And this, Anon, is where I find a problem with straight edge.

It’s possible to be sober, and not be straight edge. Straight Edge is something that I respect, and take (well, most) people who do live the SxE lifestyle seriously in their commitment. The problem I see with it, is that there’s plenty of kids who chose to be sober, and by default, assume that means they SHOULD be edge. Just because you’re sober, does not mean you have to be straight edge. Straight Edge is not only a life-long commitment, but is something that means a lot to some people. Yes, I plan to be sober my entire life, but I’m not going to place a tag on myself before I’m 100% sure that it’s something I want to be associated with my entire life. 

I know a lot about straight edge. I’ve done plenty of research, from books, to music, to talking to other people about their decisions, but there has yet to be a single moment that jumped out at me and made me say “Damn, I want to be a part of that.” I’m not going to add to the statistics of straight edge kids who don’t know what they’re doing, who claim edge because they assume that, being sober in the hardcore scene, you must be edge. I feel like straight edge isn’t just something you default into, and I really hope people agree with me on this. Straight edge is something you should know what you’re doing before you become a part of. It’s something that people have lived their entire lives by. It’s not supposed to be a trend. If and when I ‘claim edge’, it’s going to be because there was a moment, whether it’s in a conversation with someone else, or by listening/seeing straight edge bands, or something I read somewhere, that makes me realize that I want to be a part of that.

And let me end by saying that - if you don’t know why you claimed edge, or if you worry about other peoples edge more than your own, please, figure it out. There’s plenty of people to talk to, songs to listen to, and books to read that give you such great insight on how the straight edge movement should be. If straight edge doesn’t mean anything more to you than a label you can place in your tumblr bio, or so you can get a triple x tattoo, please, look into it. Know what you’re doing and what you’re associating yourself with. It’s a life long commitment, why wouldn’t you want to know as much about it as possible?

And that’s the end of my ramblings.