I have friends who are still supporters of the former guy. For years I tried everything. Calmly listening, hearing them out, trying to match their feelings before expressing my concerns. Tried sending them articles about his many lies and deceptions. Nothing works. Or, they will say they don't like his values, but as long as he cuts taxes, or whatever, it doesn't matter that he is a wife cheating, tax evading, shitty business man. (Stonekettle also is fond of saying that if you elect a business person president, you'll get the business, and hard.)

Now, I change the topic. I never bring it up. They always do, though. Little remarks thrown in randomly while we are talking football, or movies, or whatever. The little snide asides designed with the sole purpose of getting me upset.

No sale.

And RL is right, the Republican Party of my parents is gone. It is dead. The few holdouts are in a life raft heading into a primary squall. Look at the lunatics holding office, including from my own state. The gun fetishists posing for Christmas photos with their families and their arsenal. They are changing laws in states to keep people from voting. Have you seen the videos of school board meeting where these people are just insane? You've seen and heard the death threats against not only the liberals but the conservative who don't kiss Trump's rump? Horrible, vile things. Doxing of childrens' homes? TFG unleased the crazy in America, harnessed it, and rides it like a pale horse of doom.

I recommend reading my comment above (The Horror) about Steve Bathtub Bannon. This is the new Republican Party's think tank. And he is far from alone. How do you change his mind when his goal, his stated goal, is to destroy the government of the US. Remember the phrase from the 1990's, starve the government until you can drown it in a bathtub? You know that the John Burch Society, that group of crazy conspiracy theorists from the 1950's is resurgent? They were too wacky for real Republicans back in the day.

Yeah, I get angry. I know it will not change a single mind. In my experience kindness doesn't work either. So I'll rant here when I feel like getting it out of my limbic system and VOTE.