Monday, February 11, 2013

Turning the wrong way on a one way street.


I plagiarized the title of this blog post so I apologise to the fellow writer who coined it and thank him for the inspiration it provided. You see, I belong to an online writer's group that I really enjoy. However, occasionally I find myself feeling very out of place there. I'm not surprised actually that the bigger part of them are very liberal, left wing types. After all, it is a group of writers from all over the world, so by nature that would be expected. It is hard sometimes however not to feel like the poor tourist who accidentally turns the wrong way and gets shouted and honked at by the oncoming traffic.
The web sight is well moderated and politics are not allowed, so there is seldom any serious fracas. I love the sight and have learned a great deal about the craft of writing there. It's not the sight I am annoyed at, or even liberals in general, it's certain people.  I am always amazed at how quick some are to jump into the mob and pummel anyone who unwisely voices a, shall we say conservative for lack of a better word, point of view.
I am amazed and annoyed at some people who claim to be advocating tolerance for minorities, who in fact are shouting from the roof tops to support their pet group, yet when confronted with the opposing viewpoint are the least tolerant and most vindictive people in the world.
I'm very conservative and I hold fast to what some would call old fashioned traditional values. But I try very hard to be tolerant of those who express more fashionable views. My concern is that in so doing I'm quickly sliding into a quiet minority myself. It's ironic that those of us on the right more and more often find ourselves standing lonely and frightened in a crowd of screaming liberals.
The part that makes me angry is that I feel like these radicals are claiming their own so called rights by stomping on mine, especially where freedom of speech is concerned.
For example, nobody batted an eye after Obama won the election and in a very poor show of tolerance (not to mention hitting a man when he's already beaten) Romney was held up in a post as a "Hitler in the room." Yet when I stated that in my opinion it was the other way about you would have thought a two headed snake had jumped up and bitten them on the bum. It's very hard to remain tolerant in the face of such prejudice. We all have our sore spots after all, and I have the right to nurse mine as much as anyone. But enough of that, water under the bridge. I thank again a level headed moderator who smoothed it all over.
Let's just say that "thank goodness this is MY blog and I can say whatever I like."
Negative comments will be tolerated, I will not pummel you, but it's still MY blog.
 
 

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