The Anti-Hate Summit

Vincent J. Curtis

20 May 21

(This is a continuation of the story that began with "The plank in their own eye."  An organizers and training conference is being held in Hamilton through the weekend under the auspices of a group called "End Hate in the Hammer" or some such.)

Winston Churchill defined a fanatic as a person who won’t change his mind and can’t change the subject.  The purpose of the anti-hate summit is to turn fanatics into pajama boys, who wear pajamas, drink hot chocolate, and talk about the need to end hate and racism.  The program includes how to have a “difficult conversation” about racism with family members.

This is a clown show from start to finish.  In the first place, what they define as hate and racism are highly peculiar, subjective, and not very perceptive.

The authority on hatred and anger is, of course, Aristotle, who addressed the differences among and between hatred, anger, and enmity as follows:

“As for enmity and hatred, it is evident that they must be examined in the light of their contraries. The causes which produce enmity are anger, spitefulness, slander.  Anger arises from acts committed against us, enmity even from those that are not; for if we imagine a man to be of such and such a character, we hate him. Anger has always an individual as its object, for instance Callias or Socrates, whereas hatred applies to classes; for instance, everyone hates a thief or informer. Anger is curable by time, hatred not; the aim of anger is pain, of hatred evil; for the angry man wishes to see what happens; to one who hates it does not matter. Now, the things which cause pain are all perceptible, while things which are especially bad, such as injustice or folly, are least perceptible; for the presence of vice causes no pain. Anger is accompanied by pain, but hatred not; for he who is angry suffers pain, but he who hates does not. One who is angry might feel compassion in many cases, but one who hates, never; for the former wishes that the object of his anger should suffer in his turn, the latter, that he should perish.”

The clown show will, in the end, create more anger and enmity than it will end, and will do nothing to touch hatred.  Indeed, it is evident that they are the haters themselves, because of their wish for evil on those they deem to be haters and whom they do not know.

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