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May 21, 2004
Tolerance And The Left
The neighbourhood I live in here in Seattle in called Capitol Hill. It's the more festive part of town, which means it is also probably one of the more politically left parts of Seattle. Usually when you hear people speak of social liberalism, they tend to lump it with peace (anti-war), tolerance (pro-alternative lifestyles) and upholding constitutional rights (separation of church and state). After living here a month, I've come to realize that left-wing people do believe in upholding these things, so long as they're in line with leftist ideas. What do I mean?
Walking home from the bus stop one day, I saw a poster someone had tacked on to a telephone pole. It bore an American flag as the backdrop and stated how Capitol Hill Republican-supporters were in favour of the war in Iraq, against gay marriage, and generally pleased with George W.
The very next day, I saw that same poster half ripped off the pole, the other half crumpled on the ground.
One of the things left-wings complain about is the infringement of the separation of church and state, which is codified (more or less) in the first amendment of the US Constitution. By tearing down this poster, they've showed a lack of respect for Freedom of Speech, also codified in that same amendment.
I realize not all politically left people approve of this kind of behaviour. I also realize not all politically right people are in favour of church-state intermingling. I guess my point is that just because someone is Left, it doesn't mean they're tolerant, or are above selectively upholding the Constitution.