Attitudes

I have to keep telling myself "I will not let my diary die.  I will not go months without making an entry."  The problem, I think, is that the things I have to write about aren’t clear enough in my head.  I can’t articulate my thoughts well enough to make for a meaningful entry.  There’s also the issue of having time.  When I’m not working on homework, I’ve been talking to Jules.  I really like that boy.

Anyway, today’s entry will be about attitudes.  Specifically, I’ll address why I care about your attitudes and what your attitudes should be.  So pay attention, this could very well change your attitude about everything.

Introduction, first.  When I say this is about attitudes, I’m referring to opinions.  Attitudes are tricky things.  The important ones are incredibly resilient to change, which makes them an interesting topic to study.  The thing is, when we agree with someone else’s attitudes, we like that they are so resilient.  But when we come up against someone who has one of those nasty attitudes that we don’t agree with, we want to know how we can change it, because dagnabbit, we hate people with different opinions than us.

Anyway, here’s the reason I care about your attitudes.  Because sometimes your attitudes aversely affect me and others around you.  For example, if your attitude causes you to believe people of different races should not be married, and you act on that attitude by voting for a ban on interracial marriages, you are aversely affecting those who want to have an interracial marriage.  On the other hand, if you don’t act on that attitude by voting, you allow others to live how they wish and you still have the personal freedom to not have an interracial marriage yourself.  This same reasoning applies to most bans of things.  If, for example, you don’t like naughty words on television, then the solution is to not watch shows that have naughty words.  If you instead lobby restrictions on naughty words, then you deny others the freedom to watch shows with naughty words.

So that’s why I care about your attitudes.  Now technically, your attitudes wouldn’t have to matter to me.  The situation should be that you all have your attitudes and you keep your attitudes to yourself without infringing on everyone else’s attitudes.  This doesn’t happen.  When you have your opinions about things, you tend to legislate those opinions rather than allow others the opportunity – the freedom – to follow their own opinions.

So now we get to the part where I tell you what your attitudes should be.  Your attitudes can include anything your heart desires with one exception.  You can’t use your attitudes to prevent other people from having their own attitudes – whatever they may be.  So when you are faced with a vote between passing a law that would restrict someone else from doing something in their own lives and not passing that law which would allow them to do that thing while still giving you the choice to not have it a part of your life, you are morally obligated to allow the other person to live his or her own life.  You are not God with the power to tell others what they can and cannot do.  What they do – the morality of their actions – is between them and whatever higher force might exist.  So that’s the attitude you should have.  I expect you to make intelligent decisions from now on.