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In Reply to: Re: Let's Talk About Pool Scum Again posted by Mr. Don on August 06, 2004 at 15:24:14:
Thanks for that explanation Don. The gun debate is a whole other issue. My point really was about what I perceived to be an insensitivity to others' suffering, disguised as humour. Dry humour is one thing, sarcasm is a completely different matter. Imo, it usually serves to put down another person and is usually cruel and insensitive. And that was my point about your christian values. You're right, I don't know you. But I do know the words you choose to use on these boards, and it seemed to me that in this instance you chose words that were hurtful rather than helpful, uncaring rather than compassionate.
While I have been exploring the idea, in these posts to you, of using humour as a way for people to negotiate around their differences, humour is highly subjective and what you thought was funny I thought was offensive. Part of the difficulty is trying to express humour with just words on a page. It's very difficult to do, and can be easily misunderstood, as these threads have shown.
I also apologize for name calling. I suppose you or others might consider me the scary dude, so I take that back. I know how to talk with people who agree with me. I have a harder time talking with people who totally disagree with me. Part of that might be attributed to my training and experiences in the highly adversarial legal culture. But that's just my excuse. I really want to do better at this, which is why I'm making an effort with you.
