Excellent article.
I have anti-Trump inlaws. I can’t imagine having anti-Trump friends, but I do see slight signs of Trump becoming a bit more palatable to the “chattering classes” perhaps through battle fatigue, you can only get knocked to the canvas so many times before you realize you are out of your league.
And like Ronald Reagan, the ritual never-ending criticism starts to sound a bit hollow even to the true believers who aren’t really seeing all the things they expected to see. They may never totally come around, but they will soften their opposition over time if they start to suspect they look ridiculous to enough other people.
I try to let them know in subtle ways that they look ridiculous to me. When they pontificate and lecture, here’s what I say: “Yes, it would be a better world if people would listen to what smart people say and modified their behaviour accordingly. But unfortunately, nobody seems to be listening to me.”
When that sinks in and a hollow, half-rejecting laugh follows, I know I have made my point, and I return to my padded cell where all of us Canadian thought prisoners must spend our days.