by Helen "I Never Could See It" Keller
Observations on verbal violence and
the Usenet newsgroup alt.revisionism,
with hints for potential participants
VIOLENCE IN SPEECH does lead to violent action, as witnessed by the
recent death of Yitzhak Rabin and its lengthy, ugly prelude of verbal
excoriation of the basest sort. Yet many are those who rabidly maintain
that the moral content of an opponent's position (as judged by guess
who?) at some point of paucity justifies the removal of all civility
from discourse. "What else can you do?" goes an argument that's been
posted in alt.revisionism several times, "What can you do when they
are pesented with truth and refuse to accept it, except to call them
what they have shown themselves to be -- liars, morons, and Nazis? It's
only a natural reaction". Perhaps the name of the newsgroup should be
changed to either alt.logic or alt.maturity. It may be a natural impulse
to act like a boor, but those who wish to present such behavior as normal
or desireable should take their meals out on the back steps, lest they
cock a leg and pee on the table when another diner appears to disagree
with them.
This bigoted view posits that once a person has shown themselves to
be impervious to a clearly presented "truth", truth being the argument
of the righteous, then the righteous have not only a right but a duty
to heap verbal abuse on the one who has committed the unpardonable offense
of refusing to share their faith. The abuse need not be directed at
any specific offense either -- it simply becomes a fixed component of
comments directed to that person. This loutish leap of logic is then
followed by a wide-eyed claim that certainly an exchange of ideas can
still take place, once the liar realizes what he is and that "we" are
on to his game and publicly recants. Sometimes they even ask for this
openly, a la Torquemada -- "Do you admit that you were lying now, Mr.
Revisionazi?" Exchange ideas? Balderdash. What happens, of course, is
what the title implies -- the attacked either leaves or a cussing contest
begins. Happens all the time. It's what alt.revisionism is really about.
Every sentient human being knows, at some level near enough consciousness
to be held accountable for, that in order for communication to take
place there must be some token show of respect on the part of all participants.
Mammals universally develop rituals to express this fact of behavior
before sitting down together; it's an instinct, a very useful part of
the survival mechanism (i.e. - yes I know we're sitting down to eat,
all the more reason for you to demonstrate that I am not on the menu
and vice-versa). Successful discussion of the abstract is so dependent
on this that to talk to someone on that level without any degree of
respect, real or feigned, is to engage in conversation with threat or
the imminence of threat as the guiding force in your mind. To pretend
otherwise is tantamount to fraud.
When someone talks trash to you, you quickly convert to either covering
your own butt or hoping to kick theirs (figuratively, then literally).
With your mind so occupied, reasoning takes place in a part of the brain
much smaller than the one involved in keeping that scowl on your face.
And whatever the deficient result is has to pass out to the world through
that scowl, through that whole aggressive/defensive mental state, filtered
and refined to arrive at its target with all the benefit of gasoline
on a fire.
You do not shout reason at someone while at the same time calling them
an idiot and a liar, or worse, and expect them to get a damned thing
useful out of it except maybe the wisdom to back away from your sharp
teeth. To rationalize such behavior as normal is nothing more than making
an excuse to continue a fight. If you really think that verbal communication
is one of your primary goals while acting that way, then run, don't
walk, to the Psych.101 class nearest you. This may be in the introduction
of the text. It shouldn't have to be explained.
So let's be honest, regardless of our philosophies -- alt.revisionism
is not about reasoning with anybody. It's an electronic cat-fight. It's
as intellectually deep an affair as screaming lines of apes throwing
rocks at each other across a ditch. Keeps them all excited, doesn't
settle much. Not a lot more you can say about it. Except that the introductory
scenes to Kubrick's 2001 (remember the blustering ape who discovers
weapons and high protein diet?) give an elegant and disturbingly chordal
portrayal of where it leads. Which is finally to God, but there's a
whole slew of dead apes along the way.
The path can't be otherwise in our present state of development (with
its rhythmic retardations called war) but believe above all else that
it can change when we do. The only way for that to happen is to expand
minds instead of honing them like narrow impervious knives, to listen
to others and get a feel for how and what they think so we can come
to a point of mutual accomodation that allows us to concentrate on more
important matters. Like living in the marvelous present instead of being
eternally consumed with anguish for the past and fear of the future.
Aren't those last two the driving forces of alt.revisionism? Damn straight
they are, idiot, and you can kiss my ass if you don't take my word for
it! (The stuff sticks to you after a while. Those who think they leave
it on the hard disk are suffering from two delusions -- one, I know
how to communicate and two, playing the verbal equivalent of a mugger
each day doesn't affect my laid-back basically nice personality.)
Now if you're convinced that reason won't carry the day for you, consider
these possibilities -- that either your position isn't worth supporting,
or the threat posed by someone disagreeing with it is serious enough
to fight against, and name-calling is a necessary part of the build-up
to that. Decide which is the case and stop pretending to do and be something
you're not, such as reasonable, while travelling hell-bent down a path
having nothing to do with reason. Mealy-mouthing about the details of
irrelevant philosophies attending the main event is part of a larger
game you're heading into, and you need to be straight about basics lest
you grow confused and vulnerable in the literal battles which will come.
Therein lies the argument for our rather desperate need to engage in
civil discourse. Not because nasty words make a few tender souls feel
bad, but because they invariably lead to things that make everyone feel
bad. And those who would speculate as to their value in limited use
should also speculate on this -- how far down a slippery slope fronting
an abyss is it advisable to crawl to seek a better position?
Much is made of the need to learn from the experiences of World War
II and the myriad ritual carnages before and after it. What we're not
even close to learning is that supposedly trivial things like a computer
discussion group, when multiplied to a level of thousands of ideologues
shouting past one another in rising fury, are exactly how wars get started.
Ideological arguments are the vehicle to conflict and scorn is their
fuel. One acrimonious group with closed minds and open mouths motivated
by fear is no more than a pebble on the slope. Of itself it poses little
danger, might cause the body social to lurch a bit if stepped on. But
what happens when there's a hundred of them? A thousand? Ten thousand?
At some point, the slide into oblivion cannot be recalled. How better
it is not to let it start.
Curse not the darkness, for you thereby add to it. If enough people
do that, it can consume us all. Direct the light of your reason into
the shadowy places so that you can see and deal with what hides there
instead of blindly smashing at it in the dark. The ravening tiger you're
trying to kill may turn out to be just your neighbor's cat.
Since this polemic has as much chance of changing attitudes in alt.revisionism
as optimism does in affecting weather patterns, it is advisable to outfit
yourself properly before entering that den of din. We therefore offer
instructions for assembling a professional quality....
alt.revisionism Discussion Survival Kit!
   
Instructions for Use
(1) Put on Thinking Cap (unless you're already wearing it).
(2) Think up a good, unfounded Hatchet Job to do on sombody.
(3) Write it up and shove it into the line (post it).
(4) Pat yourself on the back (por nada, pundejo).
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