don’t tell me. House riots are very private things. I already know how house riots can go. -Somebody taking a court ordered jail vacation, or somebody taking an emergency hospital tour. But hey, that reminds me. Let me tell you about this one couple I know. Kowabunga! I almost forgot. We’re supposed to be all out of gossip appetizers today. Please don’t tell the website owner I almost goofed. I’d really appreciate it.
Whew. That was close. But let’s get back to prime time.
Now, for the sake of illustrating an argument, let’s build a life sized model of a “He screamed, she screamed” conversation. Uh… Okay. Maybe we better make that two men in a bar.
One guy, we’ll call him Ruff, and the other guy, we’ll call him Tuff. Ruff and Tuff were on their first bottle of beer. They have only been in the bar a good five minutes.
Ruff is six-foot-two, built like a big league linebacker, with short brown hair, a thin moustache, and grayish colored eyes under dark brown eyebrows. He looks like a white guy who just walked off a construction site. -Blue jeans, tan work boots, button-up blue work shirt, and like that.
Tuff is five-foot-eleven. -A truck driver. -Wearing a beat up baseball cap, jeans, cowboy boots, a gray muscle shirt, and a black beard. He is the total picture of a black muscular guy straight out of a 1970’s trucker movie.
They both are sitting next to each other at the bar watching a night football game. They’ve never met before. -Ruff is for one team, and Tuff is for the other. Okay. Now we got our scene all set up for this made for internet drama. So let’s roll the cameras. And… Action!
Ruff looks at the TV screen, takes a swig of his beer, and says to everybody at the bar, “Man, it’s 34 to 3, in the first quarter. If every man on my team were wearing snow skis, they would still be able to beat this bunch of overpaid, chicken legged, football losers.”
Tuff stops looking at the football game, and slowly places his beer bottle on the bar. Then he cranks his head around about at the turning speed of a really old doorknob, to look at Ruff. There is a shining glint of resentment in Tuff’s eyes as he says, “I see you know a lot about what you ain’t seeing. First of all, my team has an eight and oh record this season. Now I need you to keep up with me sports fan. That means they’re undefeated right? And what do you think would be happening to your team if our starting quarterback and three of our best defensive players weren’t injured.” Ruff sets his beer on the bar and loads up his mouth with profanity bombs. Tuff doesn’t stop talking long enough for Ruff to get even one out of his mouth.
“Oh no no no. Nuh uh, Mr. Sports fan. Before you get to slapping your lips together, let’s talk about your team for a minute. Your chicken biting team has one win and seven loses. Okay, now you can tell me all about how your team invented the losing streak.”
Ruff stands up slow. “Who do you think you are talking to home boy? First of all, Sports fan, your team draws the most penalties and the most fines in all professional football. Second of all, you need to think about watching your big mouth.”
Let’s put this rumble in the making on hold for a second. I know I know. I’m a fun stop-cop. But let’s look at what’s happening between Ruff and Tuff.
An argument is lit between the two men. This is obvious. But what can an angry argument lead to?
Disrespect challenges people to go on offense. If someone feels like they have been disrespected, they are likely to want to return that disrespect with equal or bigger disrespect. The matches people use to light the fire of a disrespectful argument are name calling, profanity, and saying things to make a person look like a social disgrace. So when disrespect enters into any argument… Look out! People with bad tempers can take the leash of their tongues in a light speed hurry!
Arguments are fine. An argument is something we take part in when we disagree. But arguments can be real trouble for us, when we argue with our anger and pride lit up like a roaring camp fire.
Arguments should always be handled with care. Respect and kindness keeps an argument from becoming a road rage incident.
But let me just type this in right quick. When an argument gets to where it’s too personal, or nobody wants to agree… It’s not worth arguing over. Try to let it go.
Winning an argument ain’t the easiest thing to do in the world. Winning a point in a discussion, with the facts, is.
So glad you stopped by for a read. May God give you what you need to get through every day.