There is a sense of confusion in the air today that is hard to ignore. Things that were once settled and self-evident — that men and women are different, that neighbors should look out for one another — are now treated as open for debate, or worse, as prejudice. Most people are not angry because they want to be; they are tired and confused because the rules keep changing. The list of things that no longer make sense is long, and it gets longer every day.
Nothing illustrates it more clearly than what is happening to women and girls. When biological men are allowed to compete in women’s sports, the very idea of a fair playing field disappears. Trophies, titles, and opportunities that belong to women are handed over in the name of progress. When those same men are permitted into women’s bathrooms and locker rooms, modesty and safety are brushed aside as if they don’t matter anymore. A society that will not protect fairness and privacy for its daughters has lost its footing.
When those foundational truths are lost, it is no surprise that neighbor has turned against neighbor. We have been trained to see each other first by our politics, our votes, our labels, rather than as fellow Americans living on the same street. Conversation has been replaced by accusation, and disagreement has been replaced by hostility. The institutions that once brought us together — the local school, the town hall, our own front porch — have been replaced by screens that reward us for being outraged at one another.
The double standard extends even to worship. One set of beliefs can be expressed loudly and proudly in public, taught in schools and celebrated in the culture, while another — especially the traditional faith that built so many of our communities — is tolerated only if it stays quiet, and is punished if it speaks its convictions. That is not tolerance. That is selection. And until we return to equal justice, equal privacy, and equal freedom for everyone, that long list will only continue to grow.
Being About The Journey 