I think there is a wise man in charge of The Wall Street Journal. I had the same thoughts as the man in the chair when I read his editorial the other day.
Weeping for the truth in this. As a Canadian, it's horrifying to see this type of interaction happening more and more here. We are infected, not just by proximity (and there are a lot of anti-vaxxers here, too, who do not want immunization from these ideas) but also by folks who have learned well the way to win hearts and minds of the underserved.
I am in a disagreement with the man who holds the AR-15, pointing it at me because I am not the right sort of person, not the sort of person who might belong in the vicinity of men who hold AR-15's. I don't belong in his vicinity because he says so.
I disagree that he gets to say who belongs, and who doesn't, in his vicinity, and I disagree that he should be pernitted to hold the AR-15 at all, let alone in public.
If I halve the distance between he and I, so that I might be heard and seen more clearly, I make it considerably easier for him to obliterate my internals with a flick of his twitchy index finger, which he is simply quivering in anticipation for just such an opportunity. Because what he wants, more than anything, is murder those who, in his estimation, don't belong in his vicinity.
If I step towards him, halving the distance between us, this is his signal, his permission to spray my bodily tissue across the pavement. I came at him, see, so he no longer need constrain that twitchy index finger.
He gets to decide who belongs in his vicinity, and who doesn't, and he has been sanctioned in delivering ballistic judgement.
Impunity.
Because he holds his AR-15 close to his beating heart.
So, how 'bout we take a poll among those who diagnose the source of our societal ills to be 'the lack of civilty', and see how many (deep down, furreal furreal) believe a pluralistic democracy can safely abide the presence of Murder Clowns drooling at the prospect of dismemberment of those who don't belong in their vicinity.
Oh wait!
We don't have to take a poll.
The Murder Clowns are rampant, corpses are splayed on classroom floors and outside nightclubs and in synagogues, and the diagnosis rendered for what's wrong in our politics remains what it was decades ago- 'lack of civility', especially among those who disagree with the man clutching the AR-15 close to his heart.
I call those who bemoan 'lack of civility' in political arguments 'ignorant, cowardly fuckwads complict in mass murder'.
Perhaps I am lowering the tenor of thoughtful discourse in saying so.
My favourite version of this:
Man A: 2 + 2 = 4
Man B: 2 + 2 = 5
Reasonable centrist: Let's compromise on 2+2 = 4-and-a-half
I think there is a wise man in charge of The Wall Street Journal. I had the same thoughts as the man in the chair when I read his editorial the other day.
Weeping for the truth in this. As a Canadian, it's horrifying to see this type of interaction happening more and more here. We are infected, not just by proximity (and there are a lot of anti-vaxxers here, too, who do not want immunization from these ideas) but also by folks who have learned well the way to win hearts and minds of the underserved.
Not a parable-
I am in a disagreement with the man who holds the AR-15, pointing it at me because I am not the right sort of person, not the sort of person who might belong in the vicinity of men who hold AR-15's. I don't belong in his vicinity because he says so.
I disagree that he gets to say who belongs, and who doesn't, in his vicinity, and I disagree that he should be pernitted to hold the AR-15 at all, let alone in public.
If I halve the distance between he and I, so that I might be heard and seen more clearly, I make it considerably easier for him to obliterate my internals with a flick of his twitchy index finger, which he is simply quivering in anticipation for just such an opportunity. Because what he wants, more than anything, is murder those who, in his estimation, don't belong in his vicinity.
If I step towards him, halving the distance between us, this is his signal, his permission to spray my bodily tissue across the pavement. I came at him, see, so he no longer need constrain that twitchy index finger.
He gets to decide who belongs in his vicinity, and who doesn't, and he has been sanctioned in delivering ballistic judgement.
Impunity.
Because he holds his AR-15 close to his beating heart.
So, how 'bout we take a poll among those who diagnose the source of our societal ills to be 'the lack of civilty', and see how many (deep down, furreal furreal) believe a pluralistic democracy can safely abide the presence of Murder Clowns drooling at the prospect of dismemberment of those who don't belong in their vicinity.
Oh wait!
We don't have to take a poll.
The Murder Clowns are rampant, corpses are splayed on classroom floors and outside nightclubs and in synagogues, and the diagnosis rendered for what's wrong in our politics remains what it was decades ago- 'lack of civility', especially among those who disagree with the man clutching the AR-15 close to his heart.
I call those who bemoan 'lack of civility' in political arguments 'ignorant, cowardly fuckwads complict in mass murder'.
Perhaps I am lowering the tenor of thoughtful discourse in saying so.
If you're lowering it, we could say you're meeting the discourse in the middle.
Ba da bing!
This is excellent!
Brilliant.