Don't hurt my feelings, bro

There is a pall that has settled over our society in recent years. I can't help but think it has certain strong ties to the whole idea of "political correctness." You know, that particular bit of insanity that one Texas A&M student defined as "...a doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority, and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick
up a turd by the clean end."

We are entirely too afraid to hurt people's feeling in today's overly litigious society. What a crock...

Recent events have unfolded around the world that have made it abundantly clear, at least to me, that there are plenty of philosophies that we should openly criticize. But we're afraid to call a spade a spade; I mean, someone might get butt-hurt over our insensitivity.

I'm a firm believer that you should be able to formulate your own opinions on all matters spiritual and philosophical, and I'm happy that I live in a country where (at least on paper) I'm allowed to adhere to and practice these beliefs without fear of open persecution. That is...as long as my actions fall within the legal boundaries we've all agreed to as a society.

So how can it be that I'm proposing a wholesale opposition to the moral code that someone else chooses? Isn't that a bit hypocritical?

Let me give a concrete example. Let's say you believe that it's all right to stone your daughter in the street because she married someone you didn't agree with? "But it's what I was raised to believe is right." Are we supposed to turn a blind eye to this philosophy? Are we supposed to, as a society, let this go in the name of freedom? Horseshit. I'm just going to go out on a limb and say what many of us are thinking: If you are willing to throw bricks at a member of your family because they decided to marry an "unsavory" character, you are an asshole. Not only that, you are a dangerous asshole. And your beliefs are a danger to society. Turning a blind eye to such beliefs in the name of freedom and protecting civil rights only endangers innocent lives.

Granted, this is an extreme example. This wouldn't happen in the US, right? I knew of a man years ago that came here from the Middle East. He went to school in the US, and became a doctor. He was working at a local hospital in the Emergency Room. He had started a family, and had an 18 year-old daughter. In a casual conversation one night, he was asked what he would do if his daughter brought home a black man she had decided to marry. His response: he would send her to his home country on the first plane he could book in order to be killed by her family.

Here was an educated man willing to kill his own daughter over something most of us take for granted; her right to choose her own partner in marriage. You want this guy taking care of you in the ER? You want this guy making life-or-death decisions for your loved ones?

To be clear, I'm certainly not advocating taking up arms and crusading against other cultures. I'm merely suggesting that not all philosophical viewpoints are created equal. We have a fairly well-defined set of basic human rights in this country (at least, compared to others). We need not let others shit on them because we're afraid to hurt someone's feelings.