Initial response: "of course it does." And yeah, maybe you're right- look at
Columbine for instance. An act of
violence, it's an act of
hatred. Or perhaps a
revolt for what was perceived as hatred towards them. For others,
hate is a
barrier, a
defense mechanism. This can go one of two ways (that I see)- 1) One
desires for everyone else to hate them. - This way they don't have to
deal with
people, with
caring. It's so easy to say "oh, they hate me" and
brush off anything that can be
emotionally
painful. 2) One who hates everyone/everything. Hating everything is
easy- it makes life easier. As with #1, doing this
detaches them from
confrontation,
emotion,
distress, etc.
So, what can we do? Hate these people who love hate? It seems a little
twisted. And perhaps a bit
pointless.
Spreading the hatred won't make people
stop hating. So, don't be
afraid of hatred-
reach out, and try to
understand.
The only thing to fear is fear itself. When you
offer your
hand to those
bitter to take it, it gives a
twinge of
caring. And maybe someday, we'll all
break down and
reach to the
softness inside. Even in the most
cold of us (and I speak from experience), we know that it exists somewhere. It's a
frightening thought to many of us, but maybe one day we can handle it.
This is a VERY
overused subject, and I don't particuarly like it- but just as an example.... What if someone had offered kindness to the
Columbine shooters? (Given them a
chance before they took everyone's lives into their own hands.)
Bitter children- they would have
cursed,
bitten, like
rabid animals-
sworn that we were all
bastards, and they didn't want our *
bitter sarcastic tone* "
kindness." Yeah- and you think "those
ungrateful..." But
inside, I think we all
feel better after someone reaches out to us. And eventually, over time, it
breaks all barriers.
Don't be afraid of hatred. Understand it,
use it when necessary, and try
not to fear in it's face.
Hatred grows when it
works.