In Defense
By Pejman Yousefzadeh Posted in Culture — Comments (6) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »
Josh Trevino, who helped found the Online Integrity movement--has found himself on the receiving end of some exceedingly nasty commentary, commentary that not only takes issue with the entirely reasonable and unremarkable objectives of OI, but also attacks Josh in vicious terms.
Having corresponded at length with the great and good Mr. Trevino, I can vouch for his integrity and seriousness of purpose. But even if I didn't know him from Adam, I find it bizarre in the extreme that anyone could actually have a problem with what Josh is trying to do. The issue here is simple: No matter how strongly you feel about the issues of the day, no matter how compelled you are to write about them in public, no matter the depth and breadth of your disagreement with those who do not share your worldview, you really shouldn't do things that would constitute taking the battle beyond the world of ideas and into a realm where people can get seriously hurt in a number of ways.
Yes, we can go on and on about all of the people on the Right and on the Left who were or are perceived as having violated this rule. Or we can view OI as a starting point for a new civility. I choose to do the latter. Others can as well--whether or not they sign up with OI. But if you not only denigrate the effort but subject one of its founders to the most outlandish calumny you can fashion and indicate to all and sundry that the principles discussed by the OI movement matter not a whit to you . . . well . . . I'm sure there are people out in this world who want to keep company with you, but I am not sure that I am one of them.
And no, I won't link to the people who attacked Josh Trevino. I suppose you can find them easily enough. I for one choose not to point them out. Just as the dignified should pay no mind to their opposites, the populace at large should conduct its discussions with seriousness and with disregard to those who make it a practice to eschew maturity in their social interactions.
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In Defense 6 Comments (0 topical, 6 editorial, 0 hidden) Post a comment »
for my little blog, for what it's worth. Doing so led me to remove a link to some personal information about the treasonous Mary McCarthy.
It felt good to step onto higher ground.
There are many things in life which mystify me, regarding people's attitudes. For example, it makes perfect sense to me that we should not allow tiny babies to be ripped apart by doctors, in the name of personal privacy. But these people will argue until they are blue in the face that shredded babies are the way to go.
Integrity, on-line or off, can never rise above the individual's core values.
What's amazing is not the viciousness, which is par for the course, but the open endorsement of viciousness as a positive good. Yet again, the Left not only libels conservatives but seeks to imitate the libel.
Tiring at times, mildly bothersome, and always a revelation, but not amazing. What could be amazing about a group of people who yearn for control and domination of their fellow citizens, however vicarious. They themselves seem to yearn to be under the heel but don't seem to realize that's what private S & M facilities are for.
Sorry, I seem picky and don't mean to be but usually those who want others subjugated are short of good manners. Know your enemy.
So for some things, the only reward you'll ever get is a good night's sleep. But the older you get ... the more reward that is. :-)