Am I Radical?
From Witchy Woo’s place - thanks Witchy for yet another thought provoking post! I started commenting and then gave up to come over here and blog my thoughts instead.
Answers.com - Radical definition.
Adjective: Definition: extreme, revolutionary in belief, fundamental, basic
Noun: Definition: person who holds revolutionary beliefs
From that "Answers" link I find a few words give me a flinch reaction - rabid, extreme, fanatic, zealot. They all have very negative associations. So I flinch away and say, No, I’m not one of those rabid, foaming at the mouth, extremist(terrorist) feminists!
But. There’s so much wrong, I see so many things influencing, gently guiding my daughter. She’s 3. She sits in the trolley at the supermarket and that raises her eye level so she can just about see the lads mags. Is that intentional? No, it’s not. No-one bothered to think about it. There’s no conscious conspiracy. It’s just so intrinsically woven into the fabric of society that so many don’t even think about it.
Lets go back to the definitions, after all I am a word smith! Definitions taken from Answers.com as per link above.
Rabid - showing or having enthusiasm. Holding especially political views that deviate drastically and fundamentally from conventional or traditional beliefs. Full of or marked by extreme anger.
Umm, that’s familiar. I can relate to that.
Extreme - Either of the two things situated at opposite ends of a range, Very dangerous or difficult, Extending far beyond the norm.
Not sure about this one but my ecology views are extreme. My path through life has never been one of ease, I was never one to conform without question. Ah well, I seem to be extreme as well then.
Fanatic - A person marked or motivated by an extreme, unreasoning enthusiasm, as for a cause.
I object to unreasoning! I have my reasons and I am finding more and more.
I’m still not sure where I stand on the radical scale. But it’s not a choice, it’s a journey and I’m still travelling. It’s not a label I think I deserve, not yet. But I do relate to many of the facets associated with it.Zealot - a fervent and even militant proponent of something
I tend to think of radical as pertaining to the root; the school of thought that says that unless you change the fundamental, underlying structure then any progress is going to be precarious. I also tend to think I don’t “deserve” the label, partly because I’m always astounded at the sheer knowledge I find in radical writings, and partly because I haven’t dealt with all my own inconsistencies yet. But yes, it feels like a journey.
Comment by Eilidh — February 11, 2007 @ 5:02 pm
I guess it depends on the issue for me. In some things I would be considered a zealot, however, I am generally a reasonable human being.
Comment by DJ Black Adam — February 14, 2007 @ 10:51 pm