We were driving north on 222 this past week on our way to New York City when we saw a political sign along that very busy main road that shocked us. There are lots of signs everywhere – tis the season – but this one caught both our eyes. It said the candidate’s name, and underneath, “F**K Your Feelings!” The fact that I don’t have to say who the sign was supporting, and yet every one of you knows, says a lot about our present situation. I have seen signs like this before for the same candidate, and every time, I ask myself, “What happened to this person to turn their hearts so cold that they would proudly display profanity like this so publicly?” I know that standards and acceptance of profanity has, over the last 30 years, become pretty loose, even on television. We have become an increasingly profane and crass culture, and words that used to be banned are now in common use everywhere. Still, this seems beyond the pale.
What has happened to someone who is so willing to be this confrontational and hateful? I have said for years, when dealing with fundamentalists, that they don’t care about your feelings – they just want to know what is in the Bible. When I have conversations with them, I use their copies of Scripture, so as not to be accused of using my “liberal, socialist” Bible. For some kinds of people, the feelings of others aren’t important, and this isn’t always a bad thing. Science doesn’t care about your feelings – it cares about facts. 2 + 2 = 4 no matter how much it may bother you. But politics? It is a weird combination of facts, feelings, values (or lack of them), and perspective. I can understand why some voters are concerned about things that don’t really matter to me; I can also tell the difference between opinion and fact.
This being said, I still am puzzled by people who care so little about others that they would proclaim to the entire world that anyone who disagrees with them is worthless. This, I think, is what this kind of sign – or T-Shirt – or public conversation – tells those around you. I am not the kind of person who thinks we need to dress up for church, for example, to show everyone we are proud of who we are. I don’t care how you wear your hair or if you have tattoos or piercings. If you walk around with a T-shirt with the words from this sign, however, I will wonder about your stability. I will ask myself if you are dangerous, considering the violence of these words. It takes the coldest of hearts to give the world this kind of message, and it makes me worry about your judgment.
Let’s disagree respectfully. Let’s argue with emotion and vigor, but let’s do it without the kind of vitriol that this kind of language represents. If you can’t do that, maybe you should get some professional help so you can figure out why you are so filled with hate and rage. That kind of living is hurtful to everyone – including you. Get help, before you hurt someone.
Prayer – Holy God, we have the freedom to choose right or wrong – guide us to choose You. Amen.
Today’s art is “Respect” by Tami Curtis.