The man ran over to the television and got close so he could hear what was being said. I was watching the scene unfold in a restaurant where a television is permanently set to show cable news.
“He just makes me so mad,” the man muttered with intensity. I wasn’t sure whether he was talking to me or to himself, but he was clearly referring to the media personality talking on the screen. He was upset, but the flickering image commanded his attention and his eyes were glued to the TV.
I watched him for a minute and finally asked the obvious question.
“If he makes you so angry, why do you listen so closely to him?” I asked. “Why not just ignore him?”
The man first looked puzzled, as though I had asked him a trick question. Then he finally responded with the tone one might use when explaining something obvious to a child.
“Well, he’s on television,” the man said. “He doesn’t like [my political group] and he’s always saying negative things about us. He’s on the news. I have to know what he says — because he makes me furious!”
Here’s Valentine’s Day music for lonely folks with nobody to love
‘Psssst. Hey, buddy. Can you get me some Drano — with no photo ID?
The egalitarian lie: Every group has leaders, even Occupy Wall Street
We’re neither friends nor enemies, just strangers who share the past
‘This path leads to somewhere I think I can finally say, I’m home’
When love finally dies, it’s like a fever breaks and the pain is gone
Without peaceful breakup plan, U.S. faces violent, angry collapse
Roy Moore just the latest in the long line of politicians who want control
Advocating peace requires more than hating those who start wars