Tolerance is frequently assumed to be a virtue of the young. In the mass media, age is associated with crabbiness and narrowing of outlook, against the pure unsullied benevolence of youth, who are allegedly keen to live and let live.
No doubt there is some truth in this way of seeing things, but in my experience young people can be furiously intolerant and dismissive of difference. This will not be news to anyone with experience of the scheming and antagonism of student politics. I well remember an acquaintance of mine from university who stood for women’s officer on a pro-life platform, and was subjected to the most horrendous vituperation.
