For someone in search of progress I continually battle one of its greatest obstacles: hate. We tend to downplay our disregard for someone or something just to avoid using the word. But avoiding the word doesn’t mitigate one’s actions or feelings. Claiming that “hate is such a strong word” while finding some euphemism to take its place still leaves the rose smelling as it always does. Is putting a softer shade on so strong a word is all we must do to justify representing its character? How silly is that? So, why hide from that which causes discomfort only to continue dressing up that which we seem ashamed to embrace? Is it to convince ourselves that we do not hate? Or others? Let’s remove the protective layer and look at hate for what it is and why we feel it.
Hate is the damper extinguishing any hope of progress. For what is hate but the refusal to accept someone or something we do not know, understand, or control. So long as we resist any of these things, we keep at arm’s length the possibility of learning something we did not previously know. Notice I did not say agree with, only learn from and about. It is far too easy to call something wrong and place a derogatory label on it without knowing anything about it, aside from the fact that we disagree with it. How is it that we can label anything with any degree of confidence and absoluteness without the caveat that it is an opinion? Still, I see it all the time.
Hate is the hubris that destroys the potential of humanity. Alone, the word humanity has endless potential, but coupled with the actions of its namesake, the distance between that potential and where we fall is immense. It is a sad state to see such potential perpetually squandered. Any flaws that could be addressed are blinded by our own actions. It is hate that is the blindfold sitting across our eyes. We are not only its victims, though. We are just as equally guilty of allowing it to hold power over us.
At its core, hate is a form of slavery. It shackles the one who hates to their prejudices, leading them to desire control and power. And it is this search for power that is the ultimate quest driven by hate. For were hate to not exist, would we feel the need to seek power, or control, or the prevention of some to pursue paths of their choosing? I’m inclined to say no. It is only this hate, motivated by any number of factors we use to justify our feelings (whether it be anger, fear, ignorance, jealousy, misunderstanding or otherwise) that drives some to prevent others (or attempt to prevent them) from living the lives they desire. If we were permitted to pursue our paths freely without interference or control by some, we could finally begin to understand the absolute definition of freedom and experience its benefits. By allowing hate, though, to consume us, we allow it to control our desires beyond our own circles and infringe on those around us. Thus, we extinguish all hope of progress. Instead of achieving something and becoming better, we continue in a world disguised as free, passing off fiat as progress, confuting change with improvement, and perpetually altering the guise of slavery and subjugation.
I have no quibbles for anyone who wants to object to my wording; though, I stand firmly by them. There are degrees of everything. A lesser degree of something doesn’t invalidate or disqualify it from having any weight at all. This is where we find ourselves today. A change in form or an alteration of severity does not equate to improvement or even progress in my mind. The slow evolution of some things can just as easily imply a natural tendency over a willful and purposeful choice. This is what I see today.
We tell ourselves that we have improved. We persuade ourselves to believe we are better. We have no doubt that we have evolved into a species unparalleled by anything else that exists. And yet, we continue to be inundated with atrocities, inequities, and constant battles over power. Thus, when I look at the world today, I ask myself if what I see is the slow, arduous path of natural attrition battling forces which seek to maintain their power and control? Or is it an enlightened journey taken by an evolved and intelligent species? As much as I wish to see the latter, I can’t help but see the fingerprints of the former.
Freedom. What an elusive, complex, and arbitrary ideal! How can we talk about anything related to freedom when we cannot agree to what it means? How can any truth be established on a shifting foundation? There can be no concrete pursuit or defense of freedom when the shape of freedom is as elusive and hard to define as a glass of water on a moving vehicle down a bumpy road. It means something different to different people. Isn’t, or shouldn’t, the fact that we define freedom differently a sign that we should not hold all peoples to the same beliefs? Shouldn’t we be altering our expectations of society, civilization, and government to allow for these variations?
If we wish to know freedom, then we should remove all the old definitions imposed upon it by those sitting on the throne that created it. Claiming a system or belief to be “fair” or “just” or “superior” does not make it so, especially when part of that claim rests on the fact that those who hold the power decide how it is perpetuated. It is easy to win when you make the rules of the game, and it is so much easier to make the rules of the game suit your purpose when you are the one who holds the pen. So it has gone, and so it will go. Therefore, I stand by my wording when I call hate, slavery.
I can’t off the top of my head come up with a valid reason for establishing a universal approach to govern such a diverse and controversial topic such as freedom. There are always those who believe they “know” what it is and how it should be dealt with, but do those people or groups truly know anything outside of their own thoughts? Why do they have, or think they should have, the power to decide for others when they would fight and possibly kill if others had that power, or were seeking to acquire that power, over them?
Is the answer to this question as simple as it seems to be? Control. Why? Because, deep down, we hate.
I can think of no other reason, but I can hear the shouts of remonstrance already. Defense! Defense of our freedoms. Defense of our beliefs! Defense of our way of life! It sounds justifiable, but it is specious from the word go. Defense is only justified when you are actually being threatened. It is not justified beyond protection of yourself. Defense in no way justifies the limitation of others’ beliefs. So long as no one is using force and telling you what to believe or how to act, then there is nothing to defend. Bloating or exaggerating the definition to suite your purpose, acting preemptively because in your mind you have a valid fear, or claiming historical precedent or wide support changes nothing about what I just said. These are excuses to justify an action (control), not a valid reason to violate someone else’s freedoms and subject them to your beliefs.
This is where the problem should start to become exceedingly clear. If no one is telling others to act, believe, worship, or govern in any other way, then there is no reason to defend, unless you are afraid the beliefs you disagree with could take hold and overtake yours. Once you seek to stop those (via force, punishment, or subjugation) then you are utilizing power to control with the hopes of stopping that enemy you hate. You are violating the freedom of others to maintain what you yourself cherish and love.
Is that justified? I’m sure some would say that it is. But what of those that disagree? Are those, including myself, left to accept the fact that you may have more power over me; and as such, I am at your will until my power can overtake yours? What a sad reality to live in. It is not one I can readily accept. Nor should anyone else be expected to. We should be able to accept others and allow them freedom regardless of their believes; so long as those believes do not infringe on our ability to practice ours. Unfortunately, this topic goes much deeper. That is for another day.
Moving past this ingrained mindset is tantamount for us to achieve true progress and move past hate. Without acknowledging this flaw, we will continue to struggle with our hate for those things and people we do not fully understand. This dooms us to a fate of renaming our struggles, reliving our errors, and only making right turns. Hate is the burden which sits on our shoulders. It offers resistance at every step. Unlike resistance that contributes to making us stronger, this resistance only wears us down and strengthens the forces which cling to their dominance. It really is a brilliant tool when you think about it: shuffling the players, renaming the roles, and demonizing all those who resist.
It is not that we are incapable of doing what is necessary. I don’t believe that for a moment. More likely, it is that we allow ourselves to push off what needs to be done, without consequence. It is a choice; and like many difficult decisions, we often opt for the one that presents us with the least amount of pain, discomfort, or inconvenience. Admitting what we currently do wrong is a terribly difficult thing to do. What we are doing wrong, in my opinion, is procrastinating an inevitability if our goal is in fact to improve. Hate is the linchpin that ties it all together.