Intolerance

I have had a growing uneasy feeling over the past several months, but unable to put a finger it. I was finally able to figure it out reading the online edition of the Cincinnati Enquirer and the comments people make to articles, opinions, and letters to the editor.

Before I make my comment I want to clarify this isn’t about everyone. And I understand that not all who read the paper make comments, in fact, I’d bet most don’t. And my observation doesn’t include everyone who makes comments. But I’ve become very aware of how intolerant we are toward each other.

Merriam-Webster defines intolerance as ‘unwilling to grant equal freedom of expression especially in religious matters’ and ‘unwilling to grant or share social, political, or professional rights.’

We as a society; you and me see or hear people being intolerant of each other’s ideas and opinions every day of the week. And not just in the printed paper, but on television and the radio. It seems to me that underneath most of the intolerance is anger and frustration, in my opinion driven by fear.

We very quickly resort to name calling and veiled (although sometimes not so veiled) threats toward each other. The frequency, intensity and how quickly it becomes so intense amazes me. And I believe these are intelligent, thoughtful people. It’s interesting to me that we share very real concerns about the violence of our youth, and yet we so quickly verbally attack each other. Are we teaching our youth to be intolerant?

I recognize we’re not going to agree with each other, believe me. And I believe it’s important to talk about our disagreements with vigor and energy. But I think we’ve gone too far when making statements that either directly or indirectly demean another person in some way.

Practicing tolerance (Merriam-Webster: ‘to endure, to put up with’) doesn’t mean we have to agree or like what we hear, see or read.