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Whatever happened to...thinking?
Feb. 16th, 2025 08:56 amSpecifically, whatever happened to critical thinking. And why did thinking and interpretation get replaced with a shortcut to righteous indignation?
I would have thought that people understood that when they read something...in a book, or a newspaper, scrawled on a wall, or even the ramblings of a stranger online... their interpretation of that thing is absolutely key.
A lot of that interpretation will come prom the preceding elements of the piece, or further in to the story, the post, the whatever.
Short form text statements can be particularly difficult.
Scrawled on a wall, as I flash past on the train is "OK". There's no punctuation, nothing around it that looks like it links to that element, but there it is...OK
Are they someone's initials? Was it the start of a much long sentence, or would it have been a short question, but an incoming train cut short the creator's efforts and it was then forgotten about? Or maybe they were signalling to someone across the tracks that they had understood an instruction during a very noisy moment in the station's daily life? Or did someone ask them to leave a message to say how they were feeling? Is the writer trying to convey to the commuters that actually, life isn't that bad and things will improve? I have no idea. But any one of these, or none of them, might be the answer.
A post from me about my utter lack of desire to even visit the US... Do we have to assume from that, that I hate all Americans? Some would have you try and believe that was the case. They will froth at the mouth and send nasty messages to someone they do not know, who doesn't impact them in the slightest and make wild accusations - and threats - based on their, or someone else's, faulty interpretation.
We all have this shortcut to anger. We're human. But I do think that online life has speeded up this response, and taken away the responsibility we all have for our interpretation AND our recounting of such events to others.
When someone says something, particularly when it's text without the nuance offered by speech, it's not always the case that they are a hateful person. Unless of course, the message is actually vile. Let's face it, there ARE some statements that are unequivocally shitty... for example "I hate all [insert genders/sexuality/skin colours/nationalities/religious persuasions/etc here] and want to round them all up and shoot them"...Yeah, you can fairly safely say "This person is a nasty piece of work and I should probably avoid them, but keep an eye on where the bastard is, so that I can stay as far away as possible".
But if someone says..."I really like oranges"...is it really appropriate to jump on them and say things like "Yeah, but what about OTHER citrus fruit? What about apples?!! Educate yourself!", or "Yeah, well, I am allergic to orange oil, so what you're saying is, you want to kill me"... It's an utterly absurd example, yes - but it is being repeated day in and day out on Teh Intarwebz, simply because someone either expressed an opinion poorly, or using an idiom not known well outside their specific village/nation/social grouping or made a simple statement which had absolutely nothing to do with the interpretation given by someone else.
Please, before you clamber up on to your high horse, and risk the tumble from that lofty perch... First make you have confirmed the negative intent in that person's words. You could do so through checking previous posts, or perhaps by...asking them questions about it. Maybe you will find common ground and a better understanding between you, and maybe even find a friend. Going straight into attack as your first move is a bit odd, and it's sapping your energy. If that person truly is as horrible as you suspect at first, do they even deserve your time? I would say that...no, absolutely they do not. Your time on this earth is fleeting and precious. Don't spend it on the unworthy. You are worth so much more than that.
I would have thought that people understood that when they read something...in a book, or a newspaper, scrawled on a wall, or even the ramblings of a stranger online... their interpretation of that thing is absolutely key.
A lot of that interpretation will come prom the preceding elements of the piece, or further in to the story, the post, the whatever.
Short form text statements can be particularly difficult.
Scrawled on a wall, as I flash past on the train is "OK". There's no punctuation, nothing around it that looks like it links to that element, but there it is...OK
Are they someone's initials? Was it the start of a much long sentence, or would it have been a short question, but an incoming train cut short the creator's efforts and it was then forgotten about? Or maybe they were signalling to someone across the tracks that they had understood an instruction during a very noisy moment in the station's daily life? Or did someone ask them to leave a message to say how they were feeling? Is the writer trying to convey to the commuters that actually, life isn't that bad and things will improve? I have no idea. But any one of these, or none of them, might be the answer.
A post from me about my utter lack of desire to even visit the US... Do we have to assume from that, that I hate all Americans? Some would have you try and believe that was the case. They will froth at the mouth and send nasty messages to someone they do not know, who doesn't impact them in the slightest and make wild accusations - and threats - based on their, or someone else's, faulty interpretation.
We all have this shortcut to anger. We're human. But I do think that online life has speeded up this response, and taken away the responsibility we all have for our interpretation AND our recounting of such events to others.
When someone says something, particularly when it's text without the nuance offered by speech, it's not always the case that they are a hateful person. Unless of course, the message is actually vile. Let's face it, there ARE some statements that are unequivocally shitty... for example "I hate all [insert genders/sexuality/skin colours/nationalities/religious persuasions/etc here] and want to round them all up and shoot them"...Yeah, you can fairly safely say "This person is a nasty piece of work and I should probably avoid them, but keep an eye on where the bastard is, so that I can stay as far away as possible".
But if someone says..."I really like oranges"...is it really appropriate to jump on them and say things like "Yeah, but what about OTHER citrus fruit? What about apples?!! Educate yourself!", or "Yeah, well, I am allergic to orange oil, so what you're saying is, you want to kill me"... It's an utterly absurd example, yes - but it is being repeated day in and day out on Teh Intarwebz, simply because someone either expressed an opinion poorly, or using an idiom not known well outside their specific village/nation/social grouping or made a simple statement which had absolutely nothing to do with the interpretation given by someone else.
Please, before you clamber up on to your high horse, and risk the tumble from that lofty perch... First make you have confirmed the negative intent in that person's words. You could do so through checking previous posts, or perhaps by...asking them questions about it. Maybe you will find common ground and a better understanding between you, and maybe even find a friend. Going straight into attack as your first move is a bit odd, and it's sapping your energy. If that person truly is as horrible as you suspect at first, do they even deserve your time? I would say that...no, absolutely they do not. Your time on this earth is fleeting and precious. Don't spend it on the unworthy. You are worth so much more than that.