General Asylum

RE: get over your negative self.

199.10.28.20

magiccarpetride

A

In Reply to: RE: get over your negative self. posted by beach cruiser on July 14, 2017 at 13:22:23

You make some good points, no doubt. While I agree, I would just like to clarify that I'm not complaining about that particular forum, I am merely pondering the ramifications of the increasingly oppressive language policing. I think we're just looking at the tip of the iceberg. Banning a word, any word, from the human vocabulary cannot end well. They tried that kind of censorship in the now defunct Soviet Union, and it imploded.

The bigger they are, the harder they fall.

Follow Ups:

RE: get over your negative self. - Inmate51 08:19:34 07/21/17 (0)
"Banning a word, any word, from the human vocabulary cannot end well. They tried that kind of censorship in the now defunct Soviet Union, and it imploded."

I read Beach Cruiser's post of July 21, 2017 at 03:19:32, and his account of an incident in the USSR doesn't surprise me. Here's my somewhat similar story:

One summer, a few decades ago, the concert band in which I played did a 6 day 5 concert tour of Romania. One concert was in Bucherest, or, as I like to say, "beautiful downtown Bucherest". ;) You'll remember that Nicolae Ceausescu was the Communist Party leader in Romania. These concerts were during his regime. The last piece on our program was "The Stars and Stripes Forever". As the old saying goes, "the crowd went wild".

Afterward, in the auditorium lobby, I met a couple of nice, enthusiastic girls who were "so excited" to talk with an American. We ended up going to the nearby home of one of them for a snack and some tea and to talk. When I asked about the political environment and what it was like there, one of them said, quote: "It is best not to talk about it. The walls have ears." I'll never forget that chilling comment. As we parted, she also said, "Please do not forget me, my American friend." I never have, and I think about her often.

Back to your comment: "Banning a word, any word, from the human vocabulary cannot end well." Yet, there is a U.S. population demographic which does exactly that, and more, to influence and control social behavior to their liking, and who can speak or not speak. Look where it's gotten us - so far.

:(
RE: get over your negative self. - beach cruiser 03:19:32 07/21/17 (1)
Perhaps the objections are to your general tone, and the moderators struggle t explain it in a simple policy, but, "Know it when they see it", like the supreme court once viewed pornography.

That's what I was trying to say, conversation is called an art, because it can be, and should be used with skill for maximum enjoyment. It is pretty easy to get tired of a guy who never has anything good to say about anything, and keeps complaining as if all opinions that he doesn't support are inferior.

I certainly agree with your position on censorship, and by coincidence , was in the USSR before the fall, seeing censorship in action, where it even extended to personal comings and goings. I had some illegal surfer magazines that were prized by the young girls to see the western styles, and had some friends arrested and fined for taking us to see a church. The cops were waiting when we exited the church, fined the girls about a months pay each and lectured them for about an hour. They could have just disappeared them , if they made up a good reason.

However I do see a change in public conversations, a coarseness in some people who reject established social convention in favor of insults , justifying their actions by insisting that normal politeness can be ignored if you call it political correctness . Times change.

Be well.
- RE: get over your negative self. - magiccarpetride 10:07:57 07/21/17 (0)
  Thank you for your thoughtful reply, and for sharing your experiences behind the iron curtain.
  
  Your words helped me clarify and articulate my sentiments a bit better, so now I'd like to take this opportunity to extend on my original post. Recall that I've originally mentioned the term I've recently coined in my head -- Terror of Positivism. I think your critique of my post edges toward the insanely unbearable positivism that is now permeating every pore of our socially constructed 'reality'. Why do I say that? Because by insisting that everything be positive in the discourse, we are risking to toss the baby out with the bathwater. Yes, the dirty bathwater needs to be discarded and pronto, and in this metaphor it refers to the ugly rejection of social norms and basic politeness. In that, without a doubt, we all agree here.
  
  But what does the baby represent? It represents critical thinking. Rational thinking, governed by the laws of logic, seems to be outlawed these days. Anyone who tries to criticize something, to analyze something, to yell "Look, the Emperor has no clothes on!" is labeled as a rude, negative person. Even as a terrorist!
  
  I vehemently protest against this terror of positivism!

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