Taking Things Personal

By Douglas V. Gibbs
Author, Speaker, Instructor, Radio Host

The liberal left has predicated their whole social justice movement on a warped version of "if you don't have something nice to say, don't say anything at all."  While in its purest form, the mantra is essentially true, that does not mean we should go around suffering from emotional wounds every time someone says something to us that may be considered offensive, or off-color.  More often than not, the person delivering what we believe to be hurtful words of hate are not doing it to offend someone or target a particular individual ... and, they probably don't hate you.

In my growth as an individual over that last half-century (and then some) it took me years to quit taking things personal.  Reality dictates that the world does not revolve around us.  Self-absorbed individuals who think that it does, and are offended by everything someone says, are more often than not seeking victimhood, or they are looking for a way to be offended so as to support a political narrative.

That said, sometimes wounds are deep enough that we can be hurt by what someone has said, even though they may unknowingly do it; or, we may hurt others by what we say without even realizing it.

This is where the line between conservatives and liberals is drawn.

Liberals then lash out, call the person a "hater," and create social justice crusades to silence anyone who may say such hurtful things.  Conservatives step back, assess the situation, and realize the person delivering the hurtful remarks likely did not realize that what they were saying could be taken in a hurtful manner, or may be offensive.  Besides, why would we want other individuals to have that kind of control over our emotions?

In my growth over the years I have gotten to the point that you can't offend me.  Sure, there are some deeply rooted things that, if twisted just right, can create hurt deep inside me.  Sure, there are certain things that can be said, or championed, that reminds me of horrendous events that happened to me when I was young.  And I suppose if I wanted to I could lash out at the speaker, or blame my parents, or use a broad brush to paint every member of a particular group (of which my attackers when I was young belonged to) as violent, or rapists, or child molesters.  But, would that really be accurate?  Would that be a strategy that would solve my discomfort or pain?  Would such a tactic be good for my world around me?

In the end, I figure I need to just buck up, understand that the person either likely didn't mean it, or if they did the Lord will deal with them in His own way.  I don't have time for dirtbags, or people who just didn't know any better, to ruin my day.  I have too many positive things to accomplish in my life to become a victim and therefore a social justice warrior crying over every drop of spilled milk, thus, creating a negative swirl of pity around me.

In short, while this may seem harsh, in most cases my advice is, "get over it."  Life is too short to act like a crying, whimpering, victimized liberal.

-- Political Pistachio Conservative News and Commentary