In a recent column, I mentioned being uncomfortable while in a room with a guy wearing a very loud Trump hat. A reader lit me up for it and, while I didn’t agree with a lot of what was said, it did make me recognize the double standards that sometimes get applied to these things, regardless of intention.
This person also mentioned no longer wearing Trump apparel because of all of the hostile stares and nasty comments received when doing so. While I understand how politics as merchandise built from a platform of “[expletive] your feelings†generates such reactions in those with other views, that doesn’t make it right. Such behavior also serves as confirmation of being easily “triggered†by opposing views (even if that’s kind of the point among the most hardcore followers of an in-your-face political movement with a persecution complex centered around a bombastic and inherently dishonest individual).
Of course, this is a two-way street.
A very close friend of mine was recently given a talking to by his superiors at work over a T-shirt he wore one day (it’s a casual environment, everyone wears T-shirts; that wasn’t the problem). The shirt has a photo of the power prog rock trio Rush on the right, and a caption below reading, “Good Rush.†On the left is a photo of the late, right-wing talk radio mogul Rush Limbaugh. The caption under his photo reads, “Bad Rush.†(If it makes any difference, he got the shirt a long time ago, when Limbaugh was very much alive and kicking.)
A subordinate colleague said nothing to my friend about the shirt, but filed a report with their mutual superiors accusing my friend of attempting to indoctrinate others with his political beliefs and creating a hostile work environment. Now who’s getting triggered? (Just as an aside, doesn’t that seem like the type of thing Limbaugh would’ve spent three hours ranting about if the shoe was on the other foot?)
I understand that, just because someone is in a certain tent, it doesn’t mean they espouse everything under that canvas top. In fact, most of us are more complicated than that, even if some of us occasionally sport the branding of that camp. I don’t wear political clothing or slap political bumper stickers or flags onto my car, but that doesn’t mean no one else should. As I’ve said, I do have a difficult time understanding those who do that type of thing in proportions that can only be described as overkill. I don’t understand it when it’s adopted as an identity.
Actually, that’s only partially true. I do understand it in terms of people wanting to be a part of something and rooting for its success. But taking that sort of tailgate super sports fandom and moving it into the realm of governance of a nation that only one guy can lead is where you lose me. (I’m not suggesting that is any great loss.)
As I’ve been saying for years now, I don’t like the idea of being swept into one trench or another because, if you support one thing from one side, you must support everything else that comes with it. That’s simply not how most people function. And yet, many of us are primed to flip out when we see something we don’t agree with. In such an environment, no one has a monopoly on the label of being easily triggered.
Ben Fields is the opinion editor. He can be reached at ben.fields@hdmediallc.com or at 304-348-5129. Follow @BenFieldsWV on X (formerly Twitter).
