One Last Post

One last post, since my last one generated quite a bit of discussion. First of all, I am a 72 year old retired pediatrician. I graduated Phi Beta Kappa from undergraduate school, and AOA (medical honor society) from medical school. I practiced pediatrics for 38 wonderful years, and can honestly say that each child and their family became a part of my family and I became a part of theirs. During my years of practice I served as Chief of the Medical Staff and on the Board of Trustees at the hospital in which I practiced. I am telling you this not because I believe I am owed respect because of my accomplishments. No, I am telling you this because I believe everyone deserves respect, as in the phrase "we respectfully disagree". That is what I expected when I began posting. I thoroughly enjoyed the articles on Daily Kos, and expected the same intellectual debate from fellow posters    Unfortunately, that is far from what I experienced. It is clear that some people feel that the nastier their prose, the better to make their point (and truthfully, I never could tell what that was). These are the same people that shout other people down and talk over them, just like the people you despise on Fox "News". I spent many years counseling bullied children and I know a bully when I see one. As for developing a "thicker skin", I don't think that is the way I want to go. It shouldn't be required in a civilized society. And I am not running away. This exercise is just not worthwhile for me and not a good use of my time. Spelling and grammar are rote memory. Ideas require thought. To belittle one for a misspelling or grammatical error or for not knowing that a "diary" should be of a certain length and not just a phrase to provoke respectful discussion is beyond sophomoric. It's just not my cup of tea. I don't expect all of the readers of this post to understand, just the ones that I care about.