Who hates more: Christians, Gays, Liberals, Republicans, or... You?

I think with all of these groups there is a disconnect between leadership and base. Neither Conservatives or Liberal ideology can be characterized as hateful in pure form. Same goes for Christianity, for certain.

The hate generally comes from people who choose a side without much thought, and then seek to verify their own position by demonizing the opposition in fear of being wrong.

When I see political ads on TV, it is clear that these campaigns are targeting such people. It's almost as if there is a subtext flashing "YOU'RE AN IDIOT"

Of course, playing to emotion is a proven tactic in politics, can't really blame a guy for getting his votes.

Mob psychology.

The hope is that things like the internet will ultimately lead to a more educated population and democracy will strengthen.

As far as the most hateful group? - I think I'll go with mosquitoes.

Just posted, but something I'd like to add:

Is a hateful personality explicitly the fault of the individual? Or is it more like a virus or genetic disorder that has been passed down throughout history.

Would you blame a black guy for harboring a little resentment toward white people?

Or Native Americans?

I often envision hate and other forms of negativity as a super organism that multiplies in a way similar to bacteria.

Most of us probably have a good deal of hate passed to us in childhood. Bully's in school, abusive adults, war in society etc. The key is figuring out a way to reduce the anger within oneself without passing it to someone else and allowing the "virus" to multiply.

Maybe the greatest of all challenges....

reply to post by MassOccurs


I think that is a great point, and I think the answer is 'a little bit of both.'

It definitely is true that all of us are passed down some sort of hate/anger/fear/judgement that we then accept at a young age as 'just the way it is.' This gets embedded on a social and personal psychological level.
We all know the dreaded feeling of realizing that we became 'just like my parents.'
This is especially true for certain groups or certain areas, especially in the minorities that have had it rough over the last few decades/centuries. It really is understandable to some degree.

But with that said, every individual is an extremely powerful human being, and are the only one responsible for the way they feel and the thoughts they have. I believe it is our responsibility to heal our parents wounds through healing ourselves, and to stop spreading the hurt and pain on to the next generation.

There are probably some groups who WANT people to remain angry and fear based. When you have someone living in anger/fear they are immediately less powerful than when they embody love and positivity. Thus, when you have an entire group or population living in fear/anger, they will naturally NEED a leader to have power over them. Can you say..."American Politics?"

Cheers!

This is very easily resolved through basic observation. Take an image of ANY large scale gathering of the Right and compare it to ANY large scale gathering of ANY group simply to the left of the hardcore right wingers. Look carefully at the picture. The one on the Right will almost exclusively be white people. It might as well be a skin head rally. Any other non Right group you will see made up of many races, ethnicity and creeds. That pretty much sums it up -- one group's intolerance is easily reflected just as other groups' tolerance is easily reflected in the pictures.

I don't play the false equivalency game of "Gee, they all do it." That is an apologists view. Humans can and should make continual value judgments on groups in their midst, especially groups seeking power.

In the U.S. among liberals or progressives, you can name VERY few prominent true bombasts and public hatemongers and none with widespread support. Maybe Alan Grayson, who holds no office and is not by any means prominent. Don't give me names like Rachel Maddow -- anyone who's seen her shows or watched her interviews know she is patient, thoughtful, respectful and factual (I challenge anyone to find me a Rachel Maddow piece proven to be false or a piece where she is bombastic and nasty like an O'Reilly).

On the Right the list is endless of those who really trot out hate and vitriol in a belligerent way, and this is key, to the applause of their fellow righties. We saw it clearly in the Repub debates, where the gay soldier was booed, where the sick person without healthcare was booed, in town halls around the country where reality nasty stuff said by the Right gets raucous applause. A very small partial list?

Rush Limbaugh
Glenn Beck
Sarah Palin
Allan West
Sharon Angle
Joe Arapaio
Joe Walsh
Michelle Buchannan
Ann Coulter
Sean Hannity
Michelle Maulkin

Look, anyone who is honest can see it and EVERYONE outside the U.S. with half a brain sees it.With the American Right, it is MAINSTREAM to be EXTREME. In fact, being moderate will get you insulted to no end, threaten with death and badly beaten in a primary. Here are a few examples of moderate to center right highly respected Republicans who were chased from office by extremists -- Lugar, Bennett, Shay, Christ, Castle, Murkowski, Specter, etc. ad nauseum.

Originally posted by NewAgeMan

Originally posted by Frankenchrist
Defiantly me.

I hate everyone.

Then you must also hate yourself.

It is said one cannot love another unless they love themselves,
I guess the same can be said for hate