So far, we've got peace-loving, free-speaking liberals who not-so-peacefully violate my right to free speech. But that is far from the only area of contradiction, hypocrisy, and inconsistency amongst liberals. Let's talk about tolerance and diversity.
I'm not going to do the talking though. My dad wrote a letter to the editor of the Register Guard, and he's preparing a slightly modified version for the Daily Emerald. But regardless of whether either gets published, it'll get posted here. So here's what he wrote:
My family and I are new to Eugene and this our first campaign season here. The Bush/Cheney signs in our front yard clearly represent the minority opinion, but I must say that I have been very disappointed by the lack of tolerance that I have witnessed on the part of the majority when it comes to allowing the free expression of any point of view that differs from their own.
The Bush/Cheney signs in my front yard have been vandalized five times in the last three weeks. A friend told me that five homes in her neighborhood had their Bush/Cheney signs vandalized two nights ago, and not for the first time. A local newscast recently detailed a pattern of similar behavior in other neighborhoods throughout Eugene. More than once, drivers passing by have slowed to roll down their windows and shout foul obscenities at me and my chosen candidate as I worked in my front yard. What a lovely way to be welcomed to the community.
For a group of people whose mantra is love, peace, tolerance, and diversity, this politics of intolerance and intimidation, not so different from the politics of the deep south a generation ago, should be embarrassing and troubling. It reveals a serious gap between their rhetoric and the practice of their daily lives. It’s easy to love and tolerate those who think just like you do. In fact, that’s not tolerance at all, that’s just solidarity, or, to put it more plainly, bigotry.
Paul Tucker
Amen, brother... uhh... father...
That was about as perfectly and succinctly put as possible, if you ask me. But a few more words on tolerance and diversity might be useful.
Tolerance is perhaps the most important word in contemporary secular culture. However, it does not actually mean tolerance. According to its contemporary usage, tolerance actually means acceptance, and even approval. According to contemporary tolerance, it's not enough to disapprovingly put up with, for example, the practice of homosexualilty. (For that is the dictionary definition of tolerance.) In fact, it's not even enough to accept homosexuality as being okay. According to contemporary tolerance, we must encourage homosexuality. "Good for them, way to go, more power to them for coming out of the closet and not being afraid to be gay." That's contemporary tolerance. And it is vitally important in today's America; even more so in colleges and universities; and most of all in overwhelmingly liberal colleges and universities like UC Santa Cruz, UC Berkeley, and our beloved U of Oregon.
Diversity is perhaps the second most important word at a liberal college. Perhaps people are so afraid of appearing racist that they feel they must have an equal representation of every ethnicity on the face of the planet. Affirmative action comes to mind. Nevermind that Eugene is 99% white, we still insist that there must be an equal representation of black people at the U of O. Illogical at best, but that's how it works.
I'll write more about tolerance and diversity later. But understanding their significance on college campuses and in liberal hot spots like the city of Eugene makes painfully clear the disconnect between liberal rhetoric and practice mentioned by my dad.
'Nuf said.