When The Paradox Of Tolerance Blinds Our Pathway To Responsible Citizenship

"Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?' `That depends a good deal on where you want to get to,' said the Cat. `I don't much care where--' said Alice. `Then it doesn't matter which way you go,' said the Cat."   Lewis Carroll

It's always been a challenging journey on the road to accountability. The pitfalls, the obstructions, the doubts, and the distractions require focus on the destination. If we don't know where we're going any path will take us there. The paradox of tolerance is one such distraction, an ominous pitfall for any responsible citizen of America.

We hold tightly to those principles that we are all created equal, that we are all guaranteed the rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Nowhere in those words is there a guarantee of happiness, just the right to pursue such a goal. It is our personal responsibility to do the work to achieve that last "right."

In a nation of immigrants, the veritable "melting pot" of diversity that built America, there is another blending that is required for the future of our nation. That fact hasn't changed in the 200 plus years of our national existence and is an absolute that won't change.

Tolerance for differing views and customs must be balanced by those inalienable rights mentioned in paragraph two. In short, our freedoms extend up to the point where they infringe on another person's freedoms.

Thomas Jefferson stated long ago, regarding this important notion of tolerance, "let them stand undisturbed as monuments of the safety with which error of opinion may be tolerated where reason is left free to combat it."

Translated into common sense, which unfortunately isn't all that common, tolerance doesn't mean ignoring those basic rights of all innocent humans.

In this page we'll look at a couple key points in the balancing act of accountability and tolerance. We'll also offer an easy cure for doubt, fear, and worry in the last section.

The Paradox of Tolerance

"If we extend unlimited tolerance even to those who are intolerant, if we are not prepared to defend a tolerant society against the onslaught of the intolerant, then the tolerant will be destroyed, and tolerance with them." Karl Popper

The common sense definition of tolerance is an acceptance of different viewpoints and a willingness to calmly discuss those differences with an end goal of common ground that serves the overall success. That seems straightforward and the responsible path to follow.

But the evidence suggests this paradox of tolerance has instead moved from the clear path of responsible dialogue aimed at working for the good of the nation to a more selfish, arrogant tone for many and an indifferent, apathetic direction for many more, a path described by "The Cheshire Cat."

The paradox of tolerance is that those who pontificate about being tolerant are by their actions, the most intolerant. They disavow any personal accountability for their situation and instead demand a set of rules that allows them to ignore the inalienable rights of every other citizen.

They also want to get paid. They want some free government money, all the while either oblivious to the fact that there is no free government money, or they just don't care as long as they get paid. Someone is footing the bill for that "free money."

“Toleration is often just indifference in disguise.” Frederick Buechner

The other side of this debilitating paradox is the growing number of citizens who have decided they will remain silent to all the noise either out of fear of being labeled or because they just don't have the will or the desire to take a stand for truth.

Too often now, many folks just don't care enough to actively address issues, even the most unjust or problematic. The positive aspect of tolerance has shifted to a passive indifference.

“Societies are far gone in depravity when toleration is considered a good in itself, without regard to the thing tolerated.” G. K. Chesterton

So What Do We Do?

This is another common sense issue. This is another time when responsible citizens of America need to call out the lies and hold people accountable.

True tolerance is accepting that we come from different places. Does diversity increase tolerance? It should, but it will only do so when coupled with personal accountability. Our follow up page about the Freedom Riders offers an example.

The Freedom Riders faced roadblocks from the side that vehemently disagreed with their basic rights as citizens of America. They also faced criticism from those supposedly on their side, because that segment didn't want to embrace and accept their own responsibility as citizens. They sought to match violence with violence. 

If we don't know where we're going, any road will get us there. As responsible citizens we need to call out the hypocrisy of this intolerant tolerance that only accepts those who agree with them. Everyone else is vilified and dismissed as fascists, extremists, or simply ignorant.

It's up to us as leaders to restore dialogue, embrace the skills and talents of fellow citizens and "hope-to-be citizens" and stand up to the bully tactics on display.

It's up to us to teach our young people the real meaning of tolerance and accountability.

And now for that easy cure for doubt, fear, and worry. Turn off the "news" channels. Cable and network. They haven't been real news channels for years. If nearly every story centers around the president, any president, or leads with "Twitter and Facebook are buzzing," they aren't reporting news. They are pandering to an audience and stoking division to grab ratings. 

“The new tolerance swamps penetrating discussion about truth and morality: tolerance is widely perceived to be more important and more enduring than either. The result is a greater tendency to believe lies and to come adrift in immorality” D. A. Carson

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