| | | I go out and come back and things are a bit quiet? I think we all tend to get touchy at times. I don't like it when posters are intentionally dishonest and misleading. And when they add gratuitous insult to the mix....well--it IS hard to walk away from bullies. I had nothing to do with turning anyone in but it was getting out of hand.
Having said that, I want to apologise to you and others on the thread for also stooping to some vulgar terminology in a couple of my responses. We are allowed a lot of leeway on this thread and I think we value the ability to insult and engage in fairly rough repartee. However, we need to be adult enough to know where to draw our own parameters. I hope SI continues to allow some rough play--but context and circumstances do alter cases. When a thread is trolled by an outsider with the particular objective of disruption or gratuitous insult, then it changes the flavour of the interactions.
These are just my thoughts. All the regulars here have been combative and even hostile from time to time. But the regulars have a great deal of history and baggage in the group--often many thousands of posts. And it is good for all of us from time to time to be reminded that all of us are real people and have sensitivities. Personally, I do not care too much about what any jasper says to me or about me when they level lies or gratuitous slanders--as they so often do. I can look after myself. I do, however, think that family should be left out of any of our personal rancor, by which I mean, insult me if you wish. But it is crude and vulgar to insult our husbands and wives and children and to call them names. We choose these threads and we know which ones allow greater interaction and range of input. Our families do not make that choice and it is cowardly to try to hurt a poster by making up lies about their spouse or children.
Just some of my thoughts. Bring on those dumb creationists with their hatred of Science and their love of stuperstition! So far the courts have decided over and over and over that Science should be taught in our schools to our kids and not mythology AS science! I love mythology and I took it in University many years ago. But I took it as Arts-not as Science! And that is the way it goes. Many people do not appreciate the battle being waged by creationists to take control of our school curriculums.
Somebody said that the price of freedom is eternal vigilance. I believe that is true... |
|
