'If you are Hindu, you are going to hell.'
This snapped me out of the annoyed, angry haze I was in. I began to analyze what I was seeing. These people were relatively well-groomed'nice clothes, hair cut recently, overall ship-shape. They were very clean, as far as assholes come.
I say this not to attack the Library Mall day-residents of late. For a while I listened, grew impatient with, was annoyed by and got pretty close to hating the evangelical 'preachers' on the concrete podium I hadn't even noticed before. That was before a conversation.
I'd like to say the conversation was with those trying to save us by telling us we're going to hell. But anyone who even passed by knows that couldn't be the case.
The prim, though misguided, God squad brought nothing to the campus that I consider good. Self- centered, close-minded, racist propaganda excreted from a group far too ready to cast the first stone just isn't quality in my book. Even worse, I'm damned, like many of you may have found out.
I drink, I've kissed a girl, I have friends who aren't Caucasian and I listen to rock 'n' roll.
Oh Foo Fighters, why didn't you warn me you were condemning my soul to fire and brimstone? Why isn't the RIAA taking action against this?!?
Then there are the angry women on campus, who are also going to hell (notice a theme?). I always thought of an angry woman as one who thinks watching kung fu with me sounds like fun and then, six hours later, realizes she was wrong. Apparently, an angry woman is one with her own opinion who doesn't follow mindlessly and gives men a challenge. On the plus side, my type will be plentiful among the singles bars in the fiery pits.
It's understandable why I disliked these egocentric orators.
Then, as previously stated, I had a conversation.
My friend Megan sat out there for three hours listening and couldn't have been happier. Full of energy, smiling, beginning to recount her top ten list of hilarious/interesting things said. She even knew their names. Anger and annoyance can't exist in this kind of light.
It was silly of me to get angry with these people.
While they weren't beneficial to campus, what they created was.
I hadn't realized, but people weren't arguing. Debate occurred in a mass of students, a portion of the mass of students that make local police nervous as late October draws near. But now these students were questioning and probing the speakers' words in an effort to understand them better and, in a way, to get the speakers to hear themselves.
I didn't expect this dichotomy of logic and lunacy in my fellow students.
It's something to take pride in.
With this debate comes the acceptance and understanding on this campus.
Diversity doesn't exist to promote intolerance, and all I heard were students trying to make the speakers understand this.
Finally, the entertainment aspect of the situation came into focus. These people weren't going to change any more than I was as I listened to them. Why was I angry? The things they said were actually funny, along the lines of a toddler saying 'shit.'
The crowd was even better. It'll take a while to top Scanner Dan imitating a vibrator toward a woman explaining how complete submission to her husband is the proper way.
So if the evangelists have it their way, I'm going to hell.
Though, honestly, it's for the best since the Foo will need me as backup on drum set to thoroughly rock Satan a new one.
