Comments on: Fear and Weakness http://episteme.ca/2007/03/27/fear-and-weakness/ Sat, 04 Feb 2012 10:41:30 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v= By: Dr Zen http://episteme.ca/2007/03/27/fear-and-weakness/comment-page-1/#comment-250 Dr Zen Wed, 28 Mar 2007 04:18:04 +0000 http://episteme.ca/wp/?p=252#comment-250 This is how it is though. The interwebnet, I mean. We live in a world that worships the individual. It seems particularly the case for Americans (but others are not at all immune). People believe they are the centre of the universe and that nothing they do can be wrong. I often get a "WTF?" moment when I look around the web. I think people feel alienated, and express it in hatred of the world that has abandoned them. They can't do it in the day to day, so they take their opportunity online. And in interwebnet discourse, people use the tools that work. These people could not hope to win in a friendly, civil discourse, so they used more effective means to "win". I've trolled a bit on Usenet, and I'm not afraid to use aggressive and unpleasant language with others in the right forum (although I have never wished anyone dead nor have I attacked women in this way). But the right forum for me has always been one in which all participants understand and accept the way things are. And never with rancour. It's always been fun, a game. Maybe these guys think that Kathy understands the rules of the game they think they are playing. Maybe they think she is playing too. I don't know. As I say, I've never felt any rancour or anger against others, and I find it really hard to understand. Like you, I have faith in others, and I find it hard to reconcile the deep animus I see expressed with that. This is how it is though. The interwebnet, I mean. We live in a world that worships the individual. It seems particularly the case for Americans (but others are not at all immune). People believe they are the centre of the universe and that nothing they do can be wrong. I often get a “WTF?” moment when I look around the web. I think people feel alienated, and express it in hatred of the world that has abandoned them. They can’t do it in the day to day, so they take their opportunity online.

And in interwebnet discourse, people use the tools that work. These people could not hope to win in a friendly, civil discourse, so they used more effective means to “win”.

I’ve trolled a bit on Usenet, and I’m not afraid to use aggressive and unpleasant language with others in the right forum (although I have never wished anyone dead nor have I attacked women in this way). But the right forum for me has always been one in which all participants understand and accept the way things are. And never with rancour. It’s always been fun, a game. Maybe these guys think that Kathy understands the rules of the game they think they are playing. Maybe they think she is playing too. I don’t know. As I say, I’ve never felt any rancour or anger against others, and I find it really hard to understand. Like you, I have faith in others, and I find it hard to reconcile the deep animus I see expressed with that.

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