The Occasional Murmurations of an Idiosyncratic Punk

The question says it all.

If people are going to hate and be mean to you, does that give you the right to hate them back?

It's the opposite of the Golden Rule, really. But it's something I've had on my head for a really long time.

Recently, an ex of mine has started dating my friend. My relationship with this ex ended pretty roughly, so much to the point that she hasn't talked to me since. I've been cool about it so far. My friend and I haven't argued about it or anything, and I haven't sparked up anything with the ex.

But she's been telling my friend these horribly fake things. How I only date girls if I think they're slutty. How I'm only friends with people who I will gain from. But most importantly, how much I hate my ex, his current girlfriend.

I've tried being mature in this situation, but it's not something I can exactly decide when I hear her telling lies about me in front of my face.

So I've been wondering if, since she's the one starting entirely fake rumors about me, am I morally allowed to hate back? Not by starting rumors like her, but simply by feeling hatred towards her?

Though I don't exactly believe in Karma, I do believe in the message it sends. Do good, get good. Do bad, get bad. But how often do you see someone doing good getting good? The nicest people tend to be the people with the least.

On the flip side, think of how many total horrible people are rich, famous, and getting good. Charlie Sheen, who received something like 1.2 million dollars per episode of Two and a Half Men before getting suspended, has done horrible things. Cocaine, domestic violence on at least 3 accounts, even shooting his fiancee. And still, this guy is making bucket loads of money.

Now I know that not rich people are mean and not all poor people are nice. Charlie Sheen isn't exactly a shining example of celebrity achievement. But still, I'm just expressing my point. Karma isn't always true.

Which is why I've ask this question: Am I morally allowed to hate someone if they hate me?

I honestly don't know the answer to this question. But oh well, I just needed to rant. And for all you people out there thinking, "oh please, high school drama in a blog post?", remember that this sort of stuff is important to kids. We're just trying to learn how to live our lives so that we can get it right.

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