skepticlysm

Inflammatory Response

Written by

Skeptifist

in

  • Now playing: Killswitch Engage, “Holy Diver.”
  • No, I’m not doing the music thing again today.
  • Probably.
  • Today’s going to be … pokey.
  • As in, I’m going to poke you all with sticks.
  • Some of you, anyway.
  • Let’s talk Pride month.
  • Distilled down to its most basic …
  • It’s none of your business.
  • If someone is gay, that’s none of your business.
  • They should be free to be who they are and free of any judgment from anyone else.
  • They should be free to just live.
  • It should not be an issue.
  • Not a topic of conversation.
  • Sure as hell not a topic of persecution.
  • Are they free or not?
  • Are they free to live their lives according to their pursuit of life, liberty, and happiness?
  • Because if they are not, then this American freedom is horseshit.
  • I get it.
  • Some book says something.
  • That’s another freedom.
  • Read your book.
  • Follow your religion.
  • If you’re Christian, you’re not persecuted.
  • That’s propaganda.
  • You’re the majority in this country.
  • But again, freedom, right?
  • You have the freedom to believe what you believe.
  • Extend that to others.
  • Assume people aren’t going to see things the way you do.
  • Believe the way you do.
  • Freedom is freedom, right?
  • That means freedom to not be like you.
  • To disagree.
  • What it does not mean is that you have the right to establish laws that demand everyone believe and act like you.
  • Freedom is that, or this is all a big load of crap.
  • Someone being gay or trans or bi or atheist has literally no effect on your life.
  • So shut the fuck up about it, do your own thing, and let them do theirs.
  • Because, again, it’s none of your business.
  • The golden rule is all you need.
  • Be good.
  • Be moral.
  • Do right by others and yourself.
  • Do the good thing.
  • Have empathy.
  • Work toward understanding.
  • Dammit, man, why is this hard?
  • You know what the right thing is in every situation.
  • Do that.
  • And if you don’t, maybe we need to have some empathy and morality training.
  • Some logic classes (I took those in college).
  • I hope this comes off as shaming.
  • Because partly it is.
  • Believe what you want, but you do not get to force it upon other people.
  • College classes aren’t “woke,” btw.
  • Professors aren’t up there preaching, doing lessons on DEI.
  • Those of you who went, you remember a single class like that?
  • Classes were on subject all the time.
  • Again, enough with the goddamn propaganda.
  • ENOUGH.
  • Freedom means free, or it’s a fucking lie.
  • What’s it going to be?
  • Pride month exists because they are persecuted in modern society.
  • They’re fighting for normalcy and acceptance.
  • They should not have to.
  • Pretty simple.
  • And don’t get me started about the economic realities of life in modern America.
  • We buy into so much bullshit.
  • Okay.
  • Done.
  • I didn’t wake up cranky, mind you.
  • This is exasperation.
  • For fuck’s sake, people.
  • I only get to write this because I’m a middle-class white guy.
  • Privilege.
  • Mansplaining.
  • This isn’t even mine to defend.
  • If you make the argument that “they need to quit pushing it in my face,” you maybe need to consider it from the other side, the one that reflects you and not them, and that’s pushed in their faces every day, telling them they are not normal or wrong or whatever.
  • Imagine that’s your day-to-day reality.
  • Shit is not fair or equal, and it’s going to take work to make it so.
  • That is sure as hell not happening currently.
  • Anything I write from here to the end no one’s going to remember.
  • I re-subbed to Wired.
  • Back when that mag launched in the ‘90s, it was the journalistic bastion of tech and cyberpunk.
  • It was Rolling Stone for nerds.
  • I loved it so much.
  • Fantastic writing, great stories, beautiful design.
  • The Letter from the Editor in the most recent issue, “Rogue Nation,” is fantastic.
  • I kinda geeked out reading it.
  • Like, “YES!”
  • “So be the rogue you want to see in the world, and know that WIRED, with every ounce of rebel spirit in our DNA, will be right there with you.” – Katie Drummond, Global Editorial Director
  • Honestly, reading the issue makes me want to be a journalist again.
  • I bailed on that career path as fast as I could.
  • My first two jobs were $15k/year.
  • It took forever to get out of the $40ks as it was.
  • Journalism isn’t vanishing because it’s not valuable, but because it’s not profitable.
  • …
  • F.
  • That’s another soapbox.
  • Can’t do two in one day.
  • Vollertsen called me an idealist.
  • It’s true.
  • This angry façade I carry?
  • I see so much dumb shit going on in the world.
  • It makes me insane.
  • We do every bad thing to ourselves.
  • Two dark lists in one week.
  • Then again, this isn’t work.
  • This is The Black List.
  • My anger and frustration covers the fact I’m an accepting, loving person.
  • I care about people.
  • The anger’s armor.
  • Self-defense.
  • Because I’m vulnerable.
  • Pretty much always.
  • There’s my deep admission for the day.
  • We all are on some level.
  • Or we’re all delusional.
  • Which is another form of self-defense.
  • Where’s that leave us?
  • Love your people.
  • Let others love theirs.
  • Work on getting along or leaving them alone.
  • Check yo’self before you wreck yo’self?
  • Think about it before we start arguing, k?
  • Love you all.
  • Thanks for reading.

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