Tag Archives: friendship

We Believe Different Things and That’s Okay

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DannyI’m sure at this point you’ve seen the interview videos held on college campuses around the United States.  I’ve watched several of them today as I took advantage of a rainy day.  In these videos a guy or lady walks around college campuses asking students about their political views and then asks them to give specifics to back their belief system.  Rarely can the students provide substance to defend their beliefs.

One particular video grabbed my attention for 2 primary reasons.  First, because of the number of college students who seem to be espousing socialist views.  Secondly, because many who were interviewed believe that free speech only applies to those expressing views that aligned with their own.  And differing views should be considered “hate” speech.

I don’t agree with many people who are extremists, but I do believe they have the right to express their views.  And sometimes it is painful to let someone speak, especially if their views are racial, anti-religion, pro-life/pro-abortion, etc.  Opposing views should not automatically be classified as “hate” speech and it alarmed me to listen to student after student express this world-view.

And quite a few agreed with amending the Constitution to limit citizens’ right to free speech!

But when asked WHY the Constitution should be amended they were not able to provide a single valid reason why.  Eventually they fell back on their belief that “hate speech” should be restricted.

I don’t believe this is a view I’ll be adopting any time soon.

Danny

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Not All People Are A** Holes…

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DannyThere are these moments when people do things around me that appear on the surface to reinforce the perception that most people are self-centered, self-focused, selfish and all the other “self” prefixed words.  My usual reaction is to point out that society is going down the toilet or that people are such a** holes these days.

I do believe that social media has changed us.  It has changed how people interact with the world around them.  The most interesting change, in my opinion, is the selfie.  Stop for a moment and imagine how you might have viewed someone 15 years ago who used their camera to take pictures of themselves.  We would have thought “how vain do you have to be?”, but in today’s world the selfie is completely acceptable.

On the surface society would appear to be spinning in the toilet bowl.  People do appear to be more self-focused.  People do appear to be less interested in helping others.

But all of these perceptions are superficial.  When I stop and think about humanity in general, I believe that most people are good.  I believe most people have good intentions.  I also believe most people care about others and are considerate.

It’s easy to be influenced by social media and the inundation of news to believe that the entire world sucks.  And I’ll admit I have fallen victim (at times) to this false narrative.

The truth is there are a lot of good people who are trying their best to make it through a hard life and a tough world.

Danny