Thursday, July 24, 2008

In Defense of Palmetto Bug

Fellow blogger and Masonic Forum member, Palmetto Bug - http://masonicline.blogspot.com/- is taking it on the chin pretty hard lately. It seems to be part of the harder, louder more strident Freemasonry in these modern times. I see the same kind of obsessive hate in the anti Bush people. It is not enough to just have a difference of opinion with our President, it is necessary by many of his opponents to paint him as evil incarnate and making their disagreement hate and hot anger.

Now Palmetto Bug and I are adversaries on the Masonic scene. We don't agree on much and I have whopped on this respectful Brother a little hard myself until one day I caught myself going over the line. Then I had a nice chat with myself whereupon I twisted my arm and slapped my kisser a few times and reminded myself of the message we all learned in the First Degree from The Compasses - to circumscribe our desires and keep our passions within due bounds. Not that I matched what Palmetto Bug is enduring right now but it was a bit on the snippy side.

Such things happen in moments of passion with passionate people. We get carried away and we take it up one too many notches. But realizing that and coming to grips with the imperfect beings that we are, most of us proceed on on a more level headed corrected course.

But there is a group out there today - I call them provocateurs. They are in the business to ferment dissension. They deliberately pick fights. They have a chip on their shoulder. Maybe they were wronged in the Masonic process somehow. Their answer is revenge, on anybody and everybody.

So if you take a stand, if your passion for the Craft leads you into discrediting or a challenge you open yourself up to those who would literally if you were at a bar, take you out back and beat the crap out of you.

That may lead many to become Mr. Milk Toast but I am sure that is not the way Palmetto Bug wants to operate. And that is sure not the way I want to operate either. I have some very definite ideas, solid positions and I am not afraid to stick my neck out.

That's why I believe that all of us in the Blogging Community must band together to not allow Jubela, Jubelo and Jubulum to cary out their purpose. It's one thing to have an opinion but its another thing to have an agenda which you feel a need to enforce. It reminds me of some of the PETA people and the Environmentals who burn down people's houses built in former wildlife areas or the Pro Life people who bomb abortion clinics. We can't let this kind of thing get out of hand.

I say let's support Palmetto Bug, even if we do not agree with his position. As somebody once said - I may not agree with you opinion but I will die to see that you have the right to express it or something like that. Anytime I encounter these people getting out of line I will condem them and block them. Please join me.

This verse inscribed at the New England Holocaust Memorial in Boston, Massachusetts reads:

They came first for the Communists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Communist.
Then they came for the Jews,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew.
Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Catholics,
and I didn't speak up because I was a Protestant.
Then they came for me,
and by that time no one was left to speak up.

9 comments:

Magus Masonica said...

We all must realize that a Masons purpose is to work. Masons are builders. I find it difficult to comprehend much work o the temple being done by waging war with one another.
S&F,
BC

Prexy said...

I agree that maybe there needs to be a bit more tolerance and civility on all sides. But, I feel that the Palmetto Bug and others like him dig their own holes by being provocative to the point of taunting. Now this of course doesn't excuse his targets for overreacting, but perhaps all sides should apply their compasses to the situation. Our Craft doesn't get anywhere when we are all bickering like a bunch of sorority girls.

Magus Masonica said...

I would agree that palmettobug has decided to in a very deliberate manner to provoke an already tense and bad situation.
Why is the situation the way it is? Isn't the world a big enough place? Aren't the teachings of Freemasonry really applicable to those outside of certain clubs?
I think so.

IMHO if we continue to concentrate on the building of the temple and stop the foolishness of profane pursuits the world would be a really better place for all.
S&F,
BC

The Palmetto Mason said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
The Palmetto Mason said...

Squire: I am almost hesitant to comment in your blog as I don't want to attract any nastiness to your little corner of the internet. Please delete this comment if you think such will happen.

I have re-read and re-read my orginal "Camping" post on "The Line" and I still, for the life of me, can't understand some of the reactions to it. It should be obvious to any reasonable person as to which of the "camps" I reside in and I fully expected some would have a different opinion about what I had written. I expected honest debate and I welcomed such. I just didn't expect the labels of "racist", "sexist", etc. I didn't expect the nastiness and the calling for a "war." The majority of the inflammatory comments actually didn't even address my post - they were off on some other tangent.

Still Justa Mason said...

Every E.A. (unless some ritual is skipped) is reminded of temperance and prudence. Masons should try to exercise both in their language with anyone.

Justa Mason

Magus Masonica said...

Palmettobug,
You honestly cannnot see the undertone of nastiness in the "camping" blog?

Why the need to classify and group into "camps" in the first place? So, others may belong to another club that what you belong to, so what?

IMHO, everyone should just be happy in what they have and be excited about what they can build. The rest of this does not reflect well on anyone who is a practioner of the gentle and noble Craft.
S&F,
BC

The Palmetto Mason said...

magus: There was no "nastiness" in my "Camping" post. I just simply attempted to classify the primary opinions concerning what Freemasonry is. Yes, I showed a preference to one side - but that is my right. I stand by my post and I think I am right. There are those that think Freemasonry is for everyone and there are those who think it is a restricted society. I see nothing wrong in making that comparison.

Tubal Cain said...

how is having one day classes and making 8,000 masons in a day "a restrictive society"?



any one with a good check can join?

these other groups are freemasons, just different ways of practicing.
not camps or garden clubs.
legit, age old organizations..
passing on old traditions, still freemasonry...........


the idea that anyone can join is a fallacy....the idea that good honest women and atheists can become good freemasons is a truth in this other masonic org.
huge difference in "anyone can join" mantra.

Grand Orient masonry in no way states freemasonry is for everyone!

Quite the contrary, the petitioning and acceptance of a candidate is much stricter and demanding in Orient masonry compared to mainstream/anglo masonry, plus it may even be more demanding to progress through the degrees....no one day classes will ever exist in this other form of masonry...

to attempt to "classify" this other form of masonry is a little egotistical, since many masonic authours of lore have not attempted it? They have always referred to it as Freemasonry. Period.
Since time immemorial....France and the Grand Orient has a long and interesting masonic history that all masons would benefit from the study of it and other continental masonic origins.

Oh, you were probably deemed a racist because your Grand Lodge refuses Prince Hall recognition and we all know it is about race and nothing else.