Don't do That

Just had a "conversation" with someone on Facebook about an article that made it into our Newsroom, but I also posted on the Facebook page. 

The article was about the misleading claim by the North Dakota Democrats that voting could cost hunters their out of state hunting licenses. The only comment I made was "WTF?!"

The following then happened, and I'm sure it isn't over, but it is for me. 

I have no issue calling out anyone who pulls moves like this, I don't care what side of the isle you are on. It's been done in the past here and will be done in the future. And if you have evidence of this behavior to share that you think the readers should see, please, feel free to pass it on! I'll share the heck out of it! 

But don't come in and throw what amounts to a temper tantrum. If you want to argue about it, cool. Toss me some stories, give me something to share with the readers, give me something other than, "BUT! BUT! THEY ALL DO IT!"

What he basically wants is for me to put a comment on stories like this that says something like, "The right does this, too." I'm not going to do that. If I got a story that said the North Dakota Republicans told women that if they'd had an abortion in the last five years they may not be able to register to vote, you can bet your butt I'd slap that up there as fast as I could. But I don't have a story like that to share. And he didn't provide any. 

And I've yet to see anyone of his ilk claim the Democrats do it too when they post a negative story about the Republicans. 

Yes... they all do it. They shouldn't, but they do. When an actual story with real evidence breaks, I like to share it so that people who may have seen it won't fall for it. Again, the side of the isle doesn't matter. Adding what amounts to a trigger warning to all stories like this accomplishes nothing. It divides further and offers nothing for people to look out for.

​It wasn't an article that had a story that was opinion stating Democrats do this. It was an actual issue. Real, verifiable facts. And the fact that the claim is complete horse manure is important for the people in North Dakota to know. They need to know they can vote without fear. When this guy asked for his trigger warning, I told him I was open to sharing stories of Republicans doing this sort of thing, just give me some links and I'll share the stories with the readers, same as I did with this one. His response speaks for itself. 

Don't do that. This guy had a shot at bridging a gap and didn't take it. There was an actual olive branch being offered there and he slapped it away. If you have real concerns, please, provide some facts for me to share and I'll help you out. No one likes political corruption. But without facts for me to provide the readers, it's just opinion against a fact.