Speak your mind.

I have a question. About speaking your mind. I've been wondering about this for a very long time. I like to consider myself a very open and understanding person. And yet, I am often the first person to get on their soapbox and start rambling about my thoughts and beliefs. So, that's my question. We hear about how it's the right thing to do. Stand up for what you believe in. Don't be afraid to have differing viewpoints. I just wonder if standing up for what you believe in can turn into attacking another group. This sounds kind of bizarre and I know it doesn't really make a lot of sense, but bear with me while I try and figure this out.

So, about me. Like I said before, I consider myself to be pretty open and accepting of most ideas. But then, the double standard comes in. There are certain things that I really, really disagree with and they can set me off. I guess that's normal, we can't all agree on everything. I just start feeling guilty when I say that I respect everyone's viewpoints, but then I get kind of angry when people disagree with me. Ah, I don't know, I don't think there is one easy answer. I just wish I could wrap my head around this idea a little bit more.

It's hard. I can't isolate myself in a world where there are people who only agree with me. Even in a group of the most open-minded people, without other people with different views, those people can become narrow minded. So, I may feel like screaming when I hear people talk about certain things, like I want to pull my hair out. I know that it's still important to be exposed to other things. And when I make assumptions about the people who have those different views, I'm no better than anyone who says that they believe in the one and only right idea.

But back to where I started, about how standing up for what you can believe can turn into an attack on other people. I don't really know what I am talking about with that statement. All I know is that it's something I feel like I've seen before. Okay, I think I may have figured it out. Maybe it's not that standing up for or expressing your beliefs can turn into attacking another group. Maybe that's a cover that people use. They can say a statement that is totally unfair and hurtful to another group's views, after they have expressed their beliefs, and then just say they were doing the same thing. I think that is the root of most of the stuff I was talking about. It's a tricky topic and there's no way I can begin to unravel how I feel about it or what the truth is in a couple of paragraphs. All I know is that there is a positive way to stand up for what you believe in, and that is what we should all keep doing.

- Katie