[PLUG-TALK] How to be a good Democrat

Jeme A Brelin jeme at brelin.net
Mon Oct 20 02:15:01 UTC 2003


On Sun, 19 Oct 2003, Russ Johnson wrote:
> On 19 Oct 2003 15:25:04 -0700
> Russell Senior <seniorr at aracnet.com> wrote:
>
> > So why choose to emphasize it with the Rush Limbaugh propaganda tract?
>
> It was a JOKE, Russell. It was not propaganda. It was satire. The
> problem being, that most of the people I've talked to have that simple
> type of thinking.

I don't think you know what "satire" means.  This is the second time
you've misused the term.

And being a JOKE doesn't excuse the language.  Your intent (much like the
previously discussed Boston Driver's Handbook or whatever it's called) was
to make people laugh by sharing dirty thoughts you both agree upon but
think you're being "daring" by publishing.  The fact is that that kind of
insinuation and accusation is at best uncharitable and at worst
wrong-headed and insultling.

> > I disagree.  The single issue has lots of grey.  "Cut-and-dried" _is_
> > one-bit thinking.
>
> Exactly. And "most" folks DO think that way.

Do you know MOST folks?  You assume the worst in people and that's why
your conscious can excuse the abominable way you want them treated.

> > Russ> Tommy Lee Jones character (Agent K) in MIB said it best, "A
> > Russ> *person* is smart. People are dumb, panicky, dangerous animals
> > Russ> and you know it."
> >
> > A self-fulfilling prophesy.
>
> I've found his statement to be quite true. Granted, I'm going on
> anecdotal evidence, but in this case, I've had very little evidence to
> the contrary.

Do you know what it means to be "self-fulfilling"?  He's saying that you
believe it's true because you believe it's true.  You can find evidence of
almost any supposition about human nature if you first accept it as fact.

For example, spend a month thinking that people are intelligent and
working hard to make the world in which they want to live and see who
becomes the "good guy" and the "bad guy".

J.
-- 
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     Jeme A Brelin
    jeme at brelin.net
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