Devoneaux said:
Or instead of being vindictive you could take the high road and at least give the man a chance. It's not like you have something to lose by doing so. Be cynical if you please, I sure as hell will. With that said though, always be willing to give others a chance to learn and grow, always keep an open mind, otherwise, you become no better than the zealous ignorant partisans you'd probably say you dislike.
I'm not sure I said anything particularly vindictive. I wished him no ill at all. I'm all for giving people second chances, that wasn't what I was annoyed by.
Let me think of a better example: If you've been a smoker for ten years, and you quit, I'm truly happy for you. But having quit gives you no moral standing to run around telling other people /they/ have to quit. You have /less/ moral standing than a non-smoker, because you smoked for ten years. It was fine when you did it.
And that's kind of what Beck is doing in that video, whether he means to or not.
He's made a lifetime's living out of dividing people, and now he's had a revelation and wants everyone to just get along and stop being mean to each other. That's lovely - really, it is. I wish we could all just get along. But for him, of all people, to be preaching a message of tolerance and acceptance makes my teeth grind. It's not a particularly noble reaction on my part, just a human one.
I sincerely hope he'll prove my cynicism wrong and this won't be another 'vick's vapor rub under the eyes' emotional moment from him. It will take a bit more than a ten minute video to do so.