In my circle of friends and acquaintances there are several who range in areas to the left of centre. Some of them are just mildly so with a “feelgood” attitude that everybody deserves a fair go, while others are so far out in left field with their thinking, that they’re bordering on needing straitjackets and padded cells.
The interesting thing about pretty much all of them, is that we can and do have conversations about a whole raft of highly contentious subjects, berating each other for our opposing views and beliefs, often with reasonably serious verbal assaults on intellect, integrity, personality, sexuality and family background.
I’m sure you get the drift. Some of our “discussions” are very verbally assertive and contain highly offensive words and phrases and sentences which are not for the faint-hearted and should not be attempted at home under any circumstances. People with hurty feeling syndrome are cordially invited to simply take a trip involving sex and travel if they don’t like it and those who remain (which is usually everybody), talk openly about their views and feelings with unashamed vigour.
Yes, the discussions can get quite heated and the language is unlikely to impress granny, but that is what diversity really is about: The ability to vigorously debate and argue one’s point of view with neither fear nor favour and without threats of any kind. The funny thing is that in these gatherings, EVERYBODY gets to have their say without any defined rules or a “moderator” to make sure everybody gets equal time. The group self monitors. If someone is struggling to be heard, somebody else shuts the group up so they get to have a say. It sometimes feels as though it’s almost “spiritually” arranged!
The point is that not all lefties are bad buggers and not all righties are racist rednecks with swastikas tattooed on their cheeks. Often, we agree on principles but hold very strongly divergent views on how those principles might be implemented. That’s how free speech should work.
Just as our group self moderates without the need for “legislation” and policing, our society has its own ways of doing the same. At least it used to have.
But then principles, standards and boundaries became blurred.
We used to know what was acceptable and what wasn’t. We called it “knowing the difference between right and wrong”.
Over a relatively short period of time and only a matter of three to five generations, the boundaries have been allowed to shift and some among us no longer know the difference between “right and wrong”.
Extend that to include things like: Getting a job and working to earn the things you want is right but not working because you choose to stay at home on the couch is wrong, and you’ll begin to unravel the dilemmas faced by our society.
It’s not about left or right-wing thinking or philosophy. It’s about using common sense and remembering Pavlov’s dogs. If you reward behaviour that is unsuitable or unacceptable, how can you ever expect to change it?
None of my colleagues mentioned above want to see the poor on the scrap heap of life just because they’re poor. Those of us who lean left, however, tend towards a view that everybody has a ‘right’ to ‘things’ that make their life liveable, like a “living wage”. Those of us who lean right tend to hold the view that if you want something, it’s not a ‘right’ but something you have to earn.
At the end of the day, providing ‘things’ for people has a cost, and the money to pay for it has to come from somewhere. Too many on the left tend to forget that without people working, running businesses and keeping the economy afloat, the money eventually runs out and everybody ends up worse off. Just look at Venezuela.
Meanwhile, clamping down on free speech and demanding everybody has to agree with you because only you have the answers, is a uniquely left wing attitude and it is only the left that attacks those with different views. And then there’s the media that perpetuates the narrative on behalf of the left.
Here’s some food for thought:
Psychologist and author Karlyn Borysenko wouldn’t be caught dead at a Trump rally.
So what was she doing in a New Hampshire arena, surrounded by 11,000 cheering Trump supporters? And what did she take away from the experience?
She explains what happened when perception met reality in this eye-opening video.
If you enjoyed this BFD article please consider sharing it with your friends.
