Sympathy for the Devil

You may have seen the viral video of a woman going completely insane over marriage equality. It had been taken down. However, a friend found the following, so you can see it:

http://www.thenewcivilrightsmovement.com/davidbadash/watch_indiana_woman_s_facebook_video_meltdown_rant_over_marriage_goes_viral

And if you can't see how this is funny, then watch this, it may help:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOxSv-gpAgI


It's also very sad, because there are far worse rants going on out there, and this bitter hatred for 10% of human beings can lead to very dark places. If people are that passionate, they can be dangerous.

Well, we all know that.

Something else struck me about it though. Within her worldview it makes sense. By her highly emotional personality, the reaction makes sense. If you believe something very deeply, no matter how illogical that belief is, then by the chain of events that follow, you can arrive at that place.

I actually feel sorry for Betty. Her life must be bloody awful. Her hormones seem off kilter, she may need professional help. But...she's trapped. If she were to accept marriage equality she'd have to dismantle her entire belief system. Systems work as a whole. You can't just set aside one part. It's a house of cards, pull out one at the bottom, and FLOP.

When the US Supreme Court Judges made their decision it was not done easily. It took time, and much, much debate. It certainly would not have involved emotional rants. Courts are the opposite of emotional rants, they are about fairness, balance, logic etc. (It is especially notable that Justice Kennedy is a conservative, by the way.)

Most regular people are not educated like Supreme Court Judges and follow a very different method when making decisions. There is a lot of "gut" feeling. Betty is going with her gut and not her reason. She may be too old to change. She may not be intelligent enough to understand. She may not be stable enough to cope. Don't hate her, pity her.

You don't have to approve of homosexual unions. There is no law or requirement for you to do that. If you want to, you can not only disapprove but hate. Aren't you lucky? Nobody can prevent you from hating. That's true freedom. Your personal opinions are safe.

That same freedom that gives you the right to hate gives others the right to love. Remember that, because you can't have it both ways.

And then it gets even better - the same restrictions that prevent you from manifesting that hate, the laws that stop you from discriminating against the people you hate, also prevent them from harming you. Again, it's totally fair.

You are not allowed to harm gay people, and they are not allowed to harm you. What more could anyone ask for?

This is the difference between hate and harm. You may hate all you wish, but you can't harm.

You can't discriminate.
You can't oppress.
You can't bully.
You can't persecute.

I gave up trying to help the likes of Betty a long time ago. I am not equipped to communicate with people who are that emotional. I leave that to others. Others who fight emotion with emotion. Who cry and shout and use dramatic language. Not my forté.

I offer logic, and I get emotion in return, so we talk past each other, and it's a waste of time.

I acknowledge that some people are compromised in their logic. They use emotion instead. (This is where the hate often arises, BTW). Simply educating them doesn't work.

That's why we have laws. Laws exist because people can't figure out how to behave all by themselves. I don't need laws to tell me not to bully people who are different to me, I learned that by myself. But some never do that. So we have to protect their potential victims.

If people are too emotional to be logical, they have to be told to behave.

In other words Betty, you did this to yourself.