Personal

It's not local news, but I'm taking it personally. Trump says, Erickson says, Megyn Kelly gets trashed, Trump gets uninvited. Actually, that's not the part I'm taking personally. It's this.

Erick Erickson: ‘Most Monkeys’ Are Smarter Than Women

I honestly did not know that there were any men in the civilized world that still believed stuff like this. And, although deeply offensive, it's nothing compared to the onslaught of misogynistic comments on social media. Where does this all-consuming hatred for women come from? I asked that question on Twitter yesterday and got one response:

Fear, power, ignorance.

Much as I'd like to believe otherwise, there are men like this in Howard County. If you read enough comments or follow enough social media streams--poof!--there they are. They live here, work here, raise children here, vote here. And to them half of the world is inferior, to be hated, mocked, silenced.

This just hurts my heart. How can we hope to build vibrant and fruitful communities when this kind of poison lurks under the surface? And make no mistake, this is poison. It kills our ability to work together and do good. Isn't this bigger than a Democratic Party vs. Republican Party? Isn't it bigger than Eastern Howard County vs. Western Howard County?

Some people say, "why are we getting bogged down on this? We should be talking about the real issues."

Um, no. This is as real as it comes. And there's a lot of work to be done, even right here at home.