Offending the Easily Offended

By Tommy Leung on 10/25/2010 in Life

Once upon a time, I was a dumbass–bet you didn’t see that one coming! Yes, a dumbass. And lets be honest, we’ve all been dumbasses from time to time. We might be a dumbass right now. Who knows? You can only truly tell from hindsight.

I’m talking about this tweet.

There was a time many years ago that I truly cared when I accidentally offended someone. Someone took something I said out of context or was somehow overly sensitive. Why did I care? Well,  I was a dumbass.

I wanted to be liked by everyone. I guess it was a matter of fitting in. I didn’t really want to be different. I know, how ridiculous is that? Aspiring to be a clone. It’s comical how dumb we are when we’re younger. Now, I try to stand out as often as I can. I love being me. And if you don’t like it, well, fuck you. More or less.

I’m not purposely trying to offend you. If I was, I’d be direct about it. You’d know it. And I’d mean it.

If I want to make a point, it’ll be sharp. Don’t worry.

F*ck the Politically Correct

We are a nation of political correctness. It’s a sad state of affairs. We’re all too scared to say and do things because–God forbid–someone might take offense. Not that we are trying to offend anyone, just that someone might take offense. We aren’t attacking anyone personally. But, someone–real or imaginary–might take offense and we can’t have that!

Please live a little. Life really isn’t long enough to be so tightly wound.

The real kicker are the holier-than-thou’s who will jump at the chance to call you a racist, sexist, bigot, or some other derogatory term. My message to those assclowns: fuck you.

I claim that there are not nearly as many racists, sexists, or bigots out there as some of us would like to romanticize. That’s right, I said it. Romanticize. The world has been a lot worse decades and centuries ago. The absolute worst kind of people who romanticize this aren’t those playing the victim. It’s those constantly worried about being the victimizer.

Under the guise of trying to eradicate an evil, they constantly bring up that evil. Giving so much thought to any idea is giving it power. This is the absolute opposite of eradication.

Now, I have no scientific proof to show you that as a people, we are more tolerant and less bigoted. But, the pessimists don’t have any evidence that we’re all assholes either. This is really just a pissing contest. So, I’m going to stick with my optimistic outlook.

Looking For the Wrong Subtext

Subtexts are everywhere. It appears to be something people are very good at producing. However, we’re not nearly as good as reading the subtexts. Since everything between the lines are invisible, it’s akin to reading tea leaves.

Subtexts can be read in an infinite number of ways. One or more of those ways will be offensive in any given time period. But, who is to say which subtext was meant? Why do we default to the worst possibility?

And by we, I don’t mean all of us. Just the loud mouths in society. The people on TV. The people who publish the news. And the people who  happen to scream louder than everyone else.

Talking the loudest doesn’t make you right. It makes you heard but, not right. Don’t forget it.

To Hell with the Haters

Most of us aren’t living day to day trying to be an asshole. We aren’t looking to offend anyone. We don’t need to be policed. We are good people. We will joke and we will be playful. Life is a lot more comical than it is serious. We are born and then we are destined to die. There’s no getting around that one.

Only the most bitter are living a life looking to be offended. Looking for the negative. The rest of us just want to live as peacefully and happily as we can.

To those who likes to pass judgement on others. To those who like to tell others what to do. To those who like to tell others how to live. To those who think they know better than everyone else. To those who like to take offense for other people. To those who would rather be politically correct than real. To those who are really just full of shit. To the holier-than-thou’s:

To quote a really catchy song, “And I’m like… Fuck You.”

Please Take Me Out of Context

I am thoroughly trying to piss off the self-proclaimed guardians of what is and is not acceptable. You morons have inflicted plenty of undue hardship on perfectly good people. Trust me, if Hell exists, you guys are on the fast track there. Not the people you demonize.

I’m going to say this once. I am not a racist, sexist, or bigot. You don’t have to believe me. If you know me, you’ll know it. And that’s really all that matters.

Feel free to quote something I say and paint me as a bigot. That’s about all you know how to do anyway. In the grand scheme of things, you are just a cancer.

Because I love how Will Smith thinks. I will let him provide some positive words of great wisdom.

By Tommy Leung

  • Billea

    Wow talk about a very angry post. I’m a little concerned about the tone you take with this whole topic. I was always under the impression that you maintain this site as a way to build you googleablity, and in a way maintain your digital identity for prospective employers or the marketing world. Perhaps this plays into your comments of political correctness but this post doesn’t feel that professional but more of a personal tirade against society.
    As a friend I’m very curious what has led you to this point where you have decided to buck the social norm and I’m also curious if this post has had any repercussions.
    Why so angry Tommy?

  • http://www.supertommy.com Tommy Leung

    lol, I didn’t think it was that angry.

    BUT, I think I have every right to a “personal tirade”. This is not about society. We have a popular culture of political correctness that I think is asinine.

    If it’s one thing I don’t do, it’s present a facade for prospective employers. If they don’t like me, well, maybe we aren’t a good fit. I am not a good fit for everyone or every business. :) I’m a bit too much of a rogue and contrarian for some to handle.

    What I write here, I also consider experimental art. How I present words on paper–or digital screens in this case–is an art form. The use of language and specifically the use of the English language. We are taught proper use of grammar and syntax. I like to dissect, disregard, and invent new ways to express in words. Breaking the rules is among my favorite past times. :)

    Building on that, expressing the unpopular, unaccepted, or even unacceptable is not something I’m particularly shy of doing.

    One of my favorite quotes that I’ve loved for years, and I don’t have it rotating in my quote box near the top, goes something like this:

    “only dead fish swim with the current”

    Ultimately, going against the norm isn’t that out of character for me for a long time. :) I’ve always disliked fake people. It’s one thing to have differing opinions on topics. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that. We are individuals who will have our own thoughts. But, people who don’t have their own thoughts or suppress them because everyone else thinks is unacceptable are fakes. And to me, that’s worse than any conceivable inappropriate/politically incorrect thought or opinion anyone can have.

    On the repercussions side, not really. I’ve said many other things equally–or more–outrageous than this. The tone of this one is probably stronger but, I felt it was the best way to communicate my point. I could have used one of my other tones of voice: comical, expert, objective, vague, self-help, anecdotal, etc.

    But, I didn’t. I went with strong. The only other tones of voice I would have used was comical or anecdotal. I didn’t consider this much of a laughing matter and I didn’t want to tell specific stories. There are too many instances of this that I pick up on and generally ignore. It’s a rather human thing to do and I had no intention of pointing the finger at anyone specifically because I know that I will do this sometimes too. We all do.

    I know that other people feel similarly because I’ve talked to them about it. And so there is no singular event that sparked this. Something did give me the idea to write it but, all of it is a culmination of a multitude of experiences spanning years and different people.

    While 95% of this post is in the negative, my favorite part is the video with Will Smith. It’s the inspiring/positive part and I am generally 95% positive. And I’ve, of course, also structured this post in a manner of front loading all the hardcore strong stuff and easing it through to a fluffy cloud pillow at the end–with minor comedic value from Cee Lo. :)

    So worry not! Most of my posts aren’t actually tied to time. I often don’t write about a specific topic until much later when it’s done and I’ve actually drawn some insights. I rarely jump the gun and make snap decisions during times of high emotions when thoughts are largely unclear. No matter how outrageous my posts, they have all spent considerable time stewing in my mind. While it doesn’t make every one of my ideas bullet proof of elegant, it does mean I’ve run it through some filters, tests, and competing opinions. And that doesn’t always mean the idea gets more dull, it can just as well come out sharper.

    AND, to answer the why so angry. While it is largely hard to ruffle my feathers or otherwise cause me to overreact, I am–contrary to popular belief–very much a human being. And not everything is best expressed in a calm, rational manner. Some things can only be expressed through an angry, irrational lens.

    and ultimately, I’m not a one trick pony. :)

  • SouthernGal

    Tommy–I found your post when I was googled my problem. Last night a friend of mine was sad because she posted that she doesn’t think she has enough talent as her superiors. I had the same hobby as her, and tried to cheer her up by saying I couldn’t do anything right and I quit because I thought I sucked… But I actually learned later my ‘superiors’ thought I was quite good and I also added that I’m sure she was much better than I ever was and to never give up. This morning a complete stranger that is a friend of hers (This was on facebook) accuses me of dishing out quite a backhanded comment. I felt really guilty and I re-read the message quite a few times and I honestly could see how someone may find it backhanded. I hate backhanded comments and I get them quite a lot from my family members. If I am unhappy with someone I tell them flat out… I don’t come back with snarky backhanded comments. My comment was meant to be a genuine compliment… I deleted the comment and sent her a message saying that my comment was not meant to be backhanded at all. It was in this message I found a more ‘appropriate’ way to tell her what my compliment really meant. I started to realize I was pretty ticked off with this haughty stranger that comes in and assumes I’m being rude. I was so bothered by this that I actually googled it and ended up here. Your page has made me feel a lot better. I agree that the world is too sensitive and that sometimes real harassment goes unnoticed because everyone is searching for the ‘devil in the details’ with us nice folks. Thanks for your post.

  • http://www.supertommy.com Tommy Leung

    SouthernGal,

    I’m glad my post made you feel better! It really was just me expressing my annoyance with it all, haha, so I’m glad it served more than just my personal outburst needs.

    We are much cooler folks than these haughty strangers judging what we say–especially in printed form where tone of voice is imperceptible.

    P.S. And I did steal at least one southern phrase from you–haughty. haha, I use folks often myself but, not haughty–I love it. Definitely add language to one of the things I love about the south.