Being a tolerant person does not mean accepting bigotry. That line of (overly literal) logic accomplishes nothing, other than allowing hate speech and ignorance to proliferate unchallenged.
To me, the very most defining aspect of being a "tolerant" person is tolerance for those characteristics that people cannot change about themselves. Race, sex, sexuality, etc.
Of course, tolerance for somebody's lifestyle, diet, religious views or political opinions is important, too, insofar as you find it relatively harmless. If somebody's political opinions are dead against a certain race, or a certain sexuality, though? We are under no obligation to respect hate.
I always found the "tolerance means you must tolerate intolerance" line of reasoning to be tedious, pointless, and overly literal. Just as the saying, "those who sacrifice liberty for security deserve neither", does not bloody mean that Ben Franklin was against liberty.
HardkorSB said:
Tolerating doesn't mean that you can't criticize it. Tolerating means that you aren't forcing people with different views than you to adapt to your views.
Tolerance means a little more than that. Most would agree that insulting & degrading language on the basis of race or sexuality is "intolerant", for example, though it goes beyond criticism, and is not forcing others to adapt to your views.
drthmik said:
In my experience; those who proclaim "Tolerance" to be the highest good have been the most intolerant, cruel & dismissive people I've ever met, shunning, mocking and decrying every view but their own.
You must have never read a British tabloid, then.