I can't even listen to E.J. Dionne anymore. I certainly can't really take Bill O'Reilly seriously. The constant scandal-mongering, self-righteous pressuring and posturing, and all the bullshit efforts to take out people who disagree with one another.
I just can't handle the total and utter bullshit political correctness and political maneuvering anymore. It's bullshit. There's no substance to it. Not really. People of real substance don't need to use pressure and posturing and propaganda and manipulation. And stronger arguments, empirical outlooks, and deeper understandings get lost amidst it all. And all of it, all of it, is about getting people who disagree with you.
I don't want any part of it anymore. I don't care why you're offended by such and such bullshit, bullshit, bullshit, is the truth. I am way overexposed to and underwhelmed by scandal and take downs and political hardball. I don't listen to people who bully anymore. I may still try to listen to the substance of a position. But your credibility is seriously undermined in my mind if you feel like you have to bully me or anyone to take your position rather than persuade me. I may take your ideas seriously. But I can't take you seriously, as long as you think that your right to strong-arm me is more inviolate than my right to make up my own mind.
I'm fairly confident that in the very long term, this is the direction that people will take, generally. Young people, generally, are turned off by adults in their lives who bully them. We all are. But, in the short term, scandal is all the rage to take out people you disagree with. It's really ugly is what it is. And I want nothing to do with its proponents anymore.
I think E.J. Dionne is an asshole. I think Robert Novak was the same upon Ford's death (although, to be fair to Robert, for all his dickishness, E.J. has been the far bigger asshole, these days). I want nothing to do with these assholes or any of the shitheads who regularly pressure and strong-arm and otherwise fail to persuade others of their point of view, so they turn to force when their intellect fails them and to persuade others.
I can barely listen to NPR, these days. And only because I want something more serious than commerical rock radio. But I didn't support them, financially, this year. And probably won't be supporting them in the near future.
When liberals talk about dialogue, they're full of shit, is the truth. They don't really believe in dialogue. They believe in bullying. And I want nothing to do with those who engage in that kind of bullshit, anymore. Or conservatives who do the same. When liberals talk about diversity, they mean every kind of diversity except for intellectual diversity or a diversity of ideas. Because when there is diversity of ideas, liberals do everything they can to rid the world of that, is the truth. They'll pretend differently. And its just pretense. It's more lying. And hypocrisy. And bullshit. And the truth is, they don't even care, sadly enough. All they care about is proving that they're right. And they're not even that, sadly enough. So ugly and so sad all at once.
The truth is that the culture war is fully engaged aggression by both conservatives and liberals who both will die by the same sword that they live by. When conservatives come after liberals as they reenergize, I will think it's sad that we are engaging another cycle of political recrimination and attack. But I won't cry for liberals who gave as well as they took.
And I don't want anything to do with any of it or anyone who engages in it.
If you do it with me, expect me to take your ideas seriously. Because I take ideas seriously, no matter what. But don't expect me to take you seriously. Because I won't. And I never will as long as you take yourself and your own ideas so unseriously.
Love,
Ben
