In a free and open public forum like this, I think everybody takes a certain amount of pride in expressing themselves genuinely, in ways that are meaningful and important to them. As an inevitable result, conflicts will arise when human beings tell their truths and damn the consequences.
In picking at this point, I crossed into some interesting territories. One of them was in picking a strong opinion to express in ways meant to offend and challenge other strong opinions. I knew going in that it was futile and I thought a point could be made that futile pursuits lead to places of futility. I guess I proved it, but at what cost?
FaithMatters, the author who initially stirred me to see how offensive I could be to a segment of the SoulCast community made a really good point. He said:
I like to write from an opinionated voice, even if some find it overbearing.
I realized that I do too. Then I realized perhaps a lot of people do. That is absolutely their right and prerogative. Maybe it goes back to being true to yourself, to your art, to the feelings you have in the moment, whatever. And then I had to think "Wherever you put people together where everyone is being 'genuine' and speaking Truth to Power, and being true to themselves, you will find the other side of human nature, the side that wants to crush the opposition."
I truly believe it is largely human nature to be confrontational when things we hold intimately sacred are challenged, threatened, whether the threat is real or imagined. Human beings can be incredibly creative when it comes to ways of hurting one another, and IMHO we have far too much comfort wielding that power over others. But we also want to live in communities where every one strives for a common goal. Good luck on deciding what that should be!
So what do we do? How do we maintain the bonds of community while being true to ourselves? Is it possible to speak your Truth and damn the consequences AND be a valued part of a functional community? I really don't know the answer, and I'm hoping some of you can enlighten me.
What do you think? Can a functional community tolerate real dyed-in-the wool truth-tellers? Or do we have to function by lying for the sake of the peace? There will always be people with strong opinions, people who are not only not afraid to express them but who will take pride in expressing them virulently. There will always be those who say that if you don't stand up for what you believe in then you run risk of losing it to your silence.
Do you believe a balance can be achieved?
RMLP
