Microstory 351: Tolerance

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Self-expression

Tolerance is the first step for this week, but it is not the last. In fact, if you get stuck on this step, then I can’t be sure it was worth all the trouble we went through trying to get you that far. Tolerance is understanding that there’s something in the world that you cannot change. You don’t accept it, and you certainly don’t like it, but you have finally given up fighting it. Congratulations, you’re on your way, but you’re not done yet. You might feel like you’re being tolerant, but if you keep complaining about it, then that’s not really what’s happening. I’ve heard people say that they’re all right with gay people “as long as [they] don’t have to hear about. Really? Really? How often are you hearing about it. Where are you going that your ears are being filled with detailed descriptions of gay sex acts? You’re probably not actually hearing about it, and that’s just a poor excuse for you to retain your ignorant hate. But you know what I hear a lot? Heterosexual stories. Rape jokes. General NSFW comments. I bet you would be pretty upset if I told you it was okay for you to be straight as long as you kept it to yourself, and that it was “your business”. In fact, I would go so far as to say you’d be enraged over it. That’s because we live in a world where you’re born straight, and of a gender matching your visible genitals, until proven otherwise. And maybe not even then. That’s pretty frustrating, but I’m getting a bit ahead of myself, because we are now talking only about tolerance. In this post, and in others, I have really driven home this idea of rights for those who do not identify as heterosexual. That seems to be my main issue, but it’s not the only one. There are plenty of other problems in the world, but everybody already knows they’re not supposed to be racist, for instance. They’ve reached tolerance on that issue, so I won’t be speaking on it until later.

Acceptance

Microstory 350: Self-expression

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Self-confidence

I’m not done with the topic of self-expression. I touched on it with the one about sexuality, and I’ll branch out more over the next few entries, and beyond. I feel the need to reiterate that self-expression does not give you the right to express your beliefs if those beliefs are ridiculous. I hate that false maxim of everyone is entitled to their opinion. The truth is that you’re not. Sure, there are different perspectives, and others need to take yours into account, but it’s very possible to be wrong about something. If you’re wrong, you have a responsibility to change. Of course, that presents a bit of a problem, because how will you ever know that you’re wrong? Just because a great number of people are against you doesn’t mean you’re wrong. I believe that people should partake in no recreational drug of any kind, including alcohol. Millions of people disagree, but that doesn’t make my position any less 100% correct. So what can you do? Research. And live. Go out and experience things; learn from others, and even read studies. People have taught you to question other people’s claims, but you should also be questioning your own ideas. You have a right to be who you are, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t change, grow, learn, or own up to your mistakes. I can’t remember if it was on this site, but I’ve told a story before about how I long ago didn’t understand transgendered people. I thought that being of one gender with the appearance of another was their identity, and that they shouldn’t change their bodies. I was wrong, and even though I was just a kid at the time, I’m ashamed for having let myself be so uninformed. This all sounds like a grand tangent from what this entry is supposed to be about, but it isn’t really. You already get that you’re supposed “be yourself” so the only way for me to elaborate on that is to make sure you also understand that being yourself doesn’t mean being stubborn, ignorant, or afraid to evolve.

Tolerance

Microstory 347: Freedom from Persecution

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Weight Control

Wow, that is a really ominous title, isn’t it? Freedom from Persecution. Sounds like something a former NSA analyst would shout after committing treason by leaking dangerous state secrets to the public. Yesterday, from the time of writing this, I had a haircut. The woman started talking about this girl she saw with a buzzcut like mine, dyed hair, and tattoos. She seemed to be against this until she got the impression that I wasn’t quite so judgmental, and her perspective seemed to change. We’ve all been hearing lately about people coming out publically as “different”. Transgender, intersex, non-binary sexuality are but a few examples. Some people think they’re showing courage, while others find such things to be disgusting. I would like to live in a world where no one has to announce who they are, because they don’t owe anybody anything. You shouldn’t have to reveal that, though you were born with girl parts, you’re actually a boy. You shouldn’t have to explain that you don’t see yourself as having one of two genders, or any traditional gender, or any gender at all. You should only discuss who you are with others if they’re genuinely interested in getting to know you, and if you’re comfortable with talking about it. Either way, you should be able to live your truth without worrying about people making judgment calls about you that have no basis, and serve no purpose. You shouldn’t have to disprove stereotypes, or defend lifestyle choices that don’t harm others, or go over how simple physics and biology work (i.e. that a person’s sexuality cannot be transmitted to someone else). Freedom to be yourself does not allow you to do absolutely whatever you want. You are still subject to boundaries designed to protect everyone’s safety and right to be themselves. If you are doing something immoral; if you are raping people, or killing them, or abusing animals, then you definitely need to change. But if who you are isn’t hurting anyone, then honestly, people who don’t like it just need to shut the fuck up.

Physical Independence

Microstory 122: Francis Deering

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One major restriction in the evil religion of Amadesis is sexuality. In the early days of development, humans pursued homosexual relationships at a relatively mild rate. The biological imperative to propagate the species was too strong and important in those times. But as the population settled into a nice pattern, adoption and surrogacy became technologically feasible, and happiness began to supersede biology, people felt comfortable with forming long-lasting relationships with members of their own sex. Bisexuality was generally assumed about a person unless they actively identified themselves as monosexual, or something else. As a byproduct of this gradual paradigm shift that they detested, a small cult that had once exiled themselves to the deserts of western North America found ways of increasing their numbers to excruciating proportions. They recruited those tested to be susceptible to suggestion, and in need of something to follow blindly. They stalked and harassed their family members, keeping records of their lives that were so detailed, it forced them to join as well. They manipulated their own laws so that they would allow both polygamy and child rape, extending a member’s ability to conceive for them new members; ones that could be emotionally molded to their liking.

Their obsession with increasing the population was so radical and destructive that their number one rule was heterosexuality, not only in practice, but in true feelings. Bisexuals, monosexual homosexuals, and the worst in their eyes, the asexuals, were considered counterproductive to society. Amadesins worked hard creating entirely unscientific instruments designed to measure a person’s sexuality, and using the utterly falsified data to remove unwanted properties from the subjects. The money that they charged for these review sessions funded further evil endeavors. The only thing that protected people from Amadesin wrath was the law, and the fact that such beliefs, even at a low degree, were practically nonexistent amongst non-members. Therapist Francis Deering was an incredibly special individual from the nation of Texas, and the face of the necessarily growing active anti-Amadesin movement. She primarily identified as female, but was capable of physically reassigning her own gender at will. Her biology was studied and used to perfect gender reassignment for anyone who needed it. It was for this reason that she was absolutely the most in danger from Amadesins, and had to be protected.

Microstory 61: Grace

In the universe of my canonical stories, most people identify as bisexual. The number of true monosexuals is to a very low extreme. And I say true monosexuals, because there is a not insignificant number of people belonging to a religious order called the Amadesins who all claim that sexuality is a choice, and that they all choose to be heterosexual. Amadesis is an amalgamation of Mormonism and Scientology, but also exhibits the absolute worst aspects of any and all other religions. The rest of society recognizes the difference between love, sex, and procreation. They understand that you can have one without the other two. With modern technology, even procreation is now possible without sex. Back in the day, homosexual relationships were slightly discouraged, but only to foster the increase in population. This led to a few still-standing traditions, along with the misguided Amadesin movement. In an opposite-sex relationship, the resulting child will usually inherit the surname of the father. This is because of earlier theories that children received more than half of their DNA from their mothers. The father being able to pass down his name was symbolic way of balancing out the contribution, and the practice remains to day for simplicity, and to have some kind of standard. Similarly, in the case of same-sex relationships, one caregiving parent will also be a genetic parent, while the other caregiver is not. The child will usually use the name of the non-genetic parent.

Because of the prevalence of bisexuality, the words boyfriend and girlfriend do not exist. Besides sounding juvenile and unsophisticated, it would never occur to society to use such gender-specific terms. Instead, they use gracer and gracie. These are technically opposites of each other, but are used interchangeably, and respectively mean “one who favors” and “one who is favored”. It’s possible to refer to someone who either favors you, or you favor, but with unreciprocated feelings (i.e. crushes). Clarifying language will be used for these situations. There is another reason for using these terms instead of limiting words like partner, companion, or significant other. They perceive romantic relationships to reside on the same spectrum as friendships; only to a higher degree. Even though emphasis was placed on population sustainability millennia ago, pairings solely for the purpose of propagating the species were never part of common practice. A marriage of two people who were not friends would have always been seen as strange. Arranged marriages did exist in some cultures, specifically Amadesis, but it was pretty taboo.