Let's talk tolerance!

I'm looking at a post in the Uplifting News subreddit. It in, people who are swallowing what Minitru says are gleefully talking about how wonderful it is that some people who chose a stupid degree, namely homeopathy, won't be receiving their degrees.

I think that the disease in human psychology, let's call it MYOBDD (Minding Your Own Business Deficit Disorder) is the root cause of statism. Case in point, a group of people who have not really done anything harmful to anyone in particular are part of the "Out-Group" as some call it (other terms exist for a similar meaning, but I like the terms in-group and out-group). Since they are part of the out-group, it's okay to enjoy their misery.

This phenomenon is especially bizarre once you consider that the same people would probably be totally okay with someone receiving a degree in theology, which is similar in many ways. For instance, both homeopathy and christianity engage in administering regular water to participants in order to cause them some net good beyond hydration. Homeopathy takes the approach that the element of the bad thing left it's shadow on water somehow, and christianity taking the approach that the holy spirit has blessed the water and now it is more than just regular water.

This desire for others to be miserable extends to the "right" as well. For instance, the desire to ban gay people from getting married is a result of a deficit in MYOB. A desire to kick out immigrants is a result from a deficit of MYOB. The desire to lock people up for shooting up is a result from a deficit of MYOB.

Tolerance is, in a social sense, the ability to disagree or not approve of something without taking steps to go against it. For instance, I'm old-fashioned and I think that wearing jeans low, to the point where others can see your underwear, is a really stupid way to dress. It's unsightly and ridiculous.

This is balanced by a recognition that dressing like a moron is the right of every red-blooded human, and though I might suggest pants that fit being worn in the more normal manner, I recognize that it's not up to me to be a crusader in this regard. They can wear their pants however they see fit.

Sometimes I wonder where tolerance comes from, and I have a hypothesis on the matter. I believe that it's possible that tolerance is really just a light form of forgiveness.

Hear me out...

Usually, when you forgive someone, they have done you wrong. Whether that wrong be mild, such as forgiving someone for accidentally running into you or forgetting your name, or large, when you forgive someone who has done you serious harm.

But when someone is only guilty of not conforming to your ideals, and you make the choice to forgive that, we call it tolerance.

We all know that one of the many first steps to healing psychological and mental imperfections is the act of forgiveness. I think that the act of forgiving is not best for the person you forgive, but is more of an action that can help you improve your own life, increase your own well being, and decrease your own happiness overall. Perhaps tolerance is simply a lighter form of that. Is there someone around you who is being annoying? A dose of micro-forgiveness can make that tolerable. Have you just detected a lie from someone you trust? Well, store the knowledge of that away in your brain (no point in forgetting, mind you), do a mini-forgive on the lie, and carry on in peace.

Is someone in the wrong lane for a turn? Did they stop in the middle of the left lane, turn on their right blinker, and wait for traffic to clear up to the right of them before moving over and taking a right? Who can say that they've never done that? Best to forgive them, because they won't feel your anger, only you will.

If libertarians master this, then regardless of the political situation in the world, we'll be at an advantage when it comes to being happy and, for lack of a better term, inner-peace.

“The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.”

Ghandi