These days it seems that tolerance has become *the* most critical of all virtues. We are expected to tolerate everything, and if we don’t then it is a virtual guarantee that we will find ourselves on the receiving end of some harsh criticism by the politically correct crowd.
But is tolerance always a good thing?
I think not.
In fact, I can think of many things that we should not be tolerant of, such as racism, or sexism.
But those are obvious. No one in their right mind is tolerant of those things, and if they are, very few people in our society are going to take very kindly to them.
But there are other things that we are generally tolerant of that we most certainly should not be tolerating, and yet somehow, through a mix of politically correct idealism, and politically convenient opportunism, we have come to accept in our world.
We should not be tolerating China and its complete disregard for basic human rights, its invasion and theft of Tibet, its inexcusable level of pollution, its terrible abuses of factory workers, or its bizarre combination of communism and fascism.
But we do. We do because our society is greedy, and we have become addicted to its cheap goods. Ironically, our demand for China’s cheap stuff had resulted in a massive demand for oil in China which has caused prices to skyrocket and our lives haven’t ended up any cheaper, just poorer.
We should not tolerate any religion that attempts to force itself on the world or on individuals, and yet we do.
We should not tolerate people based on their skin colour, ethnicity, or heritage if their behaviour is otherwise objectionable.
And yet we do.
The Caledonia Sub-division Case
Several years ago a group of aboriginal Canadian thugs occupied a subdivision in Ontario. They claimed it was theirs. They hadn’t shown a heck of a lot of interest in that land before it was developed (a recurring pattern when it comes to land claims). They held the residents of the development hostage in their homes, preventing them from leaving to go to work for fear they would not be allowed back in. They attacked a family passing through and stole their car. They beat up reporters and damaged their equipment. They stole another vehicle being driven by a border services agent and then attempted to mow down a police officer with it. They stole documents from the office of the developer who owned the land and then attempted to ransom it back. They set piles of tires ablaze on the public highways leading to the site and blocked the operation of the nearby railway. They posted signs with racist and inflammatory statements such as “Canada: your home on native land”.
What happened?
Not what should have happened. None of these thugs were ever punished for their crimes. In fact, the police during the entire occupation were instructed not to interfere. The residents who already lived in the area lost their homes. The incident cost taxpayers millions, the Ontario Government purchased the land to be held in trust. In all likelihood it will eventually be handed to the terrorists who occupied and destroyed a neighbourhood.
What a despicable display of “tolerance”.
What happens to people who speak out against tolerance?
Often, those who have the guts to speak out about the misguided variety of tolerance face serious consequences.