Tolerance is the buzzword these days and it amazingly gets passed around, slandered, and misused as elections approach. The Snarling Marmot is right, in that it is something worthy of spending a bit of grey matter pondering. I’ve been thinking about it for months, ever since my friend, Larry at Simple Thoughts, brought it up in some comments. He criticized some folks, of a more liberal persuasion, of being intolerant toward the intolerable. I’ve spent some time pondering this thought till my puzzler was sore. The confusion with tolerance lies in how we define the word.
TOLERANCE IS NOT ACCEPTANCE
There is a prevalent belief in our society that tolerance is equated with acceptance. To provide your 17-year-old daughter with information on birth control is to give her the green light to engage in sex. To allow your gay son to bring his boyfriend home for Christmas is to tell the world that you approve of homosexuality and have turned your back on God. To vote for a Democratic candidate for Congress is to vote for abortion.
TOLERANCE IS NOT SILENCE
Another misconception about tolerance is that one who is tolerant cannot voice opinions of dissent. If you are a real liberal, then you will tolerate my hatred of Muslims. To protest the Klu-Klux-Klan rally is to abandon your belief in tolerance. To criticize any President of the United States is a loss of tolerance.
TOLERANCE IS IDEOLOGICAL
Tolerance is not a liberal disease hinging on the approval of the molestation of children and man-dog marriages. Tolerance is not, as many people believe, tied to action. Tolerance is of an ideological or philosophical plane. Tolerance is equated with love and understanding. Not a hippy make-love-not-war peace. Tolerance is simply about the ending of hatred especially against stereotypes. To hate all conservatives for their intolerance is to be intolerant.
Tolerance is about love. Conversely, tolerance is about ending hatred. That is not to say that anger is intolerant. I was angry at Missouri Governor Matt Blunt when he cut the Medical Assistance for Workers with Disabilities (MAWD) two years ago. In fact I attended a Disability Rally in Jefferson City earlier this year in hopes that we could convince the legislature to reinstate MAWD. Neither that rally, nor my participation in it, were intolerant. If I were to own a restaurant and Gov. Blunt and family came to eat, but because of my hatred of him I deny him a seat, then that is hatred and intolerance.
It’s not intolerant to disagree with homosexuality. (Personally, I don’t see why people spend their time and energy on such a silly issue. But they do, and that is okay.) What is intolerant is to protest any soldier’s funeral with “God hates Fags” signage.
It’s not the action, but the motive behind the action that defines tolerance. Anger can be tolerant. Hatred cannot.
TOLERANCE IS NOT ACCEPTANCE
There is a prevalent belief in our society that tolerance is equated with acceptance. To provide your 17-year-old daughter with information on birth control is to give her the green light to engage in sex. To allow your gay son to bring his boyfriend home for Christmas is to tell the world that you approve of homosexuality and have turned your back on God. To vote for a Democratic candidate for Congress is to vote for abortion.
TOLERANCE IS NOT SILENCE
Another misconception about tolerance is that one who is tolerant cannot voice opinions of dissent. If you are a real liberal, then you will tolerate my hatred of Muslims. To protest the Klu-Klux-Klan rally is to abandon your belief in tolerance. To criticize any President of the United States is a loss of tolerance.
TOLERANCE IS IDEOLOGICAL
Tolerance is not a liberal disease hinging on the approval of the molestation of children and man-dog marriages. Tolerance is not, as many people believe, tied to action. Tolerance is of an ideological or philosophical plane. Tolerance is equated with love and understanding. Not a hippy make-love-not-war peace. Tolerance is simply about the ending of hatred especially against stereotypes. To hate all conservatives for their intolerance is to be intolerant.
Tolerance is about love. Conversely, tolerance is about ending hatred. That is not to say that anger is intolerant. I was angry at Missouri Governor Matt Blunt when he cut the Medical Assistance for Workers with Disabilities (MAWD) two years ago. In fact I attended a Disability Rally in Jefferson City earlier this year in hopes that we could convince the legislature to reinstate MAWD. Neither that rally, nor my participation in it, were intolerant. If I were to own a restaurant and Gov. Blunt and family came to eat, but because of my hatred of him I deny him a seat, then that is hatred and intolerance.
It’s not intolerant to disagree with homosexuality. (Personally, I don’t see why people spend their time and energy on such a silly issue. But they do, and that is okay.) What is intolerant is to protest any soldier’s funeral with “God hates Fags” signage.
It’s not the action, but the motive behind the action that defines tolerance. Anger can be tolerant. Hatred cannot.
Posts
1 comment:
Well said my friend. The next time someone calls me an intolerant S.O.B. for not supporting their issue and speaking against it, I will point them to this post. I tolerate a lot of things that I do not support. Bravo.
Post a Comment