What is wrong with
people? Don't they even want to be taken seriously? Here are
some comments I've seen made recently (two right here on JU):
"Bush is a c*nt." [ed. -- "vagina"]
"I'd vote for my dog before I'd vote for Bush."
"Bush is the most disgusting human being who ever lived."
Those last two
boggle the mind. Do the people that make these kinds of statements
really believe them? Do they really expect to be taken seriously?
They may as well be talking about CIA brain control beams and
aluminum foil hats. Just as bad as these irrationalists are those who
start hurling insults and abuse, as if that has ever gotten anyone
any closer to any sort of goal. The concept of catching more flies
with honey than with vinegar is thousands of years old yet seems
totally lost on these people.
In the comments to
my article about "The
Buddha on Cussing People Out" I responded to a couple of people
who defended their cussing by saying:
It is certainly your right to express
yourself any way you feel. I can't help but wonder,
though, if it doesn't hinder you in some ways?
Accomplishing anything significant requires the
assistance and involvement of other people. Ultimately
those who can help the most are likely to be those who
would frown on such expression. Don't you think, perhaps,
it lowers people's estimation of you and harms you in the
longrun?
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The same could be
said for these types of irrational remarks. Maybe amongst your
little-group of like-minded friends these foolish statements carry
some weight, but out in the larger free marketplace of ideas these
sort of rantings are going to get you instantly dismissed. This is
the surest, fastest way of getting everything you say and think
instantly disregarded. What would you think of a guy who
walked up to you and started talking about alien anal probing and
urging you to wear cast-iron undies? Would you pay any attention to
him? Would you give a rip about anything he said at any later point
in time?
If you want to
have any impact in the world, don't establish yourself as a lunatic
or as someone who can't take part in civil discussion. People who
want to get things done in the world can't afford spouting these
types of ill conceived notions. Don't alienate the public at large.
Don't put off people of influence. When people spout these things
they instantly remove themselves from the debate. They have just said
"I am not a rational being and you are wasting your time with
me." They've slammed the door to the conference room in their own
faces, with themselves left standing on the outside. People
flip a little switch in their heads and move on with the debate
without these people. They have just shut themselves off from having
any input in their world.
Virtually
everything in your life is going to require you to persuade someone.
Making comments such as those above strip you of power. If you really
believe the country is in better hands with your dog running it,
please check yourself into the nearest sanitarium. Just don't expect
to have any relevance to anyone or anything. Your impact will begin
and end with your own opinion-- and that's not really worth anything
at all.