I have a complaint. Over and over again, I have encountered people who seemed to be entitled to their "right" of being a jerk. They mask this "right" as their freedom of speech. Essentially, they have mentality said: I can say what I want, how I want, to whom I want. When did this become the norm? When did it become okay to say terrible things to one another, and then when someone calls you out for being a jerk, you respond with well it is my right.

Okay so this isn't personal.... but I think you suck, your writing sucks, your personality sucks, the way your mother raised you sucks.... But don't take it personally.

Your thesis is terrible. The thing you slaved over for three years, is literally the worst thing I have ever read. But good effort.

Your god doesn't exist.... Mine does, but your's doesn't. Your sexuality is wrong. Your decisions are wrong. Your vote was wrong. You are wrong.

Lies, taunts, arguments, opinions, thoughts, beliefs. These are the things that we throw at each other. The thing is, everyone seems to be a hypocrite. You can offend others, but they can't offend you. Your opinion is more important, more right, more holy, than everyone else's, and I am just tired of it.

It isn't okay to be mean. It isn't okay to say whatever you want, however you want, to whomever you want. I hate to burst your bubble, but your opinion is not correct.

It is one of those things we call:

opinion. o·pin·ion

1. a view or judgment formed about something, not necessarily based on fact or knowledge.

This means that just because you have the opinion that peanut butter sandwiches are superior to peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, doesn't mean that they really are. (This idea can be applied to every opinion: religious, political, ya da ya da ya da.)

It seems that we have lost our filter. If what you have to say is not going to be beneficial to the grand scheme of things, then why do you need to say it? I just don't think it is necessary to tear people down right and left just to get something insignificant off your chest. I would go to say that 75 percent of the time, people spout out things that they know nothing about. The world is not black and white. It is a multidimensional rainbow.

We claim that we honor respect. Respect for our elders, respect for our neighbors, respect for our country. But do we really? Do we even respect ourselves? Do we have enough respect for ourselves to be kind? To create a legacy that is framed by how we made others feel.

Do you want your legacy to be one of hatred, criticism, prejudice, disrespect, hypocrisy, and nothing else? It seems like the ones who are consistently offended are the ones doing most of the offending.

So, to conclude my rant I will say that we are all guilty. We all like to believe we are right. We all like to think that we are important. We all like to think that our two cents makes the dollar. Our inflated sense of self-importance is destroying any chance of standing as a united nation. That being said, I will leave you with the words of Rumi.

“Before you speak, let your words pass through three gates:

At the first gate, ask yourself “Is is true?”

At the second gate ask, “Is it necessary?”

At the third gate ask, “Is it kind?”

~ Rumi