I’m no angel, neither is he!

I said some harsh things today. I stereotyped and called names. What’s worse, I didn’t even regret doing it afterwards.

The person I stereo-typed against and said the harsh words to is Oromantic (at Oromantic Weblog). I’ve always liked the guy, inspite of not agreeing with him on various points. I like the way he expresses himself. His passion and devotion to the “Oromo cause” and his book knowledge on anything Oromo.

However, the one thing I hate about him just happens to be the one thing that mattered most. He sees the world in only two colors! You are either an OLF sympathizer or an EPRDF accomplice. No “person who loves her country & wishes the best for her people” with him. No “person who perhaps hasn’t seen the whole picture and doesn’t know the whole truth”. No “individual with own beliefs that just happens to be different to that of mine”. When he has no problem with your post, he ignores it. When he does, he refers to you as “Abyssinian”, “Woyane”, or 3rd person plural and my personal favorite – “They”. Only the other day, we were talking about the Ogaden question (He pro-separation, me against; it’s evil seem to always outweigh it’s gain). When he tried to justify his standing by pointing how Ogaden wasn’t part of Ethiopia until the last quarter of the 19th century, I said:

“Everybody knows Ogaden wasn’t originally part of Ethiopia. But it has been for the last one hundred years. Too bad for them. But they should probably try to get over it.”

His response:

“It is sickening to hear when the likes of you say “Too bad for them. But they should probably try to get over it.” to the people who are inhumanly being tortured, deliberately being starved to death and a genocide is being unleashed on them. You proved yourself to being an accomplice by saying these awful things.”

After typing “stop twisting my words, fuckhead” in the comment box, I breathed in and out and decided to let it go. Myself a blogger who blogs for the sole purpose of letting steam off, I understand where the guys rage comes from and I sympathize. Have even said as much in an earlier comment. But even the most saintly sympathizer can be pushed too far. His second response to another comment I made regarding his post on Haile Gebreselassie was the straw that broke the camel’s back. So, yes, I dished it out. I told him he was a miserable wretch, and a living breathing example why many non-Oromo Ethiopians see Oromo Elites as “denQoro” and “teBab”.

No need to pick petals off a flower to divine abesheet has gone too far – on all accounts. 1. Trying to make “many Ethiopians” part of a personal bias 2. Targeting just one ethnic group (when i know only too well every ethnic group has it’s share of “denqoro” and “tebab” “elites”) and 3. Not explaining who I was referring to as “Oromo Elites” (politicians who see everything through hate-filled eye-glasses they wear round the clock and dumb government officials like the ones who took a shot at our 4WD for driving past their vehicle on our way back to Addis from Meta Abbo some 7 years ago). That wasn’t very nice, not to mention widly inaccurate. Letting a hater ruin my good manners, as well as attempting to fight fire with fire (even for someone who takes pride in her Grandmother being “Ejole Weleggaa”) was, however, the worst mistake i could commit (and did).

Still, you won’t have blamed me if you’ve been around this guy’s blog the way I have. There seems to be no winning with him. However hard you try to be nice, sensitive, reasonable, and caring; however much you plead with him, he simply pushes you harder and harder. It’s as if he’s trying to tick you off into behaving as bad as he does so he could finally say “there, that’s what she was all along!”. As if showing you for a person who has made a conscious decision to be tolerant of other’s views and embrace diversity is something that should be held against you.

Now, I’ve seen eye to eye with EPRDF on some points (points that has to do with national security, mostly). On those points insignificant little me in her insignificant little way didn’t (Post Election-2005 policies like Mass Media and Freedom of Information Proclamation, Charities and Societies Proclamation, Education Policy), I’ve made posts on this very blog. There may indeed not be an “iota of freedom of speech” in Ethiopia as Oromantic once observed. Or maybe the light is growing dimmer, as I believe the case to be. But complaining about lack of freedom of expression while you are incapable of stomaching a [respectful] opinion which differs from you, that makes you not just a hypocrite but a bad idea for Gaddaa Republic, Homes.