I've been hearing and repeating the same mantra since I became a Brony: "love and tolerate". I think I've been precieving it a bit differently than most, however. The way some seem to interpret it is as a message saying to put up with whatever is thrown at us, and I think that isn't quite right. The way I always meant "love and tolerate" was as a shortened version of "just because someone is different doesn't mean they're bad". Regardless of how someone is different, whether because they follow another faith or their skin is a different color, or even something as small as liking different music or books, they should be given the same respect as anyone else. The way some people are interpreting the mantra isn't quite the same. Where I see what I said above, others apparently see "turn the other cheek". Sometimes this is a good policy- as with Trolls, who seek only your reaction. It's a great way to spite people like them. Other times, however, it's not such a great idea. Let's take the example of Trixie. Did the ponies turn the other cheek? No. Of course not. Her behavior was unacceptable. Because she was rude, a liar, and had an ego the size of Texas, none of the ponies really wanted her around. Believe it or not, there is a bad way to be different and that is it. What about the Crusaders in "Bridle Gossip"? Were they loved and tolerated when their untoward behavior came to light? Again, no. Their actions simply were not acceptable- they spread false rumors and invaded people's privacy for their own sake. They were promptly shunned until they corrected what they'd done wrong. There is a reson for all this- people who do things like that are bad for the community. There's the good kind of different, which is what people who think outside the box and bring something new are. And there's a bad kind of different, which is what those who treat others like dirt or manipulate people to get what they want and then leave them for dead are.

In short, I think we've been doing it wrong.

Sporky, out.