The Theme of Heaping Emerges

Once again I ask myself: Should I stay on Facebook?

I tend to see life in themes. In thematic re-occurrences that seem to randomly appear from random people across the globe on Facebook. They don’t know each other and probably are not even on each others’ friends list. Some weeks, people post about animal abuse or goofy kid actions and Themes emerge. It seems to happen on a global scale. Last week, it was “Fear of our Government”

Yesterday, another theme started to emerge.

It started innocently enough with someone declaring “All Writers are Stupid” meaning that all writers choose to right what they want, rather than what they are being paid to write. This was not directed at me. This was directed at a writer or a non-associated group of writers, who, according to this person, was being stupid and not writing along the lines he was supposed to follow.

I reminded him that I considered myself a writer and the subject changed direction. I didn’t even get a courteous “except you, of course!”

No problem. It is an age-old battle in entertainment and will continue on long after I am gone.

But the conversation saddened me, as I had been tossed onto the scrapheap collectively with the Stupid Ones.

The emergence of the Theme continued.

The second conversation that surfaced later that day, came from a lovely person, a person of great inner beauty, of extra-ordinary physical beauty and filled with the spirit of love, honesty, grace, sincerity…well everything you would probably desire in a mate. I personally know this person to be brilliant, actually one of the top 5 brilliant people, I have ever met on this planet when it comes to brilliance. This person even introduced me to Burning Man a dozen years ago. So you understand their credentials. They are cool and they live in a cool place, travel and do cool things that many of us would be jealous of…

This person proclaimed that they had lost all faith in true love, that all mates (men, I suppose) confused physical infatuation with sincere love and there appeared to be no one able to fill the gap left by lack of love that they were able to find in the world. In all honesty and seeming humility, all faith had been lost in all humanity. And I don’t believe honestly that her demands or expectations were too high. Just that she was at the precipice of giving up.

Knowing how highly I regard this person in so many ways, I was saddened by the emptiness in their life. I felt helpless and felt I had been placed among the throngs that would be overwhelmed by the intimidations of her brilliance and physical beauty.

The final straw came in the form of a blog post from a Facebook friend. It was a blog post that was reminiscent of the 60’s, as Black Power began to emerge as a political force in our country. People like Stokely Carmichael proclaimed that “Black Power was for the Black Man!” and no amount of agreement that I had as a young white long-haired hippie white rebel at the time, would allow me to actively support or even understand the depth and motivations for the growth of this movement.

I got it. He didn’t want the Black Power movement diluted by including non-Blacks (read men) among their ranks.

I was saddened by not being able to support, but I understood.

Well 40 years later it resurfaced yesterday in a blog post that proclaimed that violence against Women had to cease and it was right for a woman to fear a man as men (collectively) were the primary cause of violence against woman and that ALL MEN WERE excluded from support. The blog exclaimed:

               “The reality is that the world is not a safe place for women--even in the western world which we love to tout as being progressive and inclusive. We women exist in a culture that promotes the idea that we are tools and objects to be used and won…This is why it's crucial for you to understand that we don't need you bursting onto the stage like you're Kanye West saying, "I'm really sorry about your hardship, and I'mma let you finish telling your story, but I just wanna say, not all men are abusers and rapists." Yes, we know that. But we're not talking about the percentage of men who abuse women. We're talking about the percentage of women who are abused by men--it turns out that that's a bloody high number.”

And in conclusion:

               “In the end, #YesAllWomen exists because #NotAllMen listen.”

Wow!

Once again, I am tossed on the scrapheap with the “All Writers are Stupid, All Men are potentially abusive mentally and physically to Women and All Men are potentially insincere and probably incapable of a true and fulfilling love.”

I just never thought I would make that group but the theme emerged and there is little I can do to take my name from the list. I can deny the lists exist, I can crawl back into my desert sand hill, I can even stand proudly, waving my fist and proclaim I am not Stupid, I have never been violent in my life (that is a true statement), I don’t believe I have ever whistled at someone, lusted after their body parts, felt the urge to force myself on them, belittled their knowledge, size or sexuality in public or private.

I support Hillary Clinton for President,damn it and think some of the greatest leaders on the Planet have been women.

Somehow, I think I missed the whole “judge someone by their sex, color, race or size” thing. If I hate you, want to demean you, disregard you or if you just generall disgust me, it is not because you are a woman or a race other than white or any particular religion (although I do seem to have a problem with Mormons…whew!), it is because I think YOU are an asshole.

Not the group I align you with, although I do tend to clump the Right Wing and Republican Tea Party in a heap.

No! I dislike YOU and I refuse to write off an entire race, sex, species, religion and yes somewhat, even Political affiliation.

It does sadden me that 3 times this week already (and we are just 3 days into a week) that I have been lumped into a despicable heap of All this and All that. I feel hopelessly trapped since I have been warned there is little I can do to remove the labels of shame from my forehead and climb down off the heap.

Finally, I don’t dislike any of these “All-Inclusive-Heapers”, in fact, I like and respect them each for who they are as individuals. I don’t blame their frustrations. I am not an idiot or a rapist or an oggler at normally private parts of any human being (I am a Burner, damn it! We have standards and we have to know how to look at someone when they walk up to you naked and ask directions to the Nude Lawn Dart Toss and understand that is not an invitation to touch, lick or fondle them in anyway!)  but I realize this can be an ugly, mean and stupid world.

But today…all of this heaping has saddened me. Hey, I will get over it. As always, I am looking for your input,