as far as I can tell, things have gotten way out of hand
You are correct, Neo, except for the understatement. The gang-up on CH has gone from nasty to downright ugly. What we have here, are a group of citizens dissatisfied with the results of the "law." The law, in this case, is the Terms or Use formulated by, and rightfully administered by, our host, SI. The decision of SI having been deemed unsatisfactory, these citizens have opted to take the law into their own hands. Rarely in such situations can matters be controlled, and they quickly get out of hand.
People here have apparently used their own files of historical posts, including private ones, to build a public case against CH. Thread readers are urged, indeed pressured, to read these posts ... which have been selected by the "prosecutors" from among thousands of posts and which are entirely lacking the entire context that existed when they were posted. Non-involved posters are then contacted via public or private messages, and challenged to take a public stand on the CH-Poet issue. Those that demur from condemning CH are treated harshly, often castigated publicly. The prosecutorial campaign is not sporadic, but relentless, at times dominating a thread such as this one for many days.
The goals of this extra-legal prosecution are no longer apparent. There is no longer any serious discussion of achieving a rapprochement between CH and Poet. Indeed, any overtures by CH in this vein are met with scorn and with a continual raising of the bar as to what concessions would be required of him. The immediate goal seems to be to fan the fires of condemnation, to intimidate supposed neutrals or CH-supporters, and to broaden the support base lined up against him. We are talking about a virtual mob that has assembled here, so it may be illusory to imagine that there is any ultimate goal. My guess would be that, vaguely, the hope is that CH can be driven off SI altogether.
For quite some time now, there have been no new charges of harassment or stalking by CH. Indeed, up until Poet's suspension, she and CH appeared to have been coexisting rather peacefully on the Rambi thread, for one. But rather than losing steam with time, this campaign has steadily escalated. As it has done so, it has often veered away from the original charges or purpose. Someone here today posted a political comment of CH's from the distant past (the Oklahoma City bombing) as evidence of his wrongdoing. Then there is the recent brouhaha about who reported Poet for her dual accounts. CH has been broadly accused of that, his denial notwithstanding. Then there is the secondary issue of who might have abetted CH in the matter. I have been accused of that, among others. It has been pointed out to me that the accusation was my own fault, as I did not swear on my mother's grave that I didn't do it, which makes me the logical suspect and an appropriate target for condemnation.
I notice that you have come under heavy fire today for comments not sufficiently on the right side of matters. No one wants to hear your logic or your interpretations. They are not welcome here, and they do not play well with this crowd. It is someone's blood that is wanted here (hopefully CH's, but someone's).
Yes, there is plenty of ugliness here to go around. That is what happens with mob rule.
I think at the root of this, now, is that there are personalities here who have vested their reputations in achieving the downfall of CH, however they define that. This is a macho thing now. There is no room for compromise, no room for disagreement. This is war. Everything goes in war. There may be collateral damage to innocents, but then there are no innocents in war.
It is a good thing that all of this is playing out in the electronic arena, because in the real world violence might not lie far way.
As to whatever happened to Poet ... as to whatever happened to her request for protection ...hey, those things are not the point anymore. Don't we get that? |
