Singer, song-writer Mary J. Blige calls them "haterators," that's street slang for people who spew hatred and negativity. The poster girl for haters would be Ann Coulter but I don't want to waste my time and energy even talking about her. Colleen P. Graffy, deputy assistant secretary of state for public diplomacy, provides a recent example of negative vitriol with her comments in an interview with the British Broadcasting Corporation. Graffy had this to say about the suicides of three prisoners at the military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, "Taking their own lives was not necessary, but it certainly is a good P.R. move." Take note of the fact that Ms. Graffy's job is public diplomacy. Ms. Graffy works for Karen Hughes, under secretary of state for public diplomacy, on -get ready for this one- improving the United States image abroad, especially in Islamic countries. The NY Times reports that it is unlikely that Ms. Graffy will be reprimanded for her callous remarks probably because they mirror the attitudes and comments of other prominent members of the Bush administration.

Another hater is Katherine DeBrecht, the author of the "Help! Mom" series of children's books. Ms. DeBrecht's first epic tome was entitled, "Help! Mom There are Liberals Under My Bed." DeBrecht assembles a cast of characters including Hillary Clinton and Ted Kennedy to spew the usual litany of crap about scary liberals without regard for the current resident of the White House and the effects his fiscal and social policies have had on our country. I wish to God, people like DeBrecht didn't bother me but they do. Here's why...kids aren't born with hate in their hearts, they learn it from their parents and other influential people in their lives. DeBrecht might think it's cute to preach bigotry and stereotyping to her three little boys, I think it's sinful. I'm sure DeBrecht thinks of herself as a good parent and a Christian but I don't recall Jesus ever saying one political group had the moral high ground over another. Truth be told, if Jesus had to register for a political party he would be a textbook progressive liberal.

Years ago when I was going to college in Kentucky I attended a rally of the Ku Klux Klan with a girlfriend. We were curious about what took place at these gatherings so we just showed up to check it out. There were families with kids and everyone, mom, dad and kids all had guns. They of course used the N word and talked about white supremacy and the kids were nodding and smiling and having fun being with their friends. The experience was chilling to me because of the dichotomy between the hate filled speech and the joyful, festival like atmosphere. It was a textbook example of how to raise a bigot.

I struggle to understand people of faith who find Ann Coulter's hate filled rantings entertaining or enlightening. Aren't we all residents of the same country? Don't we all struggle to raise productive children, pay our bills, and keep our loved ones safe? How can stereotyping people, ridiculing them and hating their belief system be productive or wise?

As a mother, I've taken pains to expose my child to all different kids of people, the homeless, the hopeless, the wealthy, the powerful, people of faith and those who don't accept the existence of a higher power. My feeling is that by understanding how different we all are he can find common ground and acceptance of all people. Unless you plan to keep your children in a hermetically sealed bubble it is your responsibility as a parent to teach them how diverse a nation we are. The beauty of America is that despite our differences we are all free of government oppression and want to live in peace and prosperity. Maybe I'm naïve but I truly believe that if we work together and set aside our differences for the common good we can create a stronger nation. DeBrecht, Coulter and Graffy can lead the hate parade. I'm sitting this one out.