I DON'T HAVE TO.

 



I don't have to accept violence, stupidity, general rudeness and/or obscenity. My refusal does not mean I am racist, islamophobic or xenophobic. I just means I am educated, candid and know my own mind.

 

"Can't we all just get along?" Rodney King's simplistic bumper sticker slogan is just that. The answer is a firm "No." when getting along means accepting antisocial behavior or denying simple facts. As I watched a 30-something man leisurely graffiti a butcher-block bench on the opposite platform of my subway station, I did not feel the warmth of brotherly anything. I did not rationalize his behavior by telling myself he is part of an oppressed minority. I took his photo with my camera for submission to the transit police.

 

Some behaviors are and should be socially intolerable. Open shoplifting is one. I see this all the time in my local shopping plaza. Vandalism is not always "public art", no matter what Banksy fans might say. Tagging is most often ugly, no-talent vandalism. It costs taxpayers money to repair. It costs shop owners and homeowners time, aggravation and money. It is usually emblematic of drug-related  activity. I don't have to accept it as OK in the public space.

 

Addicts are now washing windshields at a nearby intersection. They have extended the light cycle wait threefold at this busy traffic light. When an addict approaches my windshield, I tell him "No." I do not have to accept his behavior or buy his unsolicited service. I can ring the police and report him, as I have done. Or, I can simply say "No." and facilitate everyone else's journey through the light.

 

Howling neo-Liberals, led by wealthy politicos, have tried to bully those of us who live ethical and compassionate lives within the law to believe we must goose-step to their superficial judgments as to what is acceptable in their concept of an enlightened society. They excuse lawlessness in some as acceptable and justified. This makes sense because many wealthy Americans have been involved on some level in some form of white-collar crime or exploitation. While those of us who respect law and peaceful coexistence in a lawful society are often painted as intolerant. The Huffington Post is one mouthpiece of this trend.

 

It is good to remember that Arianna Huffington is a woman who played at being a conservative Republican while married to her wealthy husband, a Republican politician, closet-case homosexual and heir to a petrochemical fortune. Her wealth and fame are based on her climb within social aristocracy. Once securely embedded in that aristocracy, she has relentlessly exploited the Left for personal profit. She is one of the 1%. Hardly someone who should be respected as a sponsor of an egalitarian ethic. I don't have to.