Have you ever woken up in the morning and thought, "Good morning Canada, what are we offended by today?" I sure have. The minute we decide to check our social media feeds, listen to a podcast or radio station, read the newspaper (yes, they are still around), or watch the news on TV, we see yet another article/rant about why people should not say this or call someone that. It always involves someone, usually in the public eye (because that’s who we tend to lash out at first), who has said something that has somehow offended another person. Since when did everything we say become something that could be used against us? I mean, I thought this was a country where we could openly voice our opinions, and that sometimes, we could constructively critique someone else.
It seems that the world we live in has become such a touchy and sensitive place, almost to the point that a lot of people will not make their voice heard in fear that someone, even the media, may twist what they say around to make it ugly.
I was reading a comment on a Facebook page the other day; the poster was just voicing their opinion about the price of gas at the local stations, which seems to be a hot topic for most of us. They did it in a positive, constructive way and it wasn’t offensive (even to the Oil and Gas companies). This person was actually trying to defend them, while stating their opinion about overpaying for gas. As I’m not glued to Facebook all day long, by the time I got to it there were 89 comments. Some applauding her for her opinion, others stating their own opinions in a tasteful way, but unfortunately most were calling the person dumb, stupid or an idiot because they believed something different. The worst part was that once one negative comment was made, multiple people replied to the comment agreeing with it.
Everyone has the right to voice their opinion. I am not condoning others to speak hatred and to talk down to others. However, I do think this is the land where we should be able to say things and have a discussion with others about their opinion. It's time to accept that not everyone will have the same opinion, and that is fine. What's not fine is making someone feel less than you for not having the same opinion. So, what do we do? We change the way we say things and we keep softening up, until absolutely everything we say is "offensive?" Do we continue to lash out at the person who voices their opinion, embarrassing them and ourselves in the process? Heck no! We should respect their opinion and if we decide to comment or participate in the discussion, let’s keep it above board and tasteful.