According to John F. Kennedy, “Tolerance implies no lack of commitment to one’s own beliefs. Rather, it condemns the oppression or persecution of others.”
Tolerance: The ability or willingness to tolerate something, in particular the existence of opinions or behavior that one does not necessarily agree with. The culture around teens is changing drastically but with it comes the tolerance of all these changes. All of sudden, teenagers are being told that everything is acceptable; it just depends on their own interpretation of the idea.
The Feather staff believes that the students of FC are becoming too tolerant of the negative influences around them. Cussing, inappropriate jokes, movies, music and even low grades are becoming the norm for a lot of students. All of these things use to draw out a gasp from most at a younger age but now they draw out a shrug of the shoulder or even a laugh.
People become complacent with the world around them, not wanting to stand out but instead appear as normal. One way of doing this is to tolerate many things even if they do not support that belief. Being tolerant and accepting of something students do not believe in can conforms the past ideology a student holds. When someone begins to accept issues they did not agree with before, a new truth begins to develop.
The Feather staff wants to encourage students not to tolerate that which should not be tolerated; to not accept what they do not agree with but stand up against it. Tolerance is not a good practice because it stifles the ability to stand up for what you believe in. Eventually, you start to believe in what you are tolerating, leading to the conformity of that idea.
A big aspect of tolerance that seems to be circulating through the student body is inappropriate music. Music is what fuels teenagers, with most not being able to get through the day without it. However, as teenagers we tend to overlook the negative connotations that songs contain if we like the beat or the singer. Students begin to conform to the music being heard because that is what they surround themselves with and allow themselves to accept.
When you think of tolerance, many think of tolerating bad things. But it is not always bad things that peers have to tolerate; there is a balance. Some things can be over looked, but there comes a point when some have to speak up. Balancing the level of tolerance is a hard thing to do but a good time to speak up is if it is seriously affecting daily choices.
Teachers all have different methods of teaching that is not always compatible to students. However, as students accepting the different methods of teaching shows a level of respect. Communication also plays into this, and this is an instance where some should speak up.
For high school students, it is hard to speak up for their own beliefs due to the fear of being rejected or excluded. So, tolerating everything just seems to be an easier thing to do. When brushing something off, think about how being surrounded by these influences can start to impact daily life.
Cussing, for example, is an easy habit to pick up. If students are around it all the time but do nothing about it, they may start to pick up the practice of it and eventually it becomes a part of regular speech. But, if a student voices their opinion to the person using it, hopefully the level of respect will be enough to refrain from using it, making it an easier habit to stay away from.
The Feather wants students to stand up for what they believe in and not tolerate what they do not believe in. By speaking up against something, students can potentially influence others to do the same. Eventually, if a chain reaction starts, the student body will no longer have to tolerate unacceptable things because it will become normal for everyone not to do those things.
For more editorials, read the Oct. 17 article, Bashing gives birth to bitterness.
