Hate. America on fire with hate. Hate fuels politics. There are Republican haters. Democrat haters. Trumpster haters. Millennial haters. Baby boomer haters. Pro-life haters, pro-choice haters, immigration rights haters, gay rights haters, women haters, minority haters. The haters, the hate and the ensuing vitriol seem endless.

The definition of hate

It’s a mighty strong word, one not to take lightly.

From Merriam-Webster:
(Entry 1 of 2) 1a: intense hostility and aversion usually deriving from fear, anger, or sense of injury
b: extreme dislike or disgust : ANTIPATHY, LOATHING
had a great hate of hard work
c: a systematic and especially politically exploited expression of hatred

 (Entry 2 of 2) transitive verb 1: to feel extreme enmity toward : to regard with active hostility
hates his country’s enemies
2: to have a strong aversion to : find very distasteful
hated to have to meet strangers

Haters gonna hate

I never realized how negatively the word hate affected me until someone casually commented on one of my Facebook posts, writing something like: “I hate how some articles use photographs that are deceptive…”

The commentator had a valid point, but I wanted to delete the comment solely because of that word. Hate.

I don’t want to associated with any kind of hate. I imagined the person who wrote it as literally seething with rage, red-faced, shaking a fist, and ready to punch someone. The mere idea of this upset me. It also upset me that something I had posted had possibly stirred hateful rage in a friend.

So I deleted the entire post.

The weight of hate

I never felt this strongly about the word hate before. At one time I casually tossed it around, saying, “I hate boiled Brussels sprouts,” or “I hate when my neighbor’s dog barks.” Now hate seems too volatile of a word to be used this way. Maybe I’ve become oversensitive. Maybe I’ve turned into a “libtard snowflake.” Whatever. I’m not going to apologize. These are exceptional times. We are living in what might one day be remembered as a dark time in history. We need exceptional measures to combat hate.

I propose we not use such a loaded word casually. Please let’s not toss it around unless we really mean to express intense hostility and aversion. 

If you actually are seething, feeling intensely hostile, enraged, red-faced and shaking, please find a way to diffuse it. Hug someone instead. Go for a run, a walk in the woods, or seek help. Please. The world needs your positive energy.

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Linda K. Sienkiewicz is the author of the award-winning novel In the Context of  Love, a story about one woman’s need to tell her truth without shame. Discovering who you want to be isn’t easy when you can’t leave the past behind.

2017 New Apple Book Awards Official Selection
2016 Sarton Women’s Fiction Finalist
2016 Eric Hoffer Book Award Finalist
2016 Readers’ Favorite Finalist
2016 USA Book News Best Book Finalist

“…at once a love story, a cautionary tale, and an inspirational journey.” ~ Bonnie Jo Campbell, author of National Book Award Finalist, American Salvage, and critically acclaimed Once Upon a River,and Mothers, Tell Your Daughters

“With tenderness, but without blinking, Linda K. Sienkiewicz turns her eye on the predator-prey savannah of the young and still somehow hopeful.” ~ Jacquelyn Mitchard, author of the #1 NY Times Bestseller, Deep End of the Ocean

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