Tolerance and Intolerance

Tolerance is a two-way street.  I'm speaking of freedom of ideas and free speech. America was founded on that principle. Indeed the battle cry of the War of American Independence was "no taxation without representation."  Representation was having a say in government matters. The money of the colonials was wanted but not their opinion. Hence, free speech was demanded in the Bill of Rights.

The First Amendment (Amendment I) to the United States Constitution prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion, ensuring that there is no prohibition on the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press, interfering with the right to peaceably assemble, or prohibiting the petitioning for a governmental redress of grievances.

Note that the free speech clause was in the First Amendment because it is of utmost importance! It's why we fought for independence, and why our forefathers were killed. Blood was shed all over the new nation just so people could express their opinion! Free speech is spoken and written word. In order to speak freely it was necessary to have a right to peaceable assembly. Peace is a key idea with free speech.

Those statues are free speech. Some wanted to honor their war dead. They did it by erecting statues. Anyone before as been able to erect statues - until now. We have become Taliban America where the secular humanists demand that only their gods be honored. For those who want to be like the Taliban their home is in the mountains of Afghanistan where intolerance lives on.

The kind of speech was not included for a reason. Unpopular speech is what is most protected. The grievances of our founders were very unpopular with the colonial government, but the founders had things to say, and wanted the freedom to say it!

In order to create an environment for free speech, it was necessary to have order. The voice of the majority should be heard, but fairness is that the minority have free speech as well. The most notable example in this age was Martin King speaking up when nearly everyone was opposed to what he was saying where he was saying it. Because the First Amendment allowed it, King was able to speak it. Those who disagreed with what he was saying tolerated it because that's what our country was all about. Those who aggravated and silenced him were mobs. They were criminals of the first order!

Now, the people who most effectively used free speech to their advantage deny others the same avenue to free speech. The victims of the mob are now the mob! They see tolerance as a one-way street. Now, rather than freedom of speech being the avenue for expressing unpopular ideas, it's merely a blind alley where the majority has all the say. When freedom of speech is abridged and controlled, the loss of freedom is not far behind.

A Mrs. Powel of Philadelphia asked Benjamin Franklin, “Well, Doctor, what have we got, a republic or a monarchy?” With no hesitation whatsoever, Franklin responded, “A republic, if you can keep it.” (Benjamin Franklin).

The United States was designed as a republic, not a monarchy or even a democracy, because a republic means that even the minority are represented. If only the majority had their say, just think of the lack of free speech - only popular speech would be allowed! We are a republic so that those of fewer numbers can be represented. When that free speech is muffled, the republic is in danger, as Franklin so wisely said.

At this instant in time, our republic is in gave danger. It was the home of the brave and land of the free. Now it is becoming the home of the mob and the land of intolerance. Intimidation is now the rule of the land!

Even capitalism is against free speech. Big business, to keep the almighty dollar, allows only certain speech. It is what is acceptable to them! What is defined as acceptable speech is the problem. Strangely, it is not the majority that has determined acceptable speech. However, it appears that the majority are in lock-step with acceptable speech because of fear of the consequences. For instance, until I retired I feared saying what I believe because my employer expected me as a manager to represent them in the community. Their focus was on profits, and intolerant people would quit spending money with them if many of us spoke our say.

Then, business and industry, once the bastions of conservatism, became liberal in their social policies. Why so? For the fear of reprisal!

Let me say something in favor of the left! They put their mouths where their hearts are. They let people know where they stand. On the other hand, the right, led by timid Christians, seem to have little principle. They just stand back and accept what the world dishes out, surely hoping for a better place for them, but they fail to consider the children! That part the free exercise of religion will be a weak right if there isn't the ability to do it. Mark this: without freedom of speech, freedom of worship is in jeopardy! We see the persecution already because Christian speech is unpopular speech. The nation has made it clear: they don't want to hear our voice!

Christians have accepted the notion of tolerance. Indeed we have excepted that intolerance is always bad. Let me be clear: Holy Scripture is not about tolerating bad behavior but forgiving it! With forgiveness comes the expectation of obedience. Essentially, Scripture is against tolerance but teaches obedience. God is the controller of speech. He is the One who judges and punishes for hateful words or actions.

Now, let's look again at where we are today. Free speech has already been abridged by the elite, business, education, and the media. In lockstep with that are modern churches and politicians who would die just to be re-elected. Senator Corker of Tennessee just took that bait himself. The left threw it out, and he bit into it. He failed to support free speech in favor of controlled speech. He is a traitor as is Mitt Romney, Marco Rubio and others who submitted to the PC Police.

President Trump campaigned on free speech. People voted for him because they believed in free speech. I was disappointed with him when he caved to the PC Police, and re-directed his comments only to the one group. When he came out and said what was true, I thought, this is why we voted for him! Corker, Romney, and even Rubio couldn't handle the truth. They are victims of the PC Police.

We don't know who all is in the camp of political correctness. We do know one thing: it is those who don't believe in free speech! Since Marxists don't, I suspect that it's the Marxists who have the hidden rules of political correctness. Many times we don't even know we say hateful things until the PC Police revise their rules!

When Bill Clinton and George Bush were running for president, Hillary Clinton came to town. I went there to exercise my free speech. I held up a placard right in front of Hillary which said, "Communism is dead except in slick Willy's head!" One democrat cursed me and f-worded me as intolerant people will do. (Just before, I had welcomed the peaceful protestors at our Bush rally at the same place when Dan Quayle came. I told them I was glad they were exercising their free speech). Eventually, this democrat slugged me in the presence of our local democrat senator, Nick Kafoglis, who said nothing. Although my flesh told me different, I turned the other cheek and said, "Hit me here as too," as scripture directs.

Afterward, I called the organizer of the event, a local lawyer, and said, " I thought you liberals were in favor of free speech!" She replied, "Just acceptable speech." I was floored. Who says what is acceptable? Those who are intolerant of free speech. I tolerated theirs, but they couldn't tolerate mine.

I said before that Scripture is not about tolerance but obedience. Hence, free speech is not a biblical issue but hate is! Those who can't handle free speech are hateful and arrogant. It's their way or the highway, and they care little about fairness. When the mob silences those who express hate, I have always seen it done with hatred. Who noticed the hateful remarks at Charlottesville by the counter-protestors? I did!

My entire life I have studied the Third Reich and Bolshevism for just this occasion. They both kill people who disagree with them. Marxism (socialism) is un-American but yet we openly had a man who is a socialist run for president. Hillary Clinton hid hers, but Elizabeth Warren proclaimed who the Democrat Part is - Progressive, their more palatable word for Marxists.

The reason I am against Progressivism is because they are intolerant. I despise the Nazi ideas expressed at Charlottesville, and the KKK and Nazis kept civil protestors away. Almost without exception, my circle of friends are in favor of leaving the statues alone. They are very vocal on the social media about that but in public they shy away from controversy.

I am angry at the KKK and neo-Nazis for stealing civil people's thunder. The PC Police know that all they have to do is brand the right as extremists and haters, and they can control. To be correct, the Progressives care little about those statues - all they want is to divide. As long as the races bicker and fight, the longer the Civil War will be fought! The black race is the victim. The Democrats still use them for their purposes. They fail to understand that in Democrat eyes, they will always be childlike blacks who need everything done for them. Please, I implore sane Democrats, give them their freedom. Let the people go! Get other tools to do your bidding. It's modern times. Do it yourself!

Now, for the ultimate intolerance. The Jewish government hated what Jesus had to say, and in the end had him killed for saying it. However, they were more tolerant than radical Americans who even would deny Jesus's right to say it. Progressives symbolically burn Jesus's words with prohibiting the free exercise of the Christian religion. They are still intolerant of Jesus, and like the Jews, they want to put an end to God's Word. Progressives are the most regressive people in existence. They are as regressive as the KKK and Nazis, and Trump is right for calling them out!