tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7008217764991774516.post2313083856093832838..comments2024-03-28T09:24:58.391-04:00Comments on Stuff I Like: A Blog: Some Thoughts on Opinions and ReviewsThe Wasphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08636805818054637966noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7008217764991774516.post-77675907225114083172018-04-15T22:04:42.578-04:002018-04-15T22:04:42.578-04:00I don't think I miss the point at all. I know ...I don't think I miss the point at all. I know my audience at this site is probably more conservative, and I know who's politicizing everything these days and who has more cultural power right and is pushing for some sort of orthodoxy. Whatever, I'm not going to be cowed by anyone. But I'm not going to walk away from interaction with people I disagree with either - or not read their books. The Wasphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08636805818054637966noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7008217764991774516.post-28361301827516301182018-04-15T21:49:14.199-04:002018-04-15T21:49:14.199-04:00"Matters of life and death," mean what t..."Matters of life and death," mean what though in the case of an author? We seem to have reached a place where an outspoken conservative is persona non grata in many places or where liberals get dismissed as SJWs. Too many people are all too willing to put anything that deviates only the slightest from their personal orthodoxy on the forbidden list.The Wasphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08636805818054637966noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7008217764991774516.post-31614129144894302282018-04-15T10:50:37.392-04:002018-04-15T10:50:37.392-04:00While I agree with a lot of this, I think it misse...While I agree with a lot of this, I think it misses the main point. Politicizing everything is a distinctly leftist tactic with a specific purpose. By politicizing everything, everything becomes a loyalty test. Do you read the correct books. Do you watch the correct movies. And do you hate the same writers and artists that we hate.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7008217764991774516.post-25684610377304212862018-04-15T02:54:27.372-04:002018-04-15T02:54:27.372-04:00My reasoning for ignoring the works of people who ...My reasoning for ignoring the works of people who I perceive as appaling is not in any way related to their work, but on my desire not to give them a greater platform to share their revoting ideas with the rest of the world. If I buy their books, I give them money. I make their books rise in best selling lists, and when I talk about their books I make more people aware of them. When I don't want that, I simply ignore them. Ranting about their erroneous ways would do the opposite thing, though.<br /><br />I don't care what some people might be thinking about the way governments or states should function, what to do with public spending, innfrastructure projects, or even the finer details of public education. There is not one true way to do these things and any disagreements are about efficiency. Where I draw the line is with matters of life and death. That is matters of basic human rights. Not just medical services or "defense" (which really is offense), but the mere tollerance of other people existing.<br /><br />My opinion is that it's irrelevant whether someone is a decent person. Some people very certainly are not. But what I consider most importannt is to maintain a form of civility. It's not that bad people deserve to be treated polite and with decency, but it doesn't hurt either and where do we end up with when we don't act by the standards we expect our oponents to conform to? Screaming and insults have never done anything good to improve social issues. If you want to have a better world with more decency, you first have to live it yourself. If all those people who are making life hard for others who are different from themselves would simply ignore them, it would already be a huge improvement.<br /><br />And why do I enjoy Lovecraft? I don't really know. I think his mental world seems so messed up that I don't hold him capable to take responsibility for his words. It doesn't make his opinions any better, but I somehow don't hold him responsible for it.Yorahttp://spriggans-den.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7008217764991774516.post-65242877049683063052018-04-14T18:58:59.963-04:002018-04-14T18:58:59.963-04:00I appreciate that, and I sympathize with that reac...I appreciate that, and I sympathize with that reaction. My take on actors, writers, and other artists is that they're not my friends and never will be. Not in that we wouldn't be friends if we met, but simply that we never will meet. It's almost as if they're not real, simply a name on the cover. But, yeah, when someone openly hates you, or at least people who believe in what you believe (because, like I just said, you and they will probably never meet), it can be hard to justify giving them your dollars.The Wasphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08636805818054637966noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7008217764991774516.post-23376407561527489182018-04-14T15:55:52.394-04:002018-04-14T15:55:52.394-04:00My waiting to be read pile grows ever larger. Why ...My waiting to be read pile grows ever larger. Why should I give money to people who obviously hate me?Arrghhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03913797767210615477noreply@blogger.com