If I had to list the top 10 buzz words I've heard in my two and a half years here in Hanover, "hate" would certainly be among them. It seems like every day, either in print or on a soap box, someone is accusing someone else of preaching hate. The unfortunate consequence of this repetitive attack is that many of us have lost sight of what hate really is by confusing it with political criticism or ideological discourse.
Hate is a very strong and potentially dangerous emotion. It has spawned such tragedies as the Rodney King affair and the Holocaust. But when we stop to consider hate, we can see it really is not much different from many other emotions; it is most volatile when it is unchecked and fueled by ignorance. The European Jews of World War II were not put to death because they did something tangibly wrong to Hitler. No, Hitler murdered them simply because they were Jewish.
If the same animosity I spoke of is not ignorant and directed in a healthy manner, the result is altogether different. If your friend stabs you in the proverbial back, you clearly have a reason to feel hostility towards him. Perhaps you would stop speaking to him or take back something you lent him. You might even hate him. But at least that hatred is educated and not dangerous.
Here in Hanover, we have our moderates and our radicals on both sides of the political coin, and for almost every viewpoint there is a particular campus publication. Some of these political journals rely on very calm and systematic methods to present their arguments while others aim directly at an issue and shoot to kill. Regardless, provided that there is legitimate ideological discussion and minimal reasoning behind the expressed opinions, it is quite unfair to label the writers of a newspaper as hatemongers.
Perhaps one of the most prominent examples of perceived hate is The Dartmouth Review. I have seen numerous signs that read "Hate-Free Zone. Please do not deliver The Dartmouth Review here." Last Spring, some students felt it necessary to remove The Review from hallways before it could be read. Some have called for the banning of The Review from campus for its supposed tactics of hate.
The reasoning behind all of this baffles me. I have probably read 50 issues of The Review, and I certainly have not seen a tangible example of hate in any. The Review certainly does focus on conservative ideas and the writers use humor in some cases to drive the point home. I am quite sure that many people do not appreciate the humor or the viewpoints present in The Review, and that is understandable on such a politically charged campus. But it is quite unfair to label such discussion as hate.
I dare say that the methods used by the staff of Spare Rib and Bug are at least as extreme as those of the Review. But because their messages are more politically correct, they are not branded with the same label as the Review. What do you think would result if someone tried to remove copies of Spare Rib or Bug from dorms? That person would most certainly be deemed a sexist, homophobe, racist, and definitely a hatemonger. In addition, to merely criticize the viewpoints of those publications often invites intense scrutiny. It would appear that in the eyes of some of our more liberal friends on campus, certain types of "hate" are more acceptable than others.
Regardless, we must remember that all of the aforementioned political newspapers are just that - political. Whether they seek to advance a feminist agenda or a conservative one, the staffs of the papers have ideological, not personal aims - at least I would hope so. The average reader would have no way of knowing to what extent any or all of the individuals on the staff of a newspaper harbor hate.
Instead of focusing on the emotional implications present in the pages of a campus publication, perhaps we should stop and think about what that publication is trying to say. If the viewpoints presented are undesirable or even preposterous, then either write a letter to the editor or discard the paper and go on with your life.
The kneejerk reaction of screaming "hate!" at the first sign of an opposing argument is much too easy. If there is a reason for disagreeing, then by all means disagree and make it known. But don't waste your time and ours by making absurd accusations about people you have never even met.
