Rights and Responsibilities

One of the more common questions one gets, when people find out what one's religion really is, is an obvious one regarding ethics: what are the rights and responsibilities men have to each other, how well to treat one another; in short, how best to get along in an increasingly diverse, complex society. So, let's be clear here: no one has the right to be ignorant. I don't. You don't. Yes, many are indeed ignorant, and we are all of us ignorant about many things; but none have any rights to ignorance. No one has an inalienable right to be dumb. Liberty does not encompass stupidity. If someone expresses an ignorant opinion or vehemently adheres to an ignorant belief (usually it's the same person), that opinion and that belief shouldn't be respected. Ever! Because the person expressing the belief is human and therefore quite vulnerable; one ought to be civil and polite to the person, but most certainly that person's opinion and belief don't deserve this same courtesy. People should always be tolerated, yes, even the dumb ones, but stupidity is stupidity after all; so their dumb expressions need never be; and frankly, they ought not to be. The golden rule of treating others as we would wish to be treated ourselves is indeed a good one, but it applies only to persons; and not to those persons' opinions. Be discrete, yes, but do disagree. No one need ever have to put up with nonsense, nor should ever be forced to be polite whenever within its presence. Silence fosters the spread of stupidity. Speak up!