Why must my ideals and my emotions clash?
Ok, if I get very rational about what I believe, I think that anything that does not affect me, I should not care about.
That's why I am for the legalization of drugs. I don't think I would ever do them, and it does not affect me if someone else does. That's why I shall fight for their right to use it.
AND, if I get even more rational, then I would think that homophobes have every right to hate us. As long as they're not creating a big disturbance in my life, and they're not trying to hurt me, why should I care what they think? They're just idiots.
BUT, my emotions are now clashing with that. This girl who sits at my table in Geometry keeps railing off about how gays are bad. And then what really makes me blow a fuse is how she thinks that gayness is a choice. (She believes her groundless assumptions, rather than me, who knows from research and personal experience) And so, I keep getting really mad at her even though she doesn't really affect me.
She's just painting the world as she sees it, and I just keep getting angry. It's just her amazing IGNORANCE and UNWILLINGNESS to learn that just makes me blow my stack.
So, if I believe in my ideals, why are my emotions fighting with that?
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Comments
But... Homophobia DOES Impede Your Freedom!
Quoting your assertion:
"AND, if I get even more rational, then I would think that homophobes have every right to hate us. As long as they're not creating a big disturbance in my life, and they're not trying to hurt me, why should I care what they think?"
The underlining is mine.
The problem is that the homophobes ARE doing all within their power to limit your freedom. This is their sole rationale!
Also, just a suggestion: Please keep your cool when conversing with your ill-informed peers. Keep a calm demeanor and "argue" from facts, not emotions. This procedure will enhance your image in the eyes of others (not to mention how great it will make you feel!).
Btw... I continue to be impressed with your analytical bent! I expect that this talent will only expand. If your school has a debating club... please consider joining!
because other people don't
because other people don't have the same ideals as you and therefore will be mean about it because they think they're cool like that. >:C
Who's railing off? Simran?
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Sometimes I like to sit at night and stare at the lamppost because it's the brightest thing in my life...
No...
Emma.
What really just makes me angry is that she knows she's being riddiculous. I asked her "so everyone in the world is straight, and some 10% of people just decide to go against they're actual attractions and be gay and be with someone they don't actually love and whom doesn't love them, all just to intentionally offend the Ruler of the Universe?"
She just refuses to back down... She's just stubborn.
"I bust mine so I can kick yours" ~ design on a swimming t-shirt
that sucks. should i beat
that sucks. should i beat some sense into her?
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Sometimes I like to sit at night and stare at the lamppost because it's the brightest thing in my life...
Well...
It's always easy to support something conceptually. You could also be for drug legalization, and then know someone who dies because someone smashes into them head-on on the freeway. It wouldn't really change the thought that drug legalization is an individual choice.
The other issue with homophobia is the fact that they influence your life by passing anti-gay legislation, try to overturn gay marriage, and hundreds of teens as we speak are trying to pray away the gay inside of them, etc.
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"People who are happy are slugs... They do not move the human race forward."
-- Camille Paglia, on Oasis
I know that things are not
I know that things are not always a choice. They were not for me anyway. I tend to get very emotional, so I have exercises I do before I go into public to help me keep them under lock and key so I can act with logic, above instincts.
Not always the best thing to do, but better than hurting someone
Listen to the howling winds of your heart, and if the beat moves you, dance. "I wanna heal, I wanna feel, what I thought was never real!"
They do have a right to hate us
Of course she's entitled to think and speak as she wishes. And you are entitled (if you want) to smash her the fuck down. Verbally. You probably shouldn't hit her...
Freedom of speech, freedom of belief, is not the same as freedom to believe and say whatever you like with no consequence- just without legal consequences.
She can believe and say all sorts of things. The consequence is that it hurts the people around her and (hopefully) she is outargued and publicly embarrassed when people call her out on the stupid things she believes. Another consequence- one hopes- is that these beliefs ostracise her.
(And of course we don't have total freedom of speech- rightly so- libel and slander are against the law. So- in my country anyway- are forms of speech that incite racial violence.)
My understanding
Your ideal seems to be advocating for rights as long as they don't contravene the rights of others.
Your 'emotions' show that you are against homophobic views.
By speaking out against this person you are not going against your ideal, you are actively participating in dialogue, and I thik this communication is still consistent with your ideal.
You are not actively censoring the person, or censoring free speech, you are exercising the very rights you want to advocate for if you speak out.
Therefore I don't really see them conflicting in that sense.
On a side note, certain drugs are illegal for a reason. They do contravene the rights of others. The fundamental rights of others to live and be safe are undermined. Drug abusers can endanger the lives of other people. Case in point would be amphetamine related violence, drink driving, and laws concerning second hand smoke. Furthermore, while bodily autonomy is very important, if an individual does not have the capacity to make rational decisions (such in the case of drug-abuse, gambling, addiction, mental institutions, suicide) then it can be argued that the state should intervene and make legislation concerning these activities.
That's how most civil laws work.