I heard the other day that about 10% of people are left-handed. This generated a few thoughts that I have been rolling around in my head. I have been surrounded by lefties most of my adult life. Sometimes I get confused and try to do things like a left-handed person would. It usually does not work out very well!
Now, think about 10% of the population that most people perceive to be ‘backwards’. In schools when I was growing up and long before, educators would try to ‘correct’ what they saw as defiant, wrong, defective, backwards (and the implied stupidity). Many teachers and nuns would crack a ruler over your knuckles if you used the ‘wrong hand’, or did not correctly follow instructions on how to do a particular task.
Unfortunately in this day of political extremism, I see many similarities. Think of one party as left-handed and the other as right-handed. I will let you choose which one is which for this analogy. For many, many years the minority of left handed people were forced to conform. This not only made them feel as if they were being unfairly punished but also made it almost impossible for them to excel and improve using their natural gifts.
When politics are split drastically, one group could dominate the other. The traditions of the right-handers are forced onto the minority. There is no concern or sympathy for the minority group and they will not be given the opportunity to voice their concerns let alone suggest alternative solutions.
So let’s pretend that over the last few years the number of left-handed people increased dramatically and now they are close to a majority. The lefties are now teachers and policy makers themselves. They encourage children to perform tasks that make use of their natural tendencies. They pass laws giving them ‘permission’ to do what everyone else has done in the past – to be human. They demand equal policies and fair treatment.
But the right-handers refuse to allow that to happen and believe it is their duty to fight changes every step of the way. They see no need for change. This does not help them at all and now they have to be ‘tolerant’ of these people. They feel uncomfortable watching or learning from a leftie, and certainly do not want their children to become one. (OR MARRY ONE). They twist the truth and use marketing techniques to discredit the opposition. The Defense of Marriage Act is an example……. unnecessary as no one was attacking marriage or trying taking away any rights. The people that were not allowed to marry needed defense against the majority.
Whether it is equal pay, marriage, educational opportunities, housing, jobs, criminal sentencing and a long list of other ‘privileges’, you cannot be a more perfect union and still deny these basic rights to minority groups. Sure enough, one day they may be in the majority and will remember how they were treated in the past by those in power.
Left handed people are not trying to ‘convert’ you. They are not trying to take something from you. They are not denying or laughing at what you feel and believe. They are not traitors or devils or the enemy. They are human beings deserving of the same benefits in life the right handers have taken for granted.
I am a right-handed patriot and I approved this message.
As a pre-teen and through much of my early adult life, I would experience asthma attacks. Some were very severe and lasted for days. I underwent allergy testing and countless blood samples to find out what was causing my allergic reactions. It turned out almost everything did, but that is not the subject of this story. I was quite used to needles and shots and was not bothered by the poking and prodding. As it turned out, I just needed to grow out of it.
