Darkwulfe (Musing of a Madman) recently wrote one of the sort of posts we should all be writing every now and then. We are so used to looking at others that it can be easy to forget to examine ourselves, our biases, and our motivations. I don't imagine there are many atheists who haven't at one time or another asked themselves whether they might be guilty of some of the same intolerance of which they accuse religious believers. At least, I hope we all remember to ask this of ourselves from time to time.
Darkwulfe describes a thought-provoking encounter:
One person I love and respect very much has told me that I am intolerant of intolerance and therefore I have no right to really say anything since I am equally intolerant. He also tells me I am judgmental of judgmental people and therefore have no right to judge them for being judgmental. While a bit circular in his logic, to a point he has a grain of truth in what he is saying.
I understand and admire Darkwulfe's willingness to take a hard look at himself and consider the merit in this claim. I am no stranger to asking these questions of myself, and it is something I strive to repeat on a fairly regular basis. And yet, I have come to terms with one thing: I am definitely intolerant of intolerance. And for this, I make no apologies.
I reject the suggestion that being intolerant of intolerance is somehow hypocritical or equivalent to the sort of intolerance against which I routinely rail. This is a false claim, and I'm not buying it in the slightest. To say that I am intolerant because I oppose Christian bigotry against gays, women, or atheists is absurd on its face.
I hope that Darkwulfe keeps blogging, and I hope that he continues to put himself into his blog. I plan to do the same.
