{"id":14953,"date":"2024-11-03T06:55:02","date_gmt":"2024-11-03T11:55:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/?p=14953"},"modified":"2024-11-03T06:55:02","modified_gmt":"2024-11-03T11:55:02","slug":"should-you-hate-me","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/?p=14953","title":{"rendered":"should you hate me?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

It\u2019s such a strong word. Hate. <\/em>If I\u2019m fully transparent, it makes me a little uncomfortable. My sense is the discomfort is wise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I remember when my kids were younger and found confidence or solace or something in the reactionary use of the verb \u2014 be it hatred of raisins, the Patriots or the mean kid next door. Our abridged encouragement was to strive to hate only what God hates \u2014 things such as haughtiness, lies or the shedding of innocent blood. Nowhere can we discern that God hates a person.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve asked myself many times, especially in this heightened election season: why do we as adults justify hatred of other people? We know it\u2019s wrong. So why do we spew such fighting words and demean others and tell them if they continue to think or behave in said ways, we are done with them, they are evil, or their character is completely in question? I mean, we recognize that\u2019s hate, right?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

hate <\/strong> | h\u0101t | verb<\/em> – to dislike intensely or passionately; feel extreme aversion for or extreme hostility toward; detest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yep, that\u2019s hate. So why do we do it? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As some friends have insightfully shared who have worked to resist the attractive lure, we hate because we fear. We fear and we often feel threatened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

No wonder campaigns and surrogates and water-carrying media outlets attempt to get us to fear their opponent\u2026 He\u2019s a fascist! She\u2019s a socialist! Democracy may cease to exist!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If people can make us fearful, they can make us hateful. And if they can make us hateful, they can make us forget what\u2019s most important\u2026 relationship, respect, faith, family, love, and acceptance. Note what\u2019s not most important: consensus and agreement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yuval Levin is a thought-provoking, Israeli-born, American writer. He makes an interesting conclusion about the election now before us. He suggests, no less, that \u201cclose contests matter less.\u201d Writes Levin:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn the buildup to the 2024 election, Republicans and Democrats have not agreed about much, but they have agreed that the stakes of the race could not be higher. \u2018If we don\u2019t win this election, I don\u2019t think you\u2019re going to have another election in this country,\u2019 Donald Trump told a rally in Ohio earlier this year. Kamala Harris has said much the same. \u2018At stake in this race are the democratic ideals that our Founders, and generations of Americans, have fought for. At stake in this election is the Constitution itself,\u2019 she told supporters in Pennsylvania in October.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Such rhetoric has become par for the course in our presidential contests. Every election is said to be the most important of our lifetimes, holding in the balance the direction of America\u2019s future if not the very possibility of a future. The narrowness of our elections intensifies this perception of the stakes. The outcome rests on a knife\u2019s edge. Things could easily go either way. This motivates apocalyptic rhetoric to get out every last voter, but it also contributes to a heightened sense of the significance of the outcome.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Levin goes on to say that the nature of the American government \u2014 unlike the consolidated parliamentary systems around the world \u2014 requires broad majorities enduring for an extended period in order to craft legislation that survives all the embedded checks and balances. Hence\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPresidential elections always matter, but close ones tend to matter less. If we are in for another tight election, then we are also likely to be in for another presidency characterized by lots of aggressive talk, little durable action, and much partisan frustration. That\u2019s not great news if your party wins and you want to see dramatic change. But it does suggest that if your party loses, it will have another shot soon enough, and the country won\u2019t be lost in the meantime.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Such means that \u201cboth partisan hopes and partisan fears are misdirected<\/strong> in an era of narrow majorities.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Friends, I\u2019m sensitive to this not being a popular stance. Fear has taken root. I get it; we are passionate. And we indeed feel that this is the most important election in our lifetime!<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

My sense, no less, is the most important election of our lifetime will always be the next one. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So maybe I\u2019m wrong. And know I will examine such as the week goes by and we respectfully wrestle with the results. Maybe, too, it\u2019d be wise to evaluate if we\u2019ve allowed any fear to creep into our thinking. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let us never justify the hate. Of any. Let\u2019s hold on to what\u2019s most important.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Respectfully\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

AR<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s such a strong word. Hate. If I\u2019m fully transparent, it makes me a little uncomfortable. My sense is the discomfort is wise. I remember when my kids were younger and found confidence or solace or something in the reactionary use of the verb \u2014 be it hatred of raisins, the Patriots or the mean … <\/p>\n

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