Is it too much to ask people to accept the existence of a differing opinion?
Forgive me if I temporarily shelve the controversial issues of race and religion...but my word...why does the voicing of another perspective immediately give rise to a raised eyebrow, a pursed mouth, a grunt of disapproval or even harsh verbal opposition.
My mental reasoning says to me that my views on life and its enigmas are based on my own individual experiences...a product of my past...my present and my hope of a future. Therefore, it would rationally mean that since no one in this world would have experienced the exact same life that I have, they are entitled to their own reasoning...rationale.
Or am I being an overly enthusiastic and naive human being? I am constantly awed by the swelling of intellectual flesh when I express a contrary position on a mere life issue...as if my words flay their tender bottoms. Alas, the person is offended... and those around act as if I am an affront to what was an amicable environment for conversation.
But I say to this......why the hell did I go to school? Why have I embarked on a career? Should my internal shelves of voracious reading gather dust?
Is this what we are encouraging a generation to do....be polite with your thought process and the articulation of the same...it may offend someone.
Aghast....it may yield more thinking, thought processes, a desire for knowledge, the attainment of wisdom and the cultivation of leaders and what shall we ever have....a people who THINK, DO and ACT beyond their greatest expectations...no longer content to be mere members of the malleable masses but to be effective citizens of SVG, our Caribbean Civilisation, a global community, the human race.
I SHALL NOT SILENCE MYSELF FOR FEAR OF THE CONFRONTATION OF THE MINDS.
Well said. Just this week I was in a discussion with some people and I expressed an opinion contrary to theirs. You won't believe how much the discussion degenerated.
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