If someone refuses to listen…

What’s the point of talking?

This isn’t entirely hypothetical. It came to mind in the aftermath of the Pride Festival held over the weekend here in Minneapolis. On Saturday, I saw a headline on the front page of the Pioneer Press that seemed a little troublesome (I didn’t read the article itself, but here’s the story as written on the Pride website).

To summarize, an anti-gay activist wanted to take part in the festival on the day of the Pride Parade, the organizers didn’t want him there, so he brought his case before the U.S. District Court. The ruling provided some guidelines about what activities might get him kicked out of the park, but he was allowed to set up shop as a part of his First Amendment rights. I have no problems with the judge’s decision. He should be allowed to express his opinion, yay First Amendment. I just don’t understand why the guy bothered.

It’s not like he’s fighting “The Man” for the right to speak freely. He can talk about gays going to Hell all he wants; the Festival organizers simply didn’t want him at the park they leased out. They’re not trying to suppress the message, just the location where the message is being delivered.

More importantly, he’s delivering it to people who aren’t going to listen. They may hear the message, but they won’t listen. More than likely, they’ll be so averse to what he’s saying that they’ll actively rebel against it (or continue to do so, as the case may be).

Think about it. This is the PRIDE FESTIVAL. The people celebrating are PROUD OF THEIR CHOSEN LIFESTYLE. This dude is coming to the festival to tell them, “You’re all sinners because of your chosen lifestyle! Repent or burn in Hell!” Does he honestly think anyone will stop, take a pamphlet and think, “My God… he’s right! I’ve been attracted to the wrong gender my whole life! I’m such a fool!”

So why do it? Why try to force your message down their throats and basically just piss them off? Seriously, if you’re in a dispute with someone and they are determined to not see things from your point of view, why keep beating your head against the wall? It won’t accomplish anything beyond leaving a large divot in your forehead.

Maybe he feels determined to pass along God’s message. He’s not the only one like this, mind you—there was a handful of people doing the same thing on Saturday. “Jesus died for your sins whether you like it or not, all you gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgendered people!” Don’t you think the Lord would give the messengers a bye in this case? “Nothing positive will come of this—you’re more likely to incite anger and violence in My name than change their minds—so stay home, put your feet up and think about what will happen to them in the afterlife.”

I’ve been in arguments where neither of us would give an inch. We had our own points of view and they weren’t going to change. (Sometimes it’s a friendly dispute; sometimes the other person might as well have been an anti-Shawn activist.) So why keep arguing? Why pursue futility? Why not “be the better man” and step away from the table? I just don’t get it. Maybe there’s a U.S. District Court ruling that provides an answer…