Everything is Problematic...

No. Fuck off, it isn't.

Now, let's be clear, I consider myself pretty liberal, in terms of political and social leanings. My own beliefs are best described as an amalgamation of several so-called satanic viewpoints and philosophies. I like to cherry pick the useful parts and leave the LaVeyan survival of the fittest dogma at the door. I've long held onto the core belief that, if the way someone else chooses to live their life, or the way that they simply exist doesn't cause you or the people you love any harm, then it's your role to mind your own damn business. It's not rocket science, it isn't so-called Christian values (hahaha - I mean, seriously?!?), it's just basic fucking decency. Every person is their own god. I'm my own god, you are yours. Guess what? That gay couple that live a few streets away from you? That trans person that you saw on social media the day before yesterday? That recreational drug user hanging around the bus shelter after dark? Yep, they are their own god, which means that no one else gets a say in the day-to-day workings of their life. 

Here comes the paradox. Except it isn't really a paradox as such, it makes perfect sense if you think about it: I'm not one to stop people from voicing their opinions. Opinions can be a strange thing sometimes, there's a saying that they're like arseholes; everyone has one. The problem is that, yeah, sometimes they can start to smell a bit, you know, shitty. 

Which brings me to a point: Like I said already, everyone is their own god. Which means that an individual doesn't get to dictate what another person does says, or especially thinks. I've long been a bit wary of so-called cancel culture. I've mentioned previously about there being a subset of folk out there, especially in the quaint ecosystem of Socialmediaville (it's a real place, trust me) who feel like it's their sacred duty to uphold the sensibilities of everyone else, to protect who they perceive as every last marginalised or otherwise maligned person, whether they want or need to be saved or not. You don't like trigger warnings? You're obviously a sociopathic monster with no concern for the feelings of others. You write about deviancy? Shit, you're clearly a deviant yourself. I'm a bit sick of reading the hot take du jour, wherein some person or other fails to make the distinction between fiction and reality, between art and artist, between thought and deed. Because a comic book artist draws scantily-clad females, he (or she) simply must be a pervert. A book contains a racist or homophobic character, ergo, the writer must be a nasty piece of work. 

It's called fiction for a reason, folks. 

Free speech is a two-way street. There are a great many people with opinions that I find vile and reprehensible. But that doesn't give me the automatic right to silence them. No, what it does give me is the inalienable right to reply. You want to spout off some vile, hateful viewpoint? That's fair enough but, by that same token, I have every right to say that I think you're a cunt for harbouring such views. There, you see? Free speech. That wasn't so hard now, was it? Perhaps what I'm trying to say is that, yes, freedom of speech is a right, but with that freedom comes responsibility, the responsibility to show empathy and consideration for others that you might hurt. Once you wilfully abdicate that responsibility then you become fair game for anyone else to respond in kind. You brought it on yourself, give a big cheery hello to the consequences. And those consequences are likely to be a bit more severe than some do-gooder telling everyone that you should be quiet, or delete every last trace of your social media presence. Don't hang 'em, give 'em enough rope, and all that.

There's a whole shitload of difference between challenging a hateful opinion and silencing it just because you think it might be hurtful or offensive. To challenge is adult, to silence someone or wish them away is akin to the behaviour of a child, jamming his or her fingers into their ears because they don't like what you have to say. Plenty of bad things have happened throughout history because of reprehensible views. We learn by challenging those views not by pretending they didn't exist. There lies the path of forgetfulness...and we all know what they say happens when you forget the sins of the past, right? Right?

The Satanic Temple have a set of what they refer to as the Seven Fundamental Tenets; seven guiding principles. Two of them in particular stand out: The third, One's body is inviolable, subject to one's will alone. Alongside this, is the fourth: Respect the freedom of others, including the freedom to offend. To unjustly encroach on another's freedoms is to forfeit your own. You see how this makes sense? No one gets to pick and choose what another person can say or think. What they can choose is how they react to what is said or thought. With certain exceptions, a thing only becomes problematic if enough people make it a problem. Some folk out there are way too quick to create problems. 

Every person is their own god. Some people just need to spend more time acting like it sometimes instead of lording it over everyone else. 

Okay, I've gotten that out of my system, time to move on. 

At the time of writing this, I'm what I estimate to be two thirds of the way through the first draft of my next novel. SOMA is planned for a late 2026 release. I've been taking my time with this one, wanting to avoid burnout so, fuck it, it'll be done when it's done, and the final offering might even bear some passing resemblance to how it currently looks. 

What I'm reading: Fifteen Eyes, by Tyler Downs. Chaos: Charles Manson, the CIA, and the Secret History of the Sixties, by Tom O'Neill. 

What I'm watching: My daughter has decided that she wants to watch all of the Spider-Man movies in order. Being a good parent, who am I to argue? 

What I'm listening to: Monster Magnet, Motorhead.

What I'm drinking: Nothing alcoholic. I'm officially six weeks sober. Yay me. 

Till next time, try to stay out of trouble, and be nice to one another. 

Love, 

- L