Intolerance,
prejudice, ignorance, bigotry, injustice ... all of these are nothing new. They have blemished our past, and they
continue to blemish it today.
Through-out
time there have been wars fought, and arguments have raged, over perceived
superiority. And there's no finite end
to a list any of us could create, as to what that superiority might be based on.
Sadly, it
continued over this past weekend when an individual stated, "Awwww... this is just so TERRIBLE! How could
they do such a thing! Sniff, sob...".
It was in response to a story in the Vancouver Sun about a Pride rainbow sidewalk in White Rock being defaced with swastikas.
The comment disappointed me and so I responded by saying,
"As far as I'm concerned, the vandalism
was disappointing enough ... swastikas however says this is the work of an
individual with a sick mind."
I won't repeat all of the responses to that, but here's
just two of the facts(?) I was enlightened with:
... the swastika was
a good luck symbol in some cultures (which
is true although these days it has an extremely negative connotation)
... being disgusting
and sick minded" perfect definition for the lgbt
For one reason or another we have used, and continue to
use, all kinds of horrendous and thoughtless expressions to demonstrate our
prejudices. In the weekend exchange, for
instance, one individual went so far as to indicate they believed people
in the LGBTQ community are all pedophiles.
Sort of like all Italians are in the Mafia ... all Arabs and Muslims are terrorists ... all Germans are Nazi's ... all
people from the South are hillbillies ... all Irish people
are drunks and eat potatoes.
You get
the picture.
I
attempted to explain to those who were slinging these insults, that at another
time they themselves could have been the recipient of insults, just as ugly, not
only due to their ethnic background, but also for a host of other factors. To that I was informed, 'all those words are racial slurs, and
not at all comparable to LGBTQWERTY.' In fact, one went on to say:
Race is usually an
identifiable trait most of us can objectively see on an another individual,
whereas you only know if someone is gay is if they decide to tell you .... there's
no clear evidence that LGBTQWERTY folks are "born that way", but even
if they were, there is a difference between having a predisposition and a predetermination
to act out accordingly...
As to your other
assertion that knowing someone close to you being gay, or whatever else should
alter your view, well that's just admitting you've lost your ability to be
objective in the face of an emotional attachment of some kind. Our emotions
will control, and destroy us, if we let them. That's why society needs value
systems and structures that in the very least, don't defy nature.
The words being expressed, were about intolerance, prejudice, ignorance, bigotry, injustice.
And they continued.
"The
liberal-Left often finds reasons to justify 'civil disobedience', so what's
good for the goose is good for the gander. I'm just impressed there seems to be
growing blow-back against PC culture and an increasing awareness that compelled
tolerance and acceptance are being forced on the majority by these cultural
Marxists."
Seriously?
I thought we had long ago left the Middle Ages! Apparently not.
Inter-racial marriage ... not believing the world
was flat ... putting forth the notion that women should be allowed to vote ... that
beauty shouldn't be defined by skin and hair colour. When first broached in
their day, all of these things would have, 'heaven help us', brought about the ...
catastrophic upheaval of __ insert the ethnic group, gender, or organization's __ rightful place in the order of things.
Intolerance, prejudice, ignorance,
bigotry, and injustice.
Apparently even now, those thoughts continue to filter through society.
In Kamloops,
I'm Alan Forseth. I hope you will take a
moment to share your thoughts, on what I've had to say, In the 'Comment'
section below.
The following is a quote from Dr. Jordan B. Peterson:
ReplyDelete"In the West, we have been withdrawing from our tradition-, religion and even nation-centred cultures, partly to decrease the danger of group conflict. But we are increasingly falling prey to the desperation of meaninglessness, and that is no improvement at all."
We always, however, need to remember that all groups are made up of individuals. Those individuals need to know they have our love -- unconditionally -- just the same as love is given unconditionally in any number of other situations.
DeleteThose in the LGBTQ community are all around us, including our own families, even if we choose not to believe it.
Love caring and understanding ......thats what we are called to do
This blog post is both timely and insightful. Thank you Alan well done!
ReplyDelete