Intolerance expressed through put-downs.

Sometimes people who can take care of themselves still feel uncomfortable, and even fearful of those different from themselves. They may be afraid that these different people may challenge their position of assumed superiority, and this sense of superiority is where they gain their sense of self esteem. Their thinking may be, "I can only be important if I am more important than other people." This is called intolerance expressed through put-downs.

Since it is dificult to know who may be more important and how they might be more important than you, such people rarely have an opportunity to feel good about themselves. So, they may look for easy targets to demonstrate their superiority. This can be done by openly putting certain people down.

For instance if one group of people were able to grow long curly fingernails and lived near a group of people who could not, the curly nailed people might choose to use that small difference as a way to recognise who they have decided is better (themselves) and to put down those who they have decided are inferior (the straight nailed), whether any other overall difference existed or not. If they can get both groups to agree that curly nails make a difference, then they will have achieved an illusion of superiority.

This illusion may also cause talented people without curly nails to be ignored and overlooked. Imagine if some straight nailed people had the answer to an illness they all had, but because of their social beliefs, few would bother to recognise or use this cure and so continue to suffer. So rather than everyone benefitting from everyone's talents, only the curly nailed have opportunities and this world misses out on the full range of useful potential.

Next