We live in a world which is vatsly different from a few generations ago. Tolerance is no longer a word which is habit but one which is promoted but too often avoided.
Something I find rapidly increasing in society in the view that we don’t need to listen to other people and show understanding any more. It seems there’s no need to show any empathy or tolerance of other people and different situations. When teaching about poverty in the world or the homeless and desperation of others, I’m frequently told by pupils that it doesn’t matter because “it’s not my fault”. How nice it would be to live in a world where people care!
But more than this – it seems to be fashionable now to be as intolerant as possible. In our modern, instant world it feels as though we don’t have to tolerate others because we can get by without them. And so we live in our own mini-worlds, consumed by the media and unable to relate to the wider planet on which we live.
Adverts run at Christmas time telling us to remember our elderly neighbours and those people around us who are sick. We are encouraged to give more to charity and develop our understanding of the world. But isn’t this what we should already be doing?
