I used to work with a woman. She talked about going to discos and not wanting to get too close to anyone, just have fun. I dismissed her as a party girl and didn’t have much to do with her, and then one day she told me that she had been engaged and her fiancé had gone swimming with friends and had drowned, and his parents blamed her for it because she wasn’t there. I was very friendly to her after that. I just had no clue before about the whole story.
Morality, as far as it’s considered “common sense” in my experience, is actually rather twisted. I am not saying that tolerance is to accept another’s interference in your own well-being, but accepting that they are the first and last authorities on themselves is tolerance.
You don’t have to see someone’s point to allow them the freedom to make it. You don’t have to view what you personally don’t accept, but you are not practicing tolerance if you make your views a moral agenda for society itself.
I will openly admit there are things I ignore. I will act neither for or against these things. For me they are non-issues, but I would not choose, say, to march in a Gay Pride parade, nor would I criticise this parade. I don’t feel I need to say anything about it at all. Is that intolerance? I mean the question sincerely. I don’t bait people. I am tolerant of other peoples interpretations of my attitudes as they will make these interpretations anyway, as I will interpret their behaviour. Tolerance creates the room for honesty.
In all honesty, I am angered by “short bus” jokes. My son was born disabled and I was involved in special education programs as a child as well, but I would not sign a petition to make short bus jokes illegal. I would not support any legislation to make any form of stupidity illegal, because then our whole society would be criminal, including me. Since that’s absurd and pointless, I think tolerance is the wiser choice.
Sometimes it can be hard to make any decision, because any decision seems to offend someone. That’s why you assume what you practice. It’s inelegant, but necessary.
Your thoughts are welcome. Be well friends.
Travis Saunders
Dragon Intuitive
~science,mysticism,spirituality~