Posted on 08/30/2004 10:05:23 PM PDT by 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.
Call them leftists, even call some of them Marxists. Those are legitimate (if somewhat bland and uninspired) attacks. But don't use stupid and sometimes offensive names. Attack their ideas. Expose their faults. Report on what their policies will do. You can do all that and more without ridiculous comparisons to Hitler or unfounded accusations of insanity.
someone referred to her husband(of convenience) as the impeached one.
It's going to be hard not calling Michael Moore a fatass.
She also never tips at NYC restaurants (excuses it as an "oversight"), and belongs to the "top 1% of the rich" club. She is so full of herself. It's no wonder her and the scumbag ex-rapist-in-chief hitched wagons years ago.
"Frasier" is that you?
BigMack
Ok, cool :)
Sorry, but people keeping harping on how long someone has been there vs. what they are saying. I keep getting called a troll or newbie (as an insult) when I disagree with them and their narrow view (not you).
or the jolly pig
Funny, I didn't see your name on the donor list. I assume that you give anonymously...
Since you're new here, try and be respectful. I've never used any of those terms but I know where not to play. If you've never given money, then be sure to remember your investment when you decide to direct invective. if you don't plan on paying, check out DU, it's their basic economics...criticize and ask for more but don't pay.
There is more than enough civility and reasoned arguments on this forum. Hillary and McCain have done more than enough to warrant such contempt. Taking the "high road" with these people is one of the reasons they are in power.
Better yet, how about letting people express themselves as they like?
If people judge the whole because of a few "non-PC" types, that's just too damn bad.
You don't have to write "Hitlery" or any of that; don't presume you have the right to dictate how others express themselves.
I've never and will never use the words you object to; I happen to agree with your opinion on those words. That's as far as I'm willing to take it, though. Everyone else should have that choice, i.e. to express themselves as THEY wish.
There are two things I take issue with on your post. First is the above pasted quote. McCain is arguably conservative most of the time, but loyal? That is indeed a strech. McCain is loyal first and foremost to himself (after of course loyalty to country and state). He has never failed to shake hands with the devil to suit his own agenda at the expense of the party.
Second, speaking only for myself, I never have and never will use terminology such as you listed to describe our political enemies (and yes, the opposition is in fact our enemy in this arena). That said it is not my place nor my desire to impugn my fellow freepers for their use of such words. Yes it is innane (in my own opinion) but if that gets their point across in the way they want then God bless them. You need to realize, FR is a great source of info but it is also a place to vent frustration and in no small way a site with good entertainment value. Besides, there is entirely too much of dictating what people should or should not say coming from the other side these days.
"It is thus necessary that the individual should finally come to realize that his own ego is of no importance in comparison with the existence of the nation, that the position of the individual is conditioned solely by the interests of the nation as a whole."
-- Adolf Hitler
(1889-1945) German Nazi Dictator
"We must stop thinking of the individual and start thinking about what is best for society."
--Hillary Clinton, 1993
Well, Hitler and "The Queen of the Village" seem to share some common ideas. Maybe Hitlary is just a way of reminding us that she and the modern Demorat party are the modern incarnations of the Fascisti and National Socialists. I remember something like "F**king Jew bastard" crossing her lips once too.
both for higher taxes and hated smokers. both accused homosexuals. and both only had one testicle.
Exactly... and I'm just expressing my view... which is my right.
"Es nimmt ein Dorf!"
ChigoSaid: 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."
That's not very civil... 2 penalty points, go sit in the playpen
You mean as opposed to your profile page witticism, "My fellow Americans, I have just signed legislation to outlaw Islam. The bombing began in October 2001."
You do not consider that idiotic?
The fact is that, if a news media reporters saw the word DemocRATS on FreeRepublic, they would take it as bantering with the opposition.
On the other hand, they would take what you have on your profile page pretty much the same way as if someone posted "I have just signed legislation to outlaw Jews."
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