Should we respond to hate with more hate?

Should we respond to hate with more hate?  I dare say, most people know the answer to this question.  It’s generic.  It doesn’t specify what kind of hate.  So chances are, most people would say “no, we should not respond to hate with more hate”.  The problem is, in the back of our minds, there’s an “unless it’s __“.  If we’re talking about the specific kind of hate that pushes our buttons – the answer is quite different.  Even if we don’t like to acknowledge it.

Responding to hate with more hate

A few years ago, I wrote Say bad things about me and I’ll destroy you.  It was about Donald Trump’s response to people who say bad things about him.  And how he admits that he does respond to hate with more hate.  It’s also about how, in spite of that, lots of Evangelical Christians support him.  In fact, so many support him that they were the difference between him winning and losing the last election.

Shortly after that, I went to the other side of the political aisle.