On Tolerance...
I've noticed this surge of blogs and online rants that threatens one of the things I hold dearest to me: Comedy. That thing, is intolerance.
We normally associate that word to those who discrimminate against people of other ethnicities or of sexual orientations that differ from theirs. Rarely do we see it be associated to the so-called open-minded liberals who "fight for equality" and other "social issues." But let me tell you, it's there. While I'm an advocate of always taking context in consideration (I am, after all, a translator), this is one of those situations when I make an exception. Dissing someone else's opinion and judging their intelectual capabilities just because you don't agree with them, even if you're correct in that all citizens should be allowed the same constitutional rights, is just as intolerant as them saying same-sex couples shouldn't be allowed to marry because that makes baby Jesus cry. I am not saying the results and implications are the same, but the lack of respect for someone else's difference is still there.
I try to live my life by the following words: tolerance, reason, respect and love. Sure, I fail at times (more often than not), but I am aware that, when it comes to social issues, the regular constant is that there are very few things that are static or unmovable (if any, at all). This is why an "I am right and you are wrong," "2+2=4" stance is not only ridiculous but also unacceptable when dealing with problems that concern humanity. These are not exact sciences where a result will either be "yes" or "no." We are human, imperfect, individual beings, where more often than not, we will find ourselves with more than one "correct" anwer, or none at all. I am not saying that one shouldn's stand for what they believe, but that doesn't mean one should be offended when someone else is ignorant of their condition and therefore, unable to connect. Ignorance is only a "sin" when the person in question refuses to learn or even listen.
I remember this article on Cracked, that talked about the reasons the 21st Century "made" people misserable. A couple of the points related to people only hanging out with people of similar interests to theirs online, and not being forced to face annoying strangers or get criticized, and actually learn how to socialize. I see it a lot like living in a completely sterile environment throughout your childhood, and suddenly one day going out to the park and getting sick from a cold breeze. If we surround ourselves only with people that think alike, and exclude anyone with a different opinion, we risk assuming our world view is the only correct one (does that sound familiar?), and that such is the universal truth (big secret: no human holds the ultimate truth). I actually know how pointless it is of me to post this here, seeing how I KNOW beforehand that most of you will either agree with me, or at least respect me enough to tolerate this opinion of mine, because you've chosen to stick with me.
I know that a lot of these people are young and they think they're making significant changes by documenting their every thought on the matter, but they should first evaulate whether if what they're saying has any standing ground or if it'll just make themselves seem like over-sensitive little girls that really can't stand it when people make the "mistake" of saying a WORD that makes them uncomfortable.
Just as we can't like everyone, and we can't be liked by everyone, we can't be sure we won't offend someone. It may be our opinions, our ideals, our sense of humor, our voice, the way we breathe, the way we dress, or our BO, but you can be sure that you will not always be able to make everyone happy AND vice-versa. That's where my concern regarding comedy comes from. I've seen a lot of comments from people thinking such-and-such words are offensive, and that we should stop using them in jokes. I wonder, do they realize what they're saying? I love equality and being nice and civil and trying to make everybody happy, but my hate for censorship is even bigger than my desire to please people (and I LOVE pleasing people). When we start worrying about pissing anyone off, worrying about every possible negative interpretation for every single word we say, it's when we've lost perspective that the problem regarding language interpretation lies in our listener's intellectual capablities, not in us. Not long ago I wrote a short entry about the death of sarcasm and hyperbole where I express my feelings regarding this "take everything by its literal meaning" trend I've been seeing online lately.
After being online and in fandoms for many, MANY years (almost 10), I've learned that there is no reason or any kind of reasonable justification for arguing online. There's nothing more pointless than that. I've been in a few, and was apparently even in one some months ago (I thought we were just having a civilized discussion regarding a disagreement on a certain topic, but apparently it was an argument). I will tell you that the only thing I've learned from those has been that nothing wrothwhile can come from an online argument. Want to know where these come from? Intolerance. There is no need to perpetuate these eternal angry rants over things that really don't matter in the bigger spectrum of real life.
We don't necessarily have to agree or even respect other people's opinion, but we should respect their right to not only have it, but express them. And we should be mature enough to understand that just because we don't like what we hear, does it mean that we have the right to censor, call them names or assume they are unwilling to change. And this goes every way. I know it's not always possible, but if we put on our big girl panties and remember that there is a high chance that we are annoying the fuck out of them too, that we are not saints, and that they don't owe us anything, we will live a less stressful and conflictive (internet) life.
EPILOGUE: We should stick for what we believe in, but attacking someone just because they're not offended by what offends will only hurt your cause.
Further watching: That Southpark episode where they try to make an unoffensive Christmas School Play that results in a modern play with terrible choreography and wardrobe.
Fun experiment: Let's see how many people are offended by my use of the world "girl" in negative connotations.
We normally associate that word to those who discrimminate against people of other ethnicities or of sexual orientations that differ from theirs. Rarely do we see it be associated to the so-called open-minded liberals who "fight for equality" and other "social issues." But let me tell you, it's there. While I'm an advocate of always taking context in consideration (I am, after all, a translator), this is one of those situations when I make an exception. Dissing someone else's opinion and judging their intelectual capabilities just because you don't agree with them, even if you're correct in that all citizens should be allowed the same constitutional rights, is just as intolerant as them saying same-sex couples shouldn't be allowed to marry because that makes baby Jesus cry. I am not saying the results and implications are the same, but the lack of respect for someone else's difference is still there.
I try to live my life by the following words: tolerance, reason, respect and love. Sure, I fail at times (more often than not), but I am aware that, when it comes to social issues, the regular constant is that there are very few things that are static or unmovable (if any, at all). This is why an "I am right and you are wrong," "2+2=4" stance is not only ridiculous but also unacceptable when dealing with problems that concern humanity. These are not exact sciences where a result will either be "yes" or "no." We are human, imperfect, individual beings, where more often than not, we will find ourselves with more than one "correct" anwer, or none at all. I am not saying that one shouldn's stand for what they believe, but that doesn't mean one should be offended when someone else is ignorant of their condition and therefore, unable to connect. Ignorance is only a "sin" when the person in question refuses to learn or even listen.
I remember this article on Cracked, that talked about the reasons the 21st Century "made" people misserable. A couple of the points related to people only hanging out with people of similar interests to theirs online, and not being forced to face annoying strangers or get criticized, and actually learn how to socialize. I see it a lot like living in a completely sterile environment throughout your childhood, and suddenly one day going out to the park and getting sick from a cold breeze. If we surround ourselves only with people that think alike, and exclude anyone with a different opinion, we risk assuming our world view is the only correct one (does that sound familiar?), and that such is the universal truth (big secret: no human holds the ultimate truth). I actually know how pointless it is of me to post this here, seeing how I KNOW beforehand that most of you will either agree with me, or at least respect me enough to tolerate this opinion of mine, because you've chosen to stick with me.
I know that a lot of these people are young and they think they're making significant changes by documenting their every thought on the matter, but they should first evaulate whether if what they're saying has any standing ground or if it'll just make themselves seem like over-sensitive little girls that really can't stand it when people make the "mistake" of saying a WORD that makes them uncomfortable.
Just as we can't like everyone, and we can't be liked by everyone, we can't be sure we won't offend someone. It may be our opinions, our ideals, our sense of humor, our voice, the way we breathe, the way we dress, or our BO, but you can be sure that you will not always be able to make everyone happy AND vice-versa. That's where my concern regarding comedy comes from. I've seen a lot of comments from people thinking such-and-such words are offensive, and that we should stop using them in jokes. I wonder, do they realize what they're saying? I love equality and being nice and civil and trying to make everybody happy, but my hate for censorship is even bigger than my desire to please people (and I LOVE pleasing people). When we start worrying about pissing anyone off, worrying about every possible negative interpretation for every single word we say, it's when we've lost perspective that the problem regarding language interpretation lies in our listener's intellectual capablities, not in us. Not long ago I wrote a short entry about the death of sarcasm and hyperbole where I express my feelings regarding this "take everything by its literal meaning" trend I've been seeing online lately.
After being online and in fandoms for many, MANY years (almost 10), I've learned that there is no reason or any kind of reasonable justification for arguing online. There's nothing more pointless than that. I've been in a few, and was apparently even in one some months ago (I thought we were just having a civilized discussion regarding a disagreement on a certain topic, but apparently it was an argument). I will tell you that the only thing I've learned from those has been that nothing wrothwhile can come from an online argument. Want to know where these come from? Intolerance. There is no need to perpetuate these eternal angry rants over things that really don't matter in the bigger spectrum of real life.
We don't necessarily have to agree or even respect other people's opinion, but we should respect their right to not only have it, but express them. And we should be mature enough to understand that just because we don't like what we hear, does it mean that we have the right to censor, call them names or assume they are unwilling to change. And this goes every way. I know it's not always possible, but if we put on our big girl panties and remember that there is a high chance that we are annoying the fuck out of them too, that we are not saints, and that they don't owe us anything, we will live a less stressful and conflictive (internet) life.
EPILOGUE: We should stick for what we believe in, but attacking someone just because they're not offended by what offends will only hurt your cause.
Further watching: That Southpark episode where they try to make an unoffensive Christmas School Play that results in a modern play with terrible choreography and wardrobe.
Fun experiment: Let's see how many people are offended by my use of the world "girl" in negative connotations.