When Friends Can't Have Different Opinions?

Art by @Static_Skye

Why is it that some people think that if you have different opinions on certain things you cannot be friends. As far as I know I haven't lost any friends on Facebook based on my personal beliefs in what is going on in the world and if I have they must not have been very good friends because I didn't even notice they were missing however I know friends who have lost friends that they have had for years. I will never understand why anyone would think that friendships are so easy to dispose of. 

I am still friends with everyone I have been friends with. We don't all agree on everything. We parent differently, we handle life situations differently, we enjoy different things, have different religions, support different political parties. Some of us drink, some of us don't enjoy it. Some get high, some don't and never did. Yet we have always been able to just accept the differences because these things do not define or change a person. We are allowed to feel and think what we want or at least we use to be allowed to think differently. 

Unfortunately I am not sure what it says about us as a people to not be able to get along because your friends don't agree with everything you do or say. What are we teaching our kids? Are friendships so dispensable? Did they really ever matter before? Was it all a lie?  Are your beliefs really so important that you feel the need to push it on someone else? 

I have never felt so self important that I needed to try to get someone to think or believe what I do. When I don't agree with a post or comment someone leaves or I see on Facebook I simply just scroll by. It is not my job to make someone agree with me. It is not my job to force my opinion on them in hope that what..it will change their mind. That suddenly they will say "yes! you are right. what a dummy I was for thinking or believing that." No! No one is going to suddenly change their mind or belief because of something you said. People believe what they believe. Maybe you will spark something and they will do their own research that in the long run will possibly open their eyes to something. Maybe! But inevitably all it does when you push your beliefs on someone else is piss them off, make them feel bad, and make them hide their posts from your judgmental eyes. 

Why? Remember when it was okay to think differently than someone else? Yeah, me too! It was the good old days before everyone was a keyboard warrior who don't have to look at you when they tell you are dumb for feeling different than they do. 

Can't we all just get along?