> From: John Williams <[email protected]>
> It is interesting that what some people find rude
> does not seem rude to others. I suspect that a
> neutral observer would look at my posts during
> the last few weeks and judge that they are not at
> all rude. I have been asking some uncomfortable
> questions, but not making any obviously rude remarks.
> The interesting thing is that the data do not support
> the claim that my posts make people less likely to
> communicate here. Rather, just the opposite. If you
> look at the volume of non-JW posts as a function of
> JW-posts to this list, there is a remarkably large
> positive correlation.
> Anyone listen to Bill Maher? I disagree with a lot of
> what he says, but he is entertaining. He speaks his mind,
> and is not afraid to discuss uncomfortable issues. I have
> never found him rude,
> but I suspect others may have a different opinion. To each
> his own. Here's an example of an uncomfortable issue that
> he discusses:
> http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bill-maher/new-rule-smart-president_b_253996.html
I've been off the list for the second time since I joined. I am unemployed
again so I have more time on my hands. A number of my former colleagues have
died when they could not afford Cobra and were unable to receive medical
treatments. At least two have committed suicide. Fortunately my health is
holding up, so far.
Most recently I gafiated from the list because I got sucked into defending
myself from personal attacks when I spoke up against certain ad hominem and
straw-man arguments. Things have not calmed down that much in the interim (at
least since I resumed lurking) but , as Charlie says, taking time out has been
a good thing to do, from time to time...
I am encouraged that John Williams feels his recent posts are not all rude, and
that he reads the Huff Post, and watches Bill Maher. I would hope that he
emulates Maher's style of using rational arguments and being provocative in
ways that agitate people to think, rather than just emote, That is the
difference between polemicists on the left and rabble rousers like Limbaugh and
O'Reilly who use innuendo, specious and disingenuous arguments to distort the
facts.
I have noticed that people are also asking JW uncomfortable questions and I
wonder how he finds the time to answer some of them? He must have a higher
word count than anyone else on the Brinlist.
Before I left I never did get an answer to my questions asking JW if that was
his real name, where he was from, etc. I wonder if he has ever revealed any
personal information about who he is and what he does for a living that gives
him so much time to agitate? He seems to be thriving more than ever on the
negative attention he reaps.
I agree with Chris F. that gathering information and watching debates unfold
helps to make up your mind on some of the issues discussed. In the past I have
not gotten much out of the John Williams threads, although hopefully, that may
still change. Learning more of the history of Brinlist discourse and how
trolling has been dealt with in the past has been fascinating.
I've enjoyed reading the comments of many of you and hoped to meet some of you
at WorldCon, but it seems I was the only Brinlister that attended.
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