A call for civility on Free Republic

Vanity | 08/31/04 | ChicagoHebrew

[ChicagoHebrew]

I enjoy this forum, but lately I've noticed a troubling tendency for posters here to descend into horrible and immature name-calling. Such name-calling, and extremism without reason does nothing but harm our cause. It turns off casual lurkers and readers of this forum. It provides fodder for this forum to be demonized and non-respected elsewhere. Below I provide a few examples. I call on Freepers to stop using such terms voluntarily. If that doesn't work, I call on the moderators to warn, if not censor, posters who use such terms. I realize that Democratic Underground uses even more ridiculous terms sometimes. However, your opponents' choice to frolack in waste does not provide an excuse to do likewise. Rather, it provides an opportunity to rise above, and show one's intellectual and moral superiority. Without more, I present a few examples of the type of garbage I'm talking about. I call on fellow posters to add their own.

1) "Hitlery" -- I dislike Hillary Clinton's politics, and what I know of her personality. However, nothing she has said or done (including her love-fest with Suha Arafat) justifies comparing her to one of the worst monsters in all history. Doing so not only demeans the Holocaust, and all the war dead of WWII, it makes a mockery of this forum to allow it to be posted.

2) "Demorat" -- This is just stupid. Calling your opponent a rodent does nothing to promote conservatism or libertarianism. It does everything to make posters and this forum look like intellectual infants, prone to tantrums and incapable of rational debate. We disagree with Democrats. We should not dehumanize them, or think them so below us that we need not engage them in debate and triumph.

3) "McInsane" & etc. -- John McCain is a conservative, loyal Republican. Indeed, in some areas -- such as controlling spending -- he's far more conservative then Bush. However, he is also a mavarick who doesn't tow the party line -- and, in my opinion, sometimes perhaps puts his principles below his desire to win applauds from the media. That being said, his ACU rating is strong, and he has put legitimate personal disagreements with Bush behind him to support what's best for his party -- and, more importantly -- his country. Feel free to critique McCain. Feel free to disagree with him when he criticizes fellow Republicans or takes an odd liberal stand. However, do not resort to petty name-calling -- especially not name calling that implies he lacks mental faculties, and/or is evil. It's just not right.

So I have written. I hope that a silent majority of Freepers agree with me here.

[BriarBey]

Are you a girly-man or just a sensitive kind of gal? ;)

[BushisTheMan]

If you think that Hillary Clinton would start murdering millions of people if she had the chance, or try to conquer the world, you are either a maniac or an idiot.

Excuse me? Aren't you the one that started the post about calling each other names? Maniac? Idiot? Sounds like name calling to me. Hmmmmmmm

[BriarBey]

Actually, I agree with the basic point here. We gain nothing by using a lot of ugly, hateful rhetoric, just because the other side does it. Who cares what our opponents do? After all, we already know they're wrong, yes? Why emulate them?
******

Is this kind of like fighting a more "sensitive war" with the terrorists? FR is the one place a person can be pretty much as unPC as they want, if there are extremes its from being tied up in the real world and getting d*amn sick of it.

[LibertarianInExile]

Nah, I'd call Rush a newbie. Ann I'd call a hottie.

[Honorary Serb]

I call the Hillary witch Hillary Rodham Izetbegovic Khomeini, and will continue to do so!!!! In fact, I hope that the liberal media picks up this phrase, even while demonizing "right-wing extremists". If they do so, they will publicize the fact that she is perhaps the biggest islamist shill in America!!!!

islamist shills in the State Department have even given asylum to a major-league Chechen bandit., and I'm sure you know what the bandits have done recently. Even when the media demonizes us for outrageous (and creatively unique) language, they may inadvertently publicize the truth that they do not print!!!!

"Honorary Serb" has already been demonized on Frontpage magazine by the islamist fifth columnist Stephen Schwartz/Suleyman Ahmad, just for my screen name alone. Even when we don't call Hillary "Hitlery", etc., we can't win with the media anyway.

[inquest]

John McCain is a conservative

Uh, no.

[Landru]

Always remember CH, "Starkist wants tunas that taste good. Not tunas with good taste."

Now then, please pass the Grey Poupon.

...thank you.

[Mad Dawgg]

Dootyhead

[joesnuffy]

unfounded accusations of insanity.

Kerry thinks he's a war hero....Hitlery and Bitlery ran white powder ops out of Mena
Al Gore says he invented the internet and that He and Tipper's romance was the model for "Love Story"....

Barney Frank...well comeon he's Barney Frank...

and Diane Feinstein?....she drops a gun outta her purse at dinnerI heard was to raise money for Handgun Control Inc....

There is a trail of dead people from Mena to Washington DC

And you say...Unfounded accusations of insanity...

whadda you nuts or somethin'?

imo

[nosofar]

It does everything to make posters and this forum look like intellectual infants, prone to tantrums and incapable of rational debate.

Agree.