Reply #173: That depends ... [View All]

If the OP was ironic satire, mine added to it. If it was written "straight", then it was to remind everyone (myself in particular) that fanaticism isn't just the other guys' problem.

There's a whole lot of ranting on political chat systems, and it's tough to tell where much of it comes from.

A lot of what fanatics believe is based on fear in some way. Hatred of gays, for example, is based on a lot of irrational fears. Raging at homophobes the same way homophobes rage at gays is a worthless gesture; it's much easier and more effective to educate them, even a little at a time.

And, incidentally, I'm a victim of anti-gay violence myself. I was nearly killed by a gay-basher 22 years ago, during the Reagan regime. It should be noted that I'm not gay. My own sexuality is of no consequence, but a lot of straights feel that they're somehow exempt from anti-gay violence -- I can tell them, unambiguously, that they're NOT.

The Radical Religious Right has cultivated a large number of hatreds and dreads, and having a whole cabal of them in power has been a most frightening thing. But we have to be vigilant, ourselves, to avoid the same "emotional plague".

This past week has been extremely fortunate and has led to healthy change. We have to keep that trend in place. Laughing at our own foibles is one of the best forms of political hygiene we have -- one that the Radical Religious Right lacks.

--p!