The Fragility of Hate

Your alarm gets you up. It's a nosy bastard, but it does the job. After a moment of prying the sheets of your bed, you decide it's time to wake up. [[Sit up]]

The blankets are off. You finally look over and realize that your wife isn't in the bed beside you. You check your phone and remember that it's Tuesday. The kids have school, so she must have left early. You'll try to remember that from now on. [[Get out of bed]]

Once you manage to get out of bed you feel a bit more energetic. Slowly the purpose of Tuesday fills your mind. You remember what you had planned for today, and it's going to be amazing. But first you have to get ready for the day. [[Head to the bathroom]]

After a quick shower and shave you begin to feel ready for the day. You feel pumped, like the world is yours and your about to announce that. You realize how silly that sounds but you don't care. It feels good to feel good, so to speak. The only thing that bothers you ever so slightly is the male pattern baldness you have going on. But you do your best to not let even that damper your mood. [[Get dressed]]

You put on some dress pants and a white dress shirt. It's an outfit you'd usually wear for work. Despite taking the day off, you feel like today deserves the same kind respect. You're going to do important work today. [[To the Kitchen]]

The Fragility of Hate

Peter Freeman

You enter the kitchen and notice that there's already coffee made. It smells wonderful even though it's decaf. The stronger stuff keeps you up too late. There's a note on the fridge just below a picture of the family. Your wife - Amy - is standing with your two boys Scott and Bradley in the park you all visited last week. You smile and take a look at the note. "Gone to take the boys to school! Remember to take the meat out of the freezer!" There's a buzzing in your pocket. You've gotten a text. [[Open freezer]] [[Check your phone]]

You immediately get blasted with a gust of cold air. You dig through some of the bags of vegatables and find the meat that needs to be taken out. You set on the counter feeling rather accomplished. [[Check your phone]]

You've gotten a text from your friend Brett. "Hey man, remember, we're hitting the tees around 4 today!" it says. Your face scrunches. You totally forgot about golfing with Brett today. Unfortunately for him you have much more important things to do and you have no idea how long it will take. [[Cancel plans]]

"Sorry dude. Gonna have to cancel today. Work stuff came up." You send the text and move on with your day. It's a bit of a lie, you actually have the day off from your job. But what you're doing instead would definitely be considered work. You tuck the phone away in your pocket and finish your coffee. [[Go to office]]

You head to your office, where the only computer in the house is located. Sitting on the desk is your briefcase. Beside that is a stack of folded papers that you made into pamphlets the night before. [[Put them in the case]]

This is everything you'll need for the day. If you were lucky you'd be able to get all these things into people's hands. Even if they just take them in order to shut him up, it'll be worth it. At least then there was a chance they would read them. You shut the briefcase and snap it closed with satisfaction. [[Head for the front door]]

You slip your shoes on and grab your keys. After double checking to make sure your phone is in your pocket, you open the door and head outside. You see your glorious Toyota Prius in the driveway. The minivan was usually next to it, but since the kids were gone, so it was it. [[Get in the car]]

You set the briefcase on the passenger seat and think to yourself... *It's gonna be a good day today.* You start the car and head off to do [[God's work]]

You stand under a tree, just for a bit of shade. The area you're in is the most trafficked walk way in the college. It's just near the cafeteria and intersects with most of the major class buildings. The amount of people walking to and from areas is astounding. The briefcase sits at your feet. You look around, somewhat nervous. But you have a calling, a mission, and the people must hear it. So you bend down and open the briefcase. You take out a bunch of pamphlets and stack them in your hands. Once you're ready, you begin talking. Eventually someone will start listening. [[Speak]]

...."We Colored People have taken a vote and decided that we don’t cotton to that whole emancipation thing. Freedom means having to work for real, think for ourselves and take consequences along with the rewards. That is just far too much to ask of us Colored People, and we demand that it stop… The tea party position to “end the bailouts” for example is just silly. Bailouts are just big money welfare, and isn’t that what we want all Coloreds to strive for? What kind of racist would want to end big money welfare? What they need to do is start handing the bailouts directly to us coloreds… Perhaps the most racist point of all in the tea parties is their demand that government “stop raising our taxes.” That is outrageous! How will we Colored People ever get a wide screen TV in every room if non-coloreds get to keep what they earn? Totally racist! The tea party expects coloreds to be productive members of society?… Mr. Lincoln, you were the greatest racist ever. We had a great gig. Three squares, room and board, all our decisions made by the massa in the house. Please repeal the 13th and 14th Amendments and let us get back to where we belong." [[Continue]]

People start to gather around you. Good. They're hearing you. They're beginning to listen. "Slavery had a disastrous impact on African-American families, yet sadly a child born into slavery in 1860 was more likely to be raised by his mother and father in a two-parent household than was an African-American baby born after the election of the USA’s first African-American President.” People begin to take out their phones and record or take pictures. You're not sure which. But you're on a roll now. It won't matter. [[Keep talking]]

"I feel that the Second Amendment is the right to keep and bear arms for our citizenry. This not for someone who’s in the military. This not for law enforcement. This is for us. And in fact when you read that Constitution and the founding fathers, they intended this to stop tyranny. This is for us when our government becomes tyrannical… If we needed it at any time in history, it might be right now. Well it’s to defend ourselves. And you know, I’m hoping that we’re not getting to Second Amendment remedies. I hope the vote will be the cure for the Harry Reid problems." You notice people smiling. Some of them are eating, watching with curiosity. The others with their phones are chuckling. [[Keep going]]

"I will tell you ladies and gentlemen, I detest and despise everything the left stands for. How anybody can endorse and embrace an ideology that has killed a billion people in the last century is beyond me." There's a huge crowd now. No one has taken any pamphlets though. Whenever you step forward to give one away the entire crowd takes a step back. Instead, they're all laughing at you. More of them have their phones out and are recording you. But they're happy. They all look cheerful. Not because they believe what you're saying, but because they're laughing at you. [[Talk louder]]

"…his middle name does matter. It matters because they read a meaning into that in the rest of the world. That has a special meaning to them. They will be dancing in the streets because of his middle name. They will be dancing in the streets because of who his father was and because of his posture that says: Pull out of the Middle East and pull out of this conflict." You can barely hear yourself over the laughter of the crowd. People are pointing at you, whispering to their friends as they giggle. It sounds like the inside of a comedy club now. Suddenly you're the funniest person on earth. Don't you feel special? [[Try again]] [[Leave]]

You try to speak up again but no one is paying attention now. You're an animal on display for them to look at. No one is really listening to what you're saying, they just want to make fun of you on Facebook and Twitter. What's the point? [[Point to one in the crowd]] [[Leave]]

You stuff your pamphlets into the suitcase and shut it. Everyone continues to laugh at you as you push through the crowd. Fuming, you head off to your Prius. Not even the wonderous interior can cheer you up. You feel hot. You've been made a court jester today. You are a fool. [[Credits]]

Written by: Peter Freeman Speech quotes from: http://samuel-warde.com/2012/07/tea-party-hate-speech-10-shocking-examples/

"You!" You call out, trying to bring attention to one of them. "You understand what I'm saying right?" You ask trying not to sound desperate. The student steps away and behind some of the other students. The laughter continues. [[Leave]]