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Politics : Sharks in the Septic Tank -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Neocon who wrote (38921)	11/27/2001 1:15:29 PM
From: Solon	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 82486

I qualify as having an "Imaginary Friend". I have always found the banter about having an Imaginary Friend arch, petty, and insulting. Your remarks show your bias. People who do not believe in "imaginary friends" should not be expected or forced to play nurse-maid to those who do. When the issue being confronted concerns religious, philosophical, or topical interests to which the concept applies; the participants should be expected to avoid hypocrisy, and to voice their true beliefs. People have every right to believe in imaginary friends, and people have every right not to believe in them. The belief in "imaginary friends" often ridicules the rationality and the moral worth of those who do not share such a belief. That this disdain should pass both ways is not remarkable in any way. Maby people have bveen approached by the "imaginary friend: club and treated as if they were lacking in truth, knowledge, judgment, and essential moral worth due to their clear reasoning. They have been told they will go to Hell and be eternally punished if they do not... Blah, blah, blah... Is it any wonder that these people defend their ideas by contrasting them (usually when provoked, btw) with the "ideas" of people who have had imaginary friends assist them "personally" in "providential" ways?? People who express beliefs in "imaginary friends" are, or ought to be, familiar with the relationship of imaginary guides in the history of developmental psycholgy and in abnormal behaviour. They should not be surprised at either the confusion, or the legitimate safety precautions taken by people who have a justified and educated fear of unnatural and extraordinary claims. Many people are very uncomfortable around those who claim they are being guided by "imaginary friends". Even people who belive in "imaginary friends" tend to become very uncomfortable when they are confronted by people who believe in "imaginary friends" who are stronger, better, or more believable than their own. Supercillious and insouciant attitudes may be provocative even when there are no negative intents. History and experience teach us that "imaginary friends" normaly relate to the infancy both of humans...and of human cultures. It is unfortunate that such extreme diferences of perception sometimes result in scoffing, mockery, pity, or heartbreak from either side. But the fact remains that people living in an imaginary world (or more accurately: people including an imaginary world) occupy a mental sphere which is bound to create discomfort, fear, and appreghension on both sides. Peoploe who do not believe in imaginary friends are also disturbed by the history of blood that was shed by those who claimed imaginary authority in the past. Sometimes the most natural reaction to that which is feared is to dismiss the fear with ridicule or chuckles. When we have seen the WTC go down in such tragic loss of life it becomes more and more difficult to countenance the posture of those supported by "imaginary friends"--especially when we find ourselves mocked by their haughty insolence... It is best when both sides can admit to the huge gap which separates their sensibilities. Rationalists must admit to their fear of people with "imaginary friends" if they are to curb their tendency to ridicule such people. The truth is that there are mabny good people on both sides of this particular issue of whether or not life is imaginary. Many people are very afraid of death. It does not mean they are "cowards"; but it does make them susceptible to an INFINITE number of "imaginary" beliefs. This can be quite frightening for people who have a grasp of history. People should make the effort to control hurtful comments which derive from specters of fear. The fact that these fears relate to the perceived danger of beliefs rather than the people themselves, is pertinent...but it does not justify a laziness in trying to overcome this discomfort around those who proselytize for supernatural authority...