"I'm sorry you have such a narrow view of love, and that you believe that certain kinds of love are wrong. You are missing out on a lot in life and I hope that someday you are able to open your mind and recognize how much love exists in this world, and how rewarding it is to embrace and accept it. Take care."
It seemed a pretty innocuous comment to me. In response, “Maxfield” offers a defense of his “opinion”. Apart from the fact that he launches into a rant for no particular reason (it’s what bloggers do, after all), the complaint he expresses is worth examining. Let’s first assume that he’s addressing Liberals in general, since he seems to be attributing to Anonymous views that weren’t in the offending comment.
JM says: “The difference is that you think that only your [opinions] count.” Not true, Alex. If that were true, I would agree that it’s offensive. But what gives you that idea? Most liberals would think you're wrong, just as you think we’re wrong, but that’s not the same as dismissal. That’s called disagreement.
JM says: “If I give differing personal opinions than the libs, I am branded as either a bigot, racist, homophobe, xenophobe and it results in constant personal attacks.” Not true. At least not just because we disagree. You earn those brands all by yourself with bigoted, racist, homophobic and xenophobic opinions. You are certainly entitled to your opinions, Alex, as everyone is, but that doesn’t mean you’re not a bigot. Your views about homosexuals are, in my opinion, bigoted. You disagree with me. What’s the problem?
JM says: “Then having no other options, you result to personal attacks or implying our ignorance. Neal Boortz once said that the way you can tell when a lib anti-war protester is at his/her's wits end is when they start comparing you to Hitler.” That comment, it seems to me, is doing what you accuse the Liberals of doing: dismissing our opinions as irrelevant. It is my opinion that your bigotry is a product of your ignorance. Not stupidity, because you’re not that, but the views expressed in your blog and in the blogs of your SWAC pals suggest a lack of exposure to reality and a lack of knowledge about the world. And if you’re really only 19, as we're led to believe, I’m amazed that you think you know anything other than what’s been poured into your head, which means you don’t know anything at all. How could you? And I don't blame you for that. You just need to grow up and form your own opinions is all. As for the Hitler comparison, I don’t think I’ve done that. I probably have called you and the other local reactionaries “fascists” but I think it is an apt term for the brand of "conservatism" you preach. You don’t have to be a mass murderer to be a fascist, but there is a tendency amongst you to belligerent militarism and intolerance of dissent and the suppression of opposition; couple that with extreme Christian views and attitudes that in my view are fundamentally racist, and it all adds up to fascism. That's not name-calling; that's political science.
JM says: “The hypocritical nature of your party in the comments you leave and the blogs you post is more and more apparent...it manifests constantly as far as any issue that differs from your opinions. It is not like out there chasing down a person of that homosexual lifestyle and chopping his head off. I just disapprove of his lifestyle.” It is not hypocritical for me to say that I think you are wrong, Alex. You have every right to your opinion. Even if it is wrong. That’s not hypocrisy. And yet you would silence those of us who oppose the War in Iraq. That, in my view, is hypocritical on your part. Those of us who speak out against the war love America as much as you do and want to fix our country's mistakes by ending the war. And yet you claim that we’re traitors for speaking out. Aren’t you doing exactly what you accuse Liberals of doing? You disagree with our position so we’re not allowed to express it without being called a traitor. Fine. You think I’m a traitor and I think you’re a fascist. We’ll probably have to leave it at that. As for your comment about chopping off the heads of homosexuals, I’m glad to hear that you don’t do that (although there are plenty of your ideological sympathizers who do just that). But I would reiterate the comment of “Anonymous” (who isn’t me, by the way; I generally don’t leave anonymous comments) that you need to open your mind. I’m afraid you’ve been brainwashed, but I hope that when you get out in the world and open your eyes you’ll see that you are wrong.
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