I can't say how many times I've made some judgement about someone based on appearance, race, religion, apparent income level etc, etc, only to discover how wrong I was. I've also learned that pretty much everyone is or has been bigoted about some group of people, and our joking comments about others can be offensive to them. I became sensitive to those with mental disabilities from the thousands of disability claims my staff or I processed over the 35 years I worked for the Social Security Administration and it bothers me still when we describe a person we see as unpleasant, toxic or stupid, as a moron, a psycho, a retard and so forth. When I was young we derided someone as being a fag, or gay as well. I've also learned that people in a group that is discriminated against, while sensitive to slurs about their group, are not automatically sensitive to the impact of their language on another group, to which they don't belong. That doesn't excuse hatred or insensitivity but it does mean I cannot assume that I am not prejudiced myself. I truly wish we could be proud of whatever we see ourselves to be without the need to denigrate someone different.
And things do get better. After it is pointed out, sometimes unpleasantly, that we are speaking of, or treating someone in a hateful or bigoted way, we can improve.....and eventually people do. For a long time, I have believed in two things, first that we are not evolving much physically but rather through language, in the sense if you can say it , you can think it, and if you can think it you can do it. The second thing is I grew up opposed to censorship, in so far no one has the right to tell me what I should or couldn't say. And yet I've learned I have no right to say hurtful things to other people.
Monkers, I apologize for any disrespect I may have shown to you or anyone else, and hope you stick around. I appreciate your courage in expressing how you feel. I will miss you if you leave.
Seriously though, I just thought it was getting a little too much. I saw no harm in reminding people that all kind of folk are here reading the threads. Nobody should feel the need to apologise, there was nothing nasty or offensive I saw. By way of analogy, it's a bit like water torture though, just that never ceasing drip, drip, drip effect. Each drip on its own is as nothing, but the ongoing and cumulative effect can begin to drive you mad.
