"what the hell am I supposed to do?" About sums it up

[lemonsharks]

Dear Amy: My 27-year-old grandson, who is getting married, called me up screaming at the top of his lungs saying I was a Republican and Nazi, that I am dead to him and to “F-off” — all because his grandfather (my husband) asked our daughter (his mother) if they got vaccinated.

This was a concern because we are flying across the country and I am supposed to officiate his wedding. Plus, his grandpa is very concerned for them. He told me he wasn’t putting poison in his blood for our peace of mind.

What the Hell am I supposed to do?

I tried calming him down to explain, but his rage was beyond any reasoning.

As of now we will still be going, but not attending the wedding.

My daughter acts like this is normal behavior and he’ll come around.

I don’t know if I will.

– Grandma H

Dear Grandma: Who talks like this? Who talks like this to his own grandmother?

If I were you, I wouldn’t wait for him to “come around.” Everything else aside, his rage does not make him a safe person to be around. Rebook your trip to a more pleasant destination.

Comments

[laurajv]

*cocks head*

maybe it's me, but something about this letter seems off.

[melannen]

I had to read the letter about three times to figure out it was grandson who was the anti-vaxxer, not grandpa (I'm still not entirely sure!)

[laurajv]

I think you are right, and also that heavenscalyx is probably right that the grandparents are Republicans but not GQP, while the grandson is Libertarian-Q. It almost makes sense when looked at that way.

[lemonsharks]

Is it possible that the LW doesn't realize "Republican" is an insult?

[adrian_turtle]

Yeah, me too. It only makes sense if the grandson has redefined "Republican" to mean "authoritarian control freak" without regard to the direction of the control. A lot of people already think of "Nazi" as simply meaning "bad person."

The grandson still has problems with rage and self-control, and clearly does not want anything to do with his grandparents. Thus, his grandparents should not go to the wedding. (Even if their own vaccination and masking makes them feel safe from covid under the circumstances of the wedding.) The question is how much of a relationship they want to have with their daughter? Does she think its "normal behavior" for brides and grooms to say appalling things to their relatives in the course of wedding planning? Is she counting this like "How dare you tell me I shouldn't wear a sleeveless wedding dress! You're a monster and I never want to speak to you again!"