A lesson in snobbery and politics

In discussing politics, and the reality that you have to market yourself, an experience from last summer came to mind.  

There was a Scottish Lawyer, who was seemingly one of the nicest guys at the camp.  Everyone liked him, he had a great smile, a great demeanor, and generally, he was very kind. He got close to one girl in particular, and took care of her. He was never confrontational, just a laid back, well spoken, and smiley guy.  But then came the end of summer, and reality along with it.

Not that adding someone on Facebook is really a big deal, but I was explicitly told that he would not be adding me, or anyone of the girls for that matter, because it may look bad to any future employers or clients.  He was afraid of what we would post, or that we might simply reflect bad on him, should his employers or clients look into his friends list.  Then, he began to ignore the girl he had been with the entire summer, because, in his words, he didn't want to get too close, and quite frankly he didn't care. The final nail came with the realization that with his laid back attitude came his refusal to take any stance on the basis of morality, but only on things that directly effected his image.

Back to the Facebook issue though, like I said, it is really not that big of an offense, but to be so pettily dismissed with something as trivial as Facebook, esp by someone I thought was a friend, was quite new to me.  The other things exposed his character, but it floored me, when he told me that he would not be adding me and so on, to my face. 

That, along with other things compiled, finally brought me to the realization that he was not a friend and did not consider me to be one, but was friendly for the sake of survival. Additionally, he perceived me as an unnecessary risk that could essentially stain his reputation.  He gave me no merit, and therefore saw me as inferior.  

I take this as a great learning experience in Life, but really, he is not a loss to my life. He did wake me up to reality, especially when it comes to living/working with more social perception obsess individuals. 

I don't care to be fake, but I am learning how not to wear my heart and thoughts on my sleeve.  I am learning diplomacy, and learning how to smile and greet people that I cannot stand.  It is a necessary skill to learn if you wish to move up a social ladder, and it is a skill that many lower class folk simply especially don't possess.  At the same time, I pray and hope that I never fall into this level of trickery, and evolve into a diplomatic snob and political player with skills that rival a con artist.  If anything, this boy has that skill down to an art.