Hate speech

I was on my way to lunch and had forgotten to bring anything to read. I stopped into the Book & Game Company downtown to pick up a book or a magazine. I was stunned to see books on the shelf titled "The I Hate Republicans Reader" and the "I Hate George W. Bush Reader." How much farther down are we going to go as a nation?

Full disclosure before I go any further: I'm a registered Republican and I voted for Bush twice. That doesn't mean that I agree with everything that the Republican Party or President Bush have ever done or stood for. I am my own person, and these are my choices. No one needs to agree with them, but don't I still have the right to choose? Don't you?

I find it sadly ironic that Rosa Parks lies in state in our Capitol building this morning, while all around her casket roils pure hatred and cynical, partisan politics. What abominable hypocrites we've all become.

No self-respecting publisher in America would publish "The I Hate Blacks Reader," "The I Hate Women Reader," or the "I Hate Muslims Reader." These books, if they were published, would be immediately and rightfully denounced as hate speech. Why aren't the books I saw this weekend? Please don't cart out your free-speech speech to defend either side of the liberal-conservative grudge match. With rights come responsibility. It is time to call this flood of vitriol what it is: hate speech. And just to be clear: I'd say the same about a book titled "The I Hate Democrats Reader."

Someone once said, "Sow a thought, and you reap an act; Sow an act and you reap a habit; Sow a habit; and you reap a character; Sow a character; and you reap a destiny."

The thought is hatred; the act is hatred; the habit is hatred; the character is hatred. I fear for the destiny we are about to reap if we do not think about what we're doing to ourselves and our culture.

What do you think?

Comments

[Darren Karr]

Nice article Tim. You know, I have a feeling most Americans would agree with you. Unfortunately, most Americans also believe there are only two political parties and no other choices. You’re either a Republican, a Democrat, or your vote is wasted. Because this is a reality, the Reps and Dems have a strangle hold on the American people. Citizens may stumble across a third party that is more in line with their personal beliefs than the Reps or Dems but they are afraid of the other party winning so consequently they cast their vote for the lesser of two evils rather than the third party which more closely represents them.

As long as they can keep third parties in the closet, they retain power no matter what they do. They can lie, cheat, break laws, etc. and the American people have no recourse. Of course we can vote someone else in but that someone else is sure to be from one or the other party, both equally corrupt and non-responsive to the needs of the people. Keep the people divided. Keep the hate at a level that the people will do anything to NOT have the other party elected. So no matter how evil your party is, the other one is worse and should be prevented from winning at any cost…even if it means voting for someone you don’t agree with.

The only way to stop the hate is to realize that the Republicans and Democrats do not represent the people or the Constitution. They represent money and power. Once the money and power has been removed from their hands, the hate will begin to fade.

[Marc Thompson]

I think that one issue is that we hate things which we don't understand. Republicans hate democrats without really understanding their policies. Hate has a tendency to keep things at bay. Hate is a way to push things to the background so we don't have to deal with nor try to understand them. Hate has almost lost its original connotation. Hate prevents understanding and leads to a world full of people who don't trust the world around them.

The logical thing to do to someone with a different perspective than our own is to discuss differences to come to a "greater consciousness". But rather, we hate the things around us which prevents any sort of personal growth and leads to an isolated way of life.

[Darren Karr]

So in essence you're saying (Marc) that Democrats don't understand Republicans. Because we both know that Democrats hate Republicans. Howard Dean has said it out loud, John Kerry said it, and pretty much every Democrat I know has said it.

You see, it comes from both sides yet neither side can see that they are just as bad as the other. Take a step back and look at what the two parties have done to us. They instill hate because a divided people can do nothing to stop them and make this country great.