A brief rant about rampant willful ignorance

Willful ignorance is like kudzu. It grows willy-nilly over everything, obscuring whatever was once there into vague shapes of their former selves.

I rarely talk about current "events" on here, and boy do I use the word "event" lightly, but this one thing seems like a perfect microcosm of everything that's gone wrong with modern discourse. I blame the vultures that are 24/7 "news" outlets for this and many other things, including the Trump beast. I somewhat blame social media as well, but unlike the so-called news, it can at least be used as a voice of reason too. Social media is today's free press, for better or worse.

So WTF am I talking about? Well, let's start with one of my favorite things in the whole wide world, the 2004 World Series Champion Boston Red Sox. Nothing takes me to my happy place more effectively than thinking about that glorious October. My favorite story from that favorite year was, of course, Curt Schilling and his bloody sock. I may have idolized this man and his grit a bit excessively, including bowing down to the bloody sock "we're not worthy" style at Cooperstown, but IT WAS THE STUFF OF LEGENDS. It still is. The man did have grit, and he put his money where his mouth was, and I loved him for that.

Unfortunately, he also puts his mouth where his ass is. And thus, my introduction to BATHROOM PANIC 2016. Or maybe we'll call it Bathroom 6. Y'know, like the motel. Cause that's what we name shitstorms after. I'm not here to judge him or anyone for their political or any other beliefs, but I will judge you if you post something knowingly stupid and bigoted with the intent to fearmonger.

Now, this bathroom thing is incredibly stupid, and this is what I mean by a microcosm of what's gone wrong. This is the kind of dumb, petty issue that gets blown up into this huge thing, fueled by "news" networks and social media, because we have no effin clue how to tackle the real problems like say, homeless veterans or police brutality or working families who can no longer get by. So this dumbass shit becomes a HYPERFOCUS, because hey, maybe we can micromanage who uses a damn bathroom, even if we can't solve starving children or people dying of curable diseases. I CLAIM THIS BATHROOM STALL FOR ME, BITCHES. FOR GREAT JUSTICE.

So imma burst this bubble real damn fast. Transgender people are not a new thing. It's something that's talked about more, because everything is talked about more on the internet, including the color of a damn dress and the miracle way to slice a pineapple (really - https://www.yahoo.com/beauty/internet-freaking-over-crazy-way-135943958.html - but that page crashed my Chrome so I don't recommend going to it. Sorry, pineapple lovers.) That means men who were born women and women who were born men have been sharing public bathrooms for a long time already. So... where are the reports of all these vicious attacks that must have been going on for years? I've never heard of a single one. It must be a cover up!

Or maybe, it's not an issue at all. Maybe everyone just wants to pee in peace. The people making this an issue are afraid, but not of being attacked while doing their business. They're afraid of change, and people who are different. And that's the real issue, and the one that should be talked about without getting into all these damn distractions. I mean, you have to try really damn hard to make this an issue.

Finally - I'm not here to tell people what they should think, or believe. No one should. But when you think your own thoughts and beliefs should actively impede others' rights, especially when it doesn't even affect your own life, that's when we have a problem. You don't have to accept another person's lifestyle, and no one can force you to, but you do have to share the planet with them. So just try to be decent however you can.