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• Thursday, February 15, 2007 08:12 PM

  almost two sides of the same coin

  I read this article and didn't ever really see anything bordering on taking responsibility for what you actually wrote. I guess I can understand that -- after having been run through the VRWC buzzsaw, it's probably hard if not impossible to feel like a victim. Nevertheless, regardless of what subsequently happened to you -- the drive-by BS that has happened to so many lately -- I would hope that you'd understand that words do have consequences.

  You excuse what you wrote: it was childish, only to be easy to understand, or you never meant to mock someone's personal faith. Yet, by any reasonable standard, your words were incredibly offensive to Christians, and you displayed nothing less than a contempt for them that equaled the contempt that your detractors have had for you in the time since. It is certainly true that your words are being used cynically by much more powerful ideologues who will someday come to know that they never came close to advancing God's kingdom, but yet: Can you really say with a straight face that you never meant to mock someone's personal faith? Can you ever possibly say that you as well aren't an ideologue with an axe to grind, and that you'd go far past reasonable in order to advance your agenda?

  As was written in the Adventus blog,

  If you want to engage in public life at all, beyond shouting opinions and spouting your preference and gathering to you people of like mind who nod at your "sage" pronouncements, you have to take responsibility for what you say. It doesn't mean "they" get a free pass for threatening your life or simply your job; but it does mean they get to swing back, and you can't retreat behind complaining about their "hurt feelings." If that's the best you've got, the kitchen's gonna be too hot for you.

  (http://rmadisonj.blogspot.com/2007/02/jesus-loves-me-but-he-cant-stand-you.html)

  I hope in the future for dialog, for understanding, for something other than this vicious cycle of recrimination and hate. I'm sick of it. We're liberals, after all, and isn't bringing light with love into the world what we should be about? (And yeah, I hope that sounds familiar.)

  Anyway, I wish you well, and may the crazies be satisfied with their pelt on the wall and leave you alone in the future.

  —Charles
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