Societal Commentaries

But I Am Not A Bigot

I have realized that a Secret Bigot is residing in all of us. I can hear the outcry now; everyone is shouting, "I am not a Bigot!" And rightfully so, at least partially, as they are not a "Conscious Bigot." The Secret Bigot doesn't reside in your conscious; instead, it lives in your subconscious. Since the Secret Bigot typically only comes out of hiding in your thoughts, it is also a silent one. The Secret Bigot is created/controlled not only by your Point of View but also by your upbringing and environment. Some folks will never even know that they harbour a Secret Bigot, only because it is/was never triggered.

I realized over the years; what sparked my thinking was something that my old landlord said while we were discussing Science Fiction Novels. His statement rattled around the vast empty spaces of my subconscious until it finally yelled, "Eureka."

His statement was straightforward, and many of you probably have had similar thoughts. He said, "He wished that Science Fiction Author, use familiar American names and not Alien Names that no-one knew how to spell or pronounce. And folks, that is what got me thinking those many years ago; since then, I have been mentally tracking things that I think, say, or do that fall into that trap.

Before we dig any deeper into the world of the Secret Bigot, we need to consider the following question. Is a Secret Bigot, Good or Bad? An interesting question, isn't it? The answer depends on how you respond when you find out that you are/have a Secret Bigot residing in you. If you try to re-educate your subconscious, that is a good thing. If not, that is a bad thing; in fact, it is a terrible thing!

Things that trigger the Secret Bigot are very many, in fact, way too many to list. However, I will take a stab at covering some of the ones I have experienced.

As I mentioned before, the thing that started this ball rolling was the statement from my old landlord that rattled around in my subconscious for years. I found myself thinking the same thing several times, but I quickly overrode that stray thought, as it is the author's choice to use names that match the planetary environment.

The same thing happened several times with the names of minorities and Celebrity Kids. With the Celebrity Kids, I just shook my head in sorrow at the life they would have because of their parent's use of a "Unique" name. In the case of the minority names, two things smacked me silly, first was the names used by Native Americans and the First Peoples and Indigenous Natives. The second thing that I realized was that the names of the minorities were probably prevalent in their Home Nation. They were perhaps as common as Tom, Dick, Harry, and Jane are here. I also have to give them credit for embracing their culture. [Embracing someone's culture is not Anti-American as some people would have you believe! Despite what those idiots, I mean people think America is a land of diverse Cultures, Languages, and Religions! To put any of those over another is, in fact, Anti America. As if it definitely and defiantly goes against everything this wonderful nation of ours stands for!]

Another trigger(s) for me is the clothes that some people wear; this one is partly my personal preferences, and also how I was raised. I will start with Baggy/Saggy Pants. First, the Saggy Pants make the wearer look like they took a dump in their pants. When you combine them with Baggy Pants, the effect is even worse. However, that isn't all that drives me crazy over that fashion, it is the inch or so their underwear showing? No, it is the portion of their buttocks and crevice (aka crack) showing. I am sorry, but I just can't get over seeing things like that in public. I guess that makes me an Old Fogey, or an Old Fuddy Duddy; if that is so, then it is so!

On to the second Fashion Trigger, and again it covers a multitude of sins things. We will start with Middle School Girls dressing like eighteen-year-olds and looking like tarts to me. There are many instances where those girls left their house and either went to a friend's house, or to their locker at school and changed clothes. However, their clothes are only part of the problem: they also wear Jewelry and makeup designed for much older girls/women. Altogether that look is not appropriate for their age group; at least to me, it isn't.

As for the rest of the triggers, they may be someone's hair, piercings, makeup, and so on.

I keep plodding on trying to retrain my subconscious and muzzle my Secret Bigot, however at the ripe old age of 67, that isn't easy.

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