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Show Dorothy Dix Talks f f DON'T BE ANTAGONISTIC ! j; 3y DOROTHY Ine Wnriil s. Iijif: i .! Woman Writer ?j One of the greatest mistakes t'hat any human being can make is to adopt an antagonistic attitude towards life-There life-There are people who prido themselves them-selves on never being "one of the mob" as they express it- They never agree with anybody. To avow an enthusiasm en-thusiasm in their presence is to have them ridicule it. To express an opinion opin-ion is to have them dissent it. To Introduce In-troduce any topic into a conversation ' when they are present is as good for i a healed argument as a nickel is for a ginger cake. These misguided Individuals think that by taking the opposite point of view they show how extremely cfever, ij ' and original they are. They like to f shock people, and they take a fiendish delight in trampling rough shod over the pet prejudices and faiths of oth-! oth-! ers. They scoff at religion In the presence pres-ence of the devout. They revile their country to the patriotic. Let. a for- teigner be in the company, and they recall re-call every unpleasant episode in the history of his nation. Speak of' some statesman you revere, and they tear ,' his reputation to tatters. Mention your favorite author, and they jeer ' at your taste. Tell of some great ! movement in which you are interested : heart and soul, and they try to convince con-vince you that the whole' thing is a combination of graft and politics, and ! that you are a brainless idiot who is ; being scientifically worked for the benefit of some profiteer. Such people are about as agreeable to have about as an ice cold wet blanket. blan-ket. They can freeze conversation to death, and put an extinguisher upon ' all cheerfulness and good humor in about three minutes. Yet they wonder that they are not popular, and that no one pines for their society I In spite of their flattering opinion of their own superior mentality, they have not intelligence enough to know that nono of us like to have our opinions opin-ions derided, our point of view made to look ridiculous, and that we do not ; ' adore tho hand that tries to pull down our heroes and idols from their ped-1 ped-1 estals and lay them in tho dust. On: : the contrary, we resent the desecra- lion of our gods more than we would a personal Insult. None of us enjoy having our fur rubbed the wrong way. Therefore, ' when we seek our friends and' companions, com-panions, and those with whom we want to do business, we do not choose those who will muffle our tempers, and say things that annoy us. We pick out individuals who have a soothing touch, and with whom we can count on getting' get-ting' along without argument or friction. fric-tion. People who adopt the antagonistic 1 attitude towards life may be full of I talent. They may have admirable 1 qualities of character that wo ab-; ab-; stractly admire and esteem, but they never receive the just rewards of their' .merits because they irritate all withi I whom they come in contact. How often do we hear it said of a 1 1 man: "Oh yes, he is a failure. He has I never been able to hold a situation, and yet he is industrious, and honest 1 , and clever, but he just can't get along ' with nnybody. Always objects to every , plan and suggestion that is offered, and argues every point until you are ready to die of exasperation, and he is . always in an eternal quarrel with all . the other men. He's a man who has, been ruined by his cranky disposl-, tlon." j And which of us have not friends whom we really love because we real- ize tho sweet that is under their bit- ; ter, but whom we do not dare to in- I vlte to dinner where there are to be j people whom they would really like i to meet, because of the certainty that i they will ruin the party? They would bo dead sure to differ with each in- ; dividual on his or her particular hob- ; by, and say the thing that would most hurt and offend that particular per- j son. f i Thoy do not fit in anywhere In life. 1 They bristle like porcupines and are just about as unpleasant to have about' and yet they complain that they have1 no friends, that they are not invited around, and that no one p.'nes for their society! They might as well ask themselves why anyone should yearn for their society so-ciety any more than thov should long for a bitter pill, or deliberately seek to put a pebble in their shoe Heaven knows we all have enough disagree-' able things to endure in life without going out of our way to seek the com ' panionship of those who deliberately irritate us in order to try to show off their own wit and brilliancy. , To be. successful and popular, one, must cultivate adaptability and malleability. mal-leability. Nor does this Indicate, as( the antagonistic contend, any duplic-1 ity or weakness of character. It is merely a broad and liberal recognition of other people's rights to their own opinions and point of view, and of their privilege to hold these opinions and points of view unvcxed by criti- i cism from you. i It is also the kindly attitude towards! life, because it leaves tho enthusiast I1 with the fire of his enthusiasm still! unquenched; the hero worshipper i with his God still unflawed; the optimist op-timist with his hope undimmed. Why' should we put out the lgiht upon an altar when we only leave darkness ! behind? And above all, why should ! wo have the colossal egotism to think that our opinion is wiser than that i of the balance of mankind? Surely to be dreaded, to bo shunned, shun-ned, to be disliked is a high price to pay for the conceit we display In differing dif-fering with the world, and that's what happens to tho antagonistic. oo i "I was single, and had a dog's life," said the widower. "I married, and had i cat and dog's," A little love goes a long way occasionally occa-sionally to the dlvorco courL |