I started writing this entry after the CNN piece and got sidetracked with life. So I’m editing it and picking it up again with a bit of modification.
Too often we… enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought. — John F. Kennedy.
So the CNN story is up and I have to say, it’s nice to see the different stories they highlighted. There is no single story that represents the trans community. And I’ll give credit to CNN for trying to present a variety of views equally. It’s nice to be seen in a light other than an object.
That said, the comments are just disturbing. JFK’s comment is very apropos as many are giving an opinion about trans “folx” without really understanding what’s involved. I can respect someone who says “I understand all that’s involved but personally, it’s not my cup of tea”. Ok, fine. I can totally get that. It’s the ones like the following that get me:
drag these idiots down the street. I’d rather have beheadings and 9/11 every friday than to listen to this slop.
Uh. What?? Apparently, many of the readers on CNN don’t like it when they are faced with things that make them think. Life is no longer compartmentalized for them into neat little blocks. I watch the MSM (Main Stream Media) and all I see is perfect little lives that are cut-outs and variations of the 1950s. The US seems determined to remain there and ensure that nothing changes from that point to now. It’s interesting that as I re-read this, I noticed an article on CNN today that talks about how that the Supreme Court of Justice (SCOTUS) even without any Protestants on it, will still get some Protestant views on it. Yes, it will be different and moderate comparative to others but the diversity is a good thing.
But for many (especially white Protestant Americans) this means learning to adapt with change. And for many, this is a scary thing. Change is viewed with apprehension and concern as it feels like we are losing something that we’ve known all our lives. So we react to it because the change is done at a pace that we have no control over. What we once know is no longer true. And what once made us unique and special is being divided amongst all these other people we don’t know or understand. It becomes, in the US, “un-American”. What’s curious is that my home country of Canada doesn’t seem to suffer the same kind of malaise. There is no “un-Canadian”. While this doesn’t eliminate discrimination, I wonder if the constant and regular exposure to things that were different allowed for a mellowing of Canadian society compared to the “separation” of US society.
I have a hard time understanding extreme polarization that occurs here in the US and wonder sometimes if it helps to have this. Certainly everyone has the right to their opinion but it doesn’t mean that one needs to voice it in a manner to demean or debase others. We all have the right to our opinions — and the right to live without fear.
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I think the problem is that a lot of people have absorbed the idea that anyone who disagrees with your opinion isn’t just wrong, they’re horribly evil. The MSM have perpetrated this, mainly in the quest for ratings, and it’s been encouraged by many politicans and religious figures.
The way I see it, if someone has a different perspective than me, that’s fine. I may not like it, and I may not agree with them, but they’re entitled to their perspective.
Matt´s last blog ..Walk For Kids Help Phone 2010
Americans tend to be intellectually lazy on a good day. Note the general tone that “because my enemy (Middle East terrorists) look different, then everybody who looks different must be my enemy” that permeates so many news reports. Many Americans find it easier to just lump everybody in to one of two groups, us and them. If you’re not one of us, you must be one of “them”. They’re very scared because every day their “us” is growing smaller and “them” is growing larger. And fear is a horible thing to live with.
@Matt: Definitely. If they only accepted that within the political environment. As long as politicians and MSM continue to create these extreme different view points, society will continue to suffer.
@Joe: You’re right about being intellectually lazy. I was at a restaurant this weekend and overheard a young boy (maybe 9 to about 11 years of age) talking with his father over lunch about the World Cup. I heard him say “They aren’t Americans if they have towels on their head. Only people from India have towels on their head. Americans don’t have towels on their head”. The father shushed the child not for what he said but that he said it loudly (embarrassment rather than concern over the intolerance).