the fine print

this is probably going to be a pretty long-winded post,
and it's also probably going to be one of the ones that people disagree with,
if you're of the group of people who generally tend to disagree with things i put on my blog.

i would like to say as a disclaimer,
which may or may not even be effective,
that if you're going to try to use this or any other post against me in any way, shape or form,
don't.

i simply do not care.

i encourage you to read as much of my blog as you'd like,
and i encourage you to disagree with what i write so long as it's what you believe in.
but i have no patience or energy to spend on your personal dramas.
if you'd like to discuss any difference of opinion with me (or with anyone else), i encourage it. i shape and reshape many of my opinions through discussion with other people, because there is no other way to get out of your own head.
i believe that failure to engage in meaningful discussions with people of different viewpoints is the true definition of ignorance.

that being said, sometimes ignorance is the easier and safer choice.
and i don't mean that in some sort of accusatory way - i'm not talking cowardice.
a hard lesson i've had to learn is to simply choose not to engage someone because you know that you'll get out of hand.
the hard part about it, though, is recognizing that it is you, and not the other person, that is the reason that the discussion cannot happen.
only you can be held responsible for the choices you make.

i have learned this lesson before,
and like all lessons, i continue to learn it in new scenarios all the time.
i encourage other people to take it into consideration as well.

should you choose, based on anything i say or post within this blog or without,
to no longer have relations with me - that is fine.
it is something i have had to do before with other people, and i respect that type of decision.

don't expect me to fight you as you go.
don't expect me to get angry or upset or try to change your mind.
i won't.

if you can leave that simply, that quickly, that easily,
you are not an acquaintance of any value to me right now.
emphasis: right now.

understand that just as you have made the choice to disengage from me,
i will both respect and return your actions.

however, i will always be open to the prospect of a later time,
at which the both of us will have grown and perhaps become better for one another.
people change - and sometimes that change can be trying.
if a lack of my influence will ease your transition,
so be it. i wish you the best of luck.

to the people who have inevitably figured out that this is directed at them:
i hope you are reading this.
my viewpoints constantly change, and as such my blog shows quite the evolution of my own thoughts when it comes to the content posted here.
as i said before, i especially value discussion - my opinions honestly change after every interaction i experience. sometimes the change is great, and sometimes it isn't. sometimes the change is in the form of a question of my previous beliefs, and sometimes it is in the form of those beliefs being strengthened.
either way, as i said before - things change.
i hope you will check back to see them so as not to close your mind to who and what i am.
i cannot be defined in one post.

however, should you choose to try, it is your choice and your loss.
and of course, that being said, check back in your own time.

and again, just to clarify,
to the people who have inevitably figured out that this is directed at them:
no, my viewpoints on the issue that sparked all the recent controversy has not changed. in a better state of mind, as i have said before, it has calmed, but remained unchanged all the same.

as i explained to sarah, a person i have great respect for,
this blog is, as much as it is a public website, a personal tool.
should anything i post here startle or confuse you,
i encourage you to ask.

ask, ask, ask.

we will both find answers in your questions.

and to ben, a person whose different opinions i have often considered and valued,
and i mean this as an expression of my opinion, withholding any offense,
i hope you grow up soon so we can regain the common ground we once shared.

and once more, that being said,
i know we all have a little growing up to do yet.