I agree that politics makes strange bedfellows. I've always been a proponent of the notion that people can "agree to disagree," but when it comes to politics, things get divisive and touchy. When I have expressed a view that differs from a friend's, at times, that escalated into a verbal boxing match and the older I get, the less I enjoy that. Whatever happened to healthy and thoughtful debates?

Years ago, I did a stint on the Queens College of The CUNY Forensics Team, the school's debating group. I liked to state my case and listen to rebuttals. But it seems in the era of social media if you write down a point of view that, heaven forbid, doesn't line up with someone else's, you open yourself up a proverbial can of worms and may be subjected to the vitriol of attacks that are over the top, or in some cases, even threatening.

Part of the premise of TheLatest.com is to be non-political. That is a tall order because so much that happens in our lives involves a political perspective. Still, I appreciate the concept of neutrality.

We all have the right to express our opinion. But when that opinion promotes destruction ( i.e., harming another person or destroying property), that's where I draw the line. I will not support a view like that, ever.

Speaking of politics, I just watched parts of the Democratic Convention. There were aspects of it I thought were good. Presenter Julia Louis Dreyfus nailed it. She's talented, to begin with. But I thought she did an exceptional job emceeing the event. I loved it when Dreyfus quipped, she believes President Trump sees her as "a washed-up horse-face no-talent has-been with low ratings." The "Seinfeld" alumni is anything but washed up; ironic when she came back with the comment for the President "it takes one to know one."

I liked some of the speakers. However, I did not like the headshot collages that I frequently now see in other virtual reality set-ups. It reminds me of the Brady Bunch intro and seems disingenuous. To me, it's 'bunching' people together and the hidden message, I suppose, may be "we're all one big happy bunch." I don't see politicians that way, even when they're on the same side. Look at the divisiveness and mudslinging on both sides of the spectrum, Democratic, Republican and any party in-between.

To be fair and balanced, I watched snippets of the Republican Convention. A lot of it was what I expected, with some speakers touting views in rather aggressive tones. I was glad that First Lady Melania Trump at least acknowledged the health pandemic and economic suffering so many are experiencing. Most speakers did not address COVID-19 at all.

My thoughts, in short: conventions are reality TV -- cheap and cheap to produce. You know, I've decided to opt for movies tonight in lieu of watching more endless rhetoric. All conventions tell lies ...