Saturday, August 5, 2017

Tolerance v. Tolerance

If you tell me that you reject violence because it is not constructive, I will, up to a point, listen to you. You better be ready to provide context, though, because tolerance as a basic principle is meaningless.

One cannot be infinitely and unilaterally tolerant. A given situation requires action, and even inaction is a choice. Along the same line, tolerating the intolerance of others does not add to the general level of tolerance in the culture.

Everybody has their deal. Everybody has things they can and can't do, everyone has their limit. But, if you are willing to characterize your limit as something beyond limit, you need to come correct. Principles need to be operable & defensible. I will listen to you if you tell me you are a pacifist. Passive resistance is, after all, still resistance. All I'm saying is that if you call yourself a pacifist, you better be ready to lay down in front of the tanks . . . or, admit your pacifism is a limit, not a principle.

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