Fighting Back
Famous words by the Bard,
“To be, or not to be–that is the question:
Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles
And by opposing end them.”
Hamlet was, of course, talking about death but the words are equally applicable to the slow intellectual death suffered by our society at the hands of political correctness via forced idea homogenization. To speak one’s mind and likely suffer the “slings and arrows” of social repercussions is a tough choice. Ok, you look confused? Let me put it another way. The fact that we all run around scared shitless that we may offend one another, or that some gimp or nigger might get their feelings hurt if we use a particular word has led us to stop speaking our minds and has castrated our first amendment right. No, I’m not saying you need to offend to communicate, or that using these terms is necessarily correct, but I am saying that limiting their use in socially “appropriate” circles simply limits our ability as a society to openly discuss and deal with the core issues. Socially stigmatizing people who use particular words doesn’t make the ideas they represent go away, it just pushes them underground, into dark corners of our minds and society where they fester and rise again as strong, and likely uglier, than before. Without open discourse topics and words become taboo giving them an undeserved position and power (didn’t you see Harry Potter, he was never afraid to say Voldemort).
Our society has become so pussified that it cares more about not getting people’s panties tied up in knots than letting us have our own opinions, say what we think, argue openly, and respect each other’s right to have wildly different points of view (irrespective of how distasteful we may find that point of view to be). Hell, it’s easy to respect a point of view that’s similar to yours, or defend a person’s right to say something you agree with. It’s a damn bit harder to do the same when the person is offending or pissing you off. I know, you’re probably still stuck on the nigger and gimp statement. You’re probably saying “well those derogatory terms are just plain vulgar and disrespectful.” Yes, fine, these words are definitely disrespectful, but what’s important isn’t that specific people do or don’t get offended, it’s that even if we are offended we can respect (NOT AGREE WITH) another person’s right to have a position with which we adamantly disagree. Let’s be offended! Let’s be forced to critically analyze why specific words hurt us, why they elicit responses from us. Honest words spoken say more about the speaker than the subject. If a Hick calls me a Beaner, that just verifies that the mullet head is indeed a Hick and my racist paradigm is confirmed. Now if I lose my shit over what he says, than that says something profound about me (it says that not only am I a Beaner, but I’m an insecure one at that).
Think about it this way, look at what has happened when minorities have “retaken” words that were initially offensive (nigger for blacks, queer for homosexuals). Through the open use of a word initially meant to hurt some of the stigma has been removed. Does this mean I recommend going up to the first black guy you see and calling him “my nigga?” Only if he’s small, you can outrun him and his friends, and/or you know him very well and are sure he won’t literally sling arrows (or other high velocity projectiles) at your head because of your enlightened view on the detrimental social effects of a political correctness.
Jesus fucking Christ people, Christians and Muslims have fought for thousands of years, but here in this country they can respect each other’s right to keep hole-y (not a typo) faiths which each group “knows” the other has gotten completely wrong. Hell, we let Mormons hang out here and they believe in golden books and scientologists (whom everybody knows are bat shit crazy) believe in, and go around talking about, aliens for fuck’s sake, and nobody bats an eye. The point is, our society has taught us to be fundamentally willing to accept a person’s right to openly hold sacred core beliefs antithetical to our own, but isn’t willing to allow us to openly laugh at penis jokes lest the fat chick overhear us and get offended. Yes, these topics – religious tolerance and penis jokes – are related. Your religion and sacred beliefs may well offend my delicate sensitivities, but in our society it’s my responsibility to get past that and respect your right to be different. Well listen up toots, same goes for jokes about Dr. Johnson doing pap smears in latex gloves; knuckle up and respect my right to laugh. If you don’t like it roll your fat ass back to your cubicle.
So, next time you think something that is politically incorrect (and your life is not in direct jeopardy) go ahead and say it, be brave, fight for our unpopular social revolution lest …
“Thus conscience does make cowards of us all,
And thus the native hue of resolution
Is sicklied o’er with the pale cast of thought,
And enterprise of great pitch and moment
With this regard their currents turn awry
And lose the name of action.” (†)
† Hamlet, Shakespeare. For those of you too stupid to understand Elizabethan English this roughly translates to: if we think about it too much, we may punk the fuck out.
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