Is it ok to hate?

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Permalink Reply by Howard S. Dunn on March 27, 2010 at 12:10pm

There is no 'should' or 'should not' with emotions. They are involuntary responses for which we are not responsible. We ARE responsible for the way we act in dealing with our emotions.

That's right on target. There are two types of impulses in the brain and, without them, we would never act on anything: Instinct and emotion. They are very closely related. For example, need and desire, lust and eros, fear and insecurity, etc.

Our reasoning brain actually is more of a regulator of these impulses. It has ways of rating the merits of acting on our impulses. And it can help serve the efficacy of these impulses. So, it can present all the negative implications and potential consequences of setting Glenn Beck on fire and weigh them against the potential positive outcomes associated with such an act. It can also be used to devise scenarios that either mitigate the negative consequences or augment the positive ones - and then work out the details of a plan to achieve the best result.

Should we act on hate? No. Do we? All the time.

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Permalink Reply by Johnsky on March 27, 2010 at 11:19am

I don't hate the concept of some religions, but most religions are intentionally deceptive by design to scare people into obedience. THAT'S what I hate about some religions.

There are a few small religions out there that don't preach some form of horrible damnation if your beliefs waver... these religions I have no dis-respect for. They aren't trying to scare people into staying.

You will have to be careful who you chose as a therapist.
If they are from a major religion, chances are their religious beliefs may outweigh their professionalism in the end, and you'll be given bad advice.

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Permalink Reply by Tom Thompson on March 27, 2010 at 11:24am

"Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering." -- Yoda

Wrong? No. Productive? Probably not.

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Permalink Reply by Dallas Gaytheist on March 27, 2010 at 8:08pm

There is absolutely nothing wrong with despising stupidity that causes human suffering. I too hate religion. But mostly because of the arrogance of its' purveyors. Nothing I hate more that a self assured moron. I probably wouldn't hate it so much if I wasn't surrounded by it constantly.

Here, here! Well said, Steve.

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Permalink Reply by Abnormal on March 27, 2010 at 5:53pm

I hate jack asses.

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Permalink Reply by Becca on March 27, 2010 at 8:31pm

I think hate is a great motivator. I hate the idea of being fat/overweight so that encourages me to exercise moderately and eat healthy foods. I hate ignorance which motivates me to be educated on a wide variety of topics. I hate the way my current place of employment treats me which motivates me to seek a new place of employment. I hate that people are generally so wasteful which motivates me to recycle, reuse, buy smart, donate used yet still good items, turn off lights/electronics when I'm not using them and so on. I hate libertarian, conservative, religious, and anarchist ideas to the point that I have a hard time being friends with people who are extreme in any of these categories. This motivates me to vote for people and vote for policies that do not fall in line with those views and motivates me to try to persuade people to at least take a more moderate view.

I think it's perfectly fine to hate. What isn't ok is to act upon that hate in a destructive manner. Take that hate and turn it into motivation.

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Permalink Reply by Dallas Gaytheist on March 27, 2010 at 8:44pm

Good way to see it Becca. I can relate to that.

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Permalink Reply by Prog Rock Girl on March 27, 2010 at 8:49pm

Hate IS a great motivator. I live next to a loud, obnoxious bar and I hate it. Which means my #1 goal in this world is to make enough money to get a house without some horrible catch to it.

Unfortunately, it also motivates people to turn off their brains and scream instead of listen, and motivates people to blow things up. There are positive ways to deal with hate: instead of sabotaging the annoying neighbors, sue their asses, or save enough money to move away!

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Permalink Reply by Strgaze5 on April 12, 2010 at 2:11pm

I don't hate religion, usually the hate stems from certain religious people (esp. extremists). I enjoy learning about religions and their histories, it's one of my favorite things to learn about.

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Permalink Reply by Jim DePaulo on April 12, 2010 at 2:18pm

As has been mentioned, hate is normal and can be a motivator for positive ends. But lingering hatred or obsessive hate eventually turns to bitterness which damages the hater not the object of the hatred.

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Permalink Reply by damian on April 17, 2010 at 7:48pm

Hate can be a motivator for me sometimes. I 've learned to direct the energy (hatred for me and my hatred for other things) in a positive direction, and not towards the thing i hate. I've learned that lashing out doesn't bring me the results that i want. I usually get away from the situation, avoid it, forget it, whatever. I guess fantasizing about taking violent action is okay. I sometimes act it out by slicing up an innocent cantaloupe.

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Permalink Reply by Jezzy on April 17, 2010 at 8:03pm

I'm not a hugely hateful person but I can be extreme at times, like when Prop 8 went through. I can hate concepts, but it's harder for me to hate people, especially generalized groups. So when I hear people say that Xians are stupid it bothers me. It's different to me than saying Xianity is stupid. I've seen more hate for the former on this site than I like.

Why won't your wife let you set Beck on fire? As a feminist, I found his comments on marrying his wife for sex somewhat offensive. Oh, and then there's everything else he's ever said.

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