Commenting Rules on Redheaded Blackbelt
All civilized organizations or groups have guidelines to encourage productive interactions and discourage unproductive ones. The following are designed to promote civil discussion.
Here is our periodic reminder of the guidelines used to govern commenting on this website:
- Civility is valued by the moderator.
- Insulting other commenters will get you deleted. Do it too often and you will get banned.
- No slurs–racial, ethnic, gender, political etc. The term sheeple will get your comment deleted. Also, stop calling local places by sneering nicknames, etc. Genuine complaints/opinions okay. Sneers are not okay.
- Try to add value to the website by offering information, art, humor or, most of all, thoughtful discussion.
- Free speech is valued by the moderator and sometimes that trumps civility but don’t push it.
- Also, grammar, punctuation, spelling criticisms should come from parents, teachers, and bosses not anonymous people on the internet. If you can understand what someone says, refrain from telling them how to edit their comments. The one exception to this is me. If I make an error, politely pointing it out is fine.
- Mocking people in positions of authority is acceptable. Mocking children, disabled people, those suffering from misfortune, those in a minority who don’t have power is something a bully does.
- Don’t threaten or encourage violence. [Advocating for the death penalty is considered a political stance and allowed though this moderator is personally against its use.–Added December 22, 2019–Saying somebody should be shot or lynched is no longer allowed. Stick with terms that can reasonably be interpreted to mean the modern death penalty. ]
- If there is significant evidence (for instance, being charged by law enforcement) that a crime occurred, I allow accusations of wrongdoing. However, please don’t accuse someone by name of a crime when there is no evidence readily available to a reasonable reader. Please don’t name minors even if they have been arrested.
- [Added Jan 1, 2019] I don’t have to host hate speech on my website. I will warn you if I feel you are breaking this rule and will ban you if necessary. I encourage a wide diversity of opinions but, eventually, I may need to ask you to go elsewhere to express yourself.
- For my own sanity, I instituted the rule over 5 years ago that using the email address section of the commenting submittal form as an insult results in automatic deleting.
- If your comment is too gross (delving deeply into descriptions of defecation, etc) it will be deleted.
- Stick to one name per article.
- Only one image meme per article.
- This website is primarily for getting out news. A commenter may be put on moderation or deleted if, in the eye of the site owner, they create drama or require too much work and get in the way of putting out news.
Here’s a quick explanation of how commenting works here. Most people after the first comment are free to comment without moderation. Some people who have trouble following the guidelines above get put on moderation hold. It can sometimes take as long as a whole day for me to moderate—though it usually takes less than an hour if the comment comes in during the day.
If you see a comment that you feel breaks these guidelines, use my name in a reply to the comment and say something like “Kym, this looks racist.” Or “Kym, this is an insult.” It might take me a full day but usually, I will see and moderate within an hour or so.
PLEASE NOTE: THIS PAGE IS NO LONGER UPDATED: See here for the most current rules.
Join the discussion! For rules visit: https://kymkemp.com/commenting-rules
Comments system how-to: https://wpdiscuz.com/community/postid/10599/
Thank you! Have a great day miss Kym!!
I want to adopt this for a couple facebook sites I oversee
Sorry Kym. I’ll be good and I’ll stay off those post that get me riled up. Honey you can delete me anytime I’m out of line. I might be old but not to old to have my hand smacked
P.S. Freedom I’m sorry for coming down on you so hard. I’m sure not one to judge.
No comment
We need to keep this place STRONG!!! It is the greatest THING in the Western Hemisphere. There are a lot of things I love and but don’t like about this area and the commenters but I have been conditioned into a wholistic approach , and I am a long time resident who cares about this area and I want to see people reacting and how to the coverage of reporting news, and now we can clean up and difference aside still be strong!
These seem like good enough guidelines to be able to follow. I should be the first to admit that the comments I’ve posted on these discussion boards have at times been a little cranky. And yet, on follow up, none of them have been deleted. So, I like to think that my behavior in this venue has been within bounds. [edit]
Your reminder is most welcome. Let’s hope that ALL commenters have an opportunity to read it!
That was awesome, Thank you. then can you please explain why you never corrected the following post:
https://kymkemp.com/2018/05/06/gsd-upgrades-seismic-plans-for-contact-chamber/
Even though I did point out some large inconsistencies and misstatements included in the article, it was never corrected or edited, even after the story author admitted as much and I provided her with all the information she requested.
IMHO it’s a two way street; both for the commentator and story author/publisher. Just like the author should be accountable for the accuracy of their reporting. The rules should apply to everyone…
You’re right😊
Ed, I know your word is good but we like to check everything here and, it takes some time. We’re in that process now. Kelley has written to some agencies and is checking.
Thank you, but call me curious; since I did provide her will all the records and documents directly from the agencies websites, do you know what “agencies” she has written to and checking with? I hope its still not about the tank size or weight…
GSD meets Tuesday. I will have more information after that.
Thanks Kelley, but I’m confused, Kym had stated; “We’re in that process now. Kelley has written to some agencies and is checking.” So what were you checking? Or were you just waiting for the next GSD Board meeting? Did you know GSD had a public “Strategic Planning Meeting” on May15th, that included BOD and Staff. It was open to the public:
https://www.garbervillesd.org/2018-05-15-board-of-directors-strategic-planning-meeting
If you didn’t see the GSD agenda for May 22, 2018, GSD findlay included my letters, that were already included in the March 21, 2018 Humboldt LAFCo meeting agenda:
https://www.garbervillesd.org/files/9f2c6c5fc/BOD+Meeting+Agenda+Packet+5-22-2018.pdf
Ed….STOP IT. Have you got nothing better to do [edit]
I hope Kym lives up to her rules. Some of you can’t be civil, I would love to see you go on to another site. It’s so hard to read when anything goes. I just start staying away. So keep up with your bad ways and after time we’ll just say good-bye.
How do you know nobody cares what he thinks? You don’t speak for everyone here and you are also mistaken.
Is that you Bunny or Dave?
From time to time I feel I should mention that Ed’s Voice is not mine.
It’s Bunny, it’s just that you keep saying the same things, year after year. Things change very much year after yearn present time. You want to keep going over all things from the past.
Basically I am just upset that because of something that happened to you that you didn’t like you are on a mission to take away MY health care. That’s a pretty big deal. Your goal must be to make the hospital district go away. That would make you happy….but it wouldn’t be enough for you. You have the Park, the Mateel, the water districts to enlighten us about.
The part that Kym edited was pretty tame. But if she’ll do that with everyone this will be a nicer place.
BW, have you ever heard the following clichés:
If you want to know your past, look into your present conditions. If you want to know your future, look into your present actions.
” you can’t know where you are going until you know where you have been”
“Those who are unaware of history are destined to repeat it.”
However, you stated:
“Basically I am just upset that because of something that happened to you that you didn’t like you are on a mission to take away MY health care. That’s a pretty big deal. Your goal must be to make the hospital district go away. That would make you happy….”
Just so you know, the Jerold Phelps Hospital saved my Mom, Dad and Grandma’s life at one time or another, let alone putting me and my brother back together after numerous sports injuries, car crashes and doing stupid kid stuff. I can’t Thank them enough. However, I asked Dave why the Hospital District was not using their 501c3 Foundation as a support organization to help off-set the cost of the Hospital or why the Hospital had not become a tax exempt non-profit.
Maybe you should re-read what I posted. I am the last person that is trying to take away your hospital district…
So much for remaining civil.
Bunns, you’re in the minority on the anything goes-so I’m staying away notion. Look what happened to the times standard years ago when they demanded actual identities for commenting. They’re irrelevant, everyone quit commenting and clicking on their site.
Yea , Ed has a lot to say, but to make such a blanket statement as .. ” Nobody cares what you think. ..” and ..” You’re that annoying child that everyone ends up not wanting to ever be around. ..” (!!) is unnecessary, untrue and bullish.
Treat ppl like u want to be treated. Bunny, you may be popular and believe your opinions are valued by everyone but that doesn’t give u the right to be mean to Ed.. just scroll on by if he robs u the wrong way.
And frankly, I am surprised your obviously mocking and bullying comment, to a fellow commentor (and not a person in a “position of authority”) was allowed to remain –ironically — on a post about posting etiquette!
It’s a danger reading too many comments that are really vile that sometimes I miss ones that break the rules in a lesser way. Thanks for pointing it out and I edited the comment.
I very much value what Ed Voice says…he does his homework; too bad some of y’all opinion ‘leaders’ don’t want to hear it.
The river has been exploited- that’s a fact. There are actually physical limits that need to be talked about. Ed does that.
You go, Ed.
I believe you’re right. That was not very nice of me at all. I better stay away for awhile. I let this subject really get to me every time it comes up.
Kym took care of it right away once you mentioned it. Thanks.
thank you .
AND:
Bunny, I hope you feel better soon. It seems to me that you are the one who always says the same things!
Ed Voice is a great repository of valuable access to info. His comments are highly cogent and indicative of caring.
Those who ignore history, while always moving forward, are the real visionaries.
Life is crazy. Peace be with you.
Your hospital is not going anywhere. It’s right there on Cedar St, where you left it.
Ed’s information that he posts is valuable and not readily available to the public.
It’s wonderful to have someone looking into these community matters and holding people accountable. It needs to be done.
Far too many Southern Humboldt people are tuned out on policies and questionable leadership in this community. Go with the flow 70’s days are OVER!
Time to wake up if this region wants to make a dent on the local corruption and support of its economy. Keep it coming!!
Business owners and residents — Please clear the vagrants off your properties. Take some responsibility.
Bunny it wasn’t nice! But then u defended it by calling it tame! I would expect that behavior from others not you, so I’m surprised. Backpedaling on that one and stepping away sounds like a good idea. 😉
No one deserves to be condemned as a human (ie ” no one likes you”) for their opinions! Too often I see folks in this community unable to disagree, but still remain friends, or at least be considerate of one another . It’s too bad , because we learn a lot about ourselves and the issue by at least considering the viewpoint of others.
Kym, We so appreciate your providing this forum and promoting civil discourse. And, in terms of fire coverage, you trump all local sources with new fire alerts and rapid updates. A Huge Thank You!!
“9. If there is significant evidence (for instance, being charged by law enforcement) that a crime occurred…”
We used to be a country of laws, of Due Process. A country in which people were presumed innocent until proven guilty Beyond A Reasonable Doubt.
Back when we had a functioning judiciary.
How far we’ve fallen. Now we live in an era where people are presumed guilty just based on a Press Release from the Sheriff’s Department. One commentator on your site recently called for castration of someone accused of a crime solely based on a one-sided press release. “Kill ’em all, let God sort ’em out” seems to be the increasing mentality.
A visit to The Innocence Project reminds that people get falsely accused and railroaded all the time.
https://www.innocenceproject.org
O.J. Simpson and others remind us that if an accused person has a quality defense, notwithstanding press releases and tabloid media, they just might be found Not Guilty after a Jury hears the actual and properly/fully contested evidence.
Guilt By Press Release? Another sign that America has Jumped The Shark.
I know that people should be better about judging prematurely. I do try to encourage this by reminding readers that people are innocent until proven guilty at the beginning of every press release.
And, if you see that someone has advocated for castration, please comment under their comment with my name. Since most people’s comments are not held, I don’t always see their comments right away and, of course, sometimes I just plain miss things.
Great idea!
Yet, for all the noise about negative public opinion, the court process doesn’t take the comments of blogs as evidence. Usually what people mean, when they express anger or contempt for a suspect, is that anyone guilty of such a crime should be punished so that a recurrence of the crime does not happen. With so many negotiated plea agreements it does happen.
When a jury gets together for deliberation, it is my experience that they go to great lengths to excuse the defendants. Not, as the movies have it, acting like slathering dogs hungry for a kill. It’s no different in civil trials where sympathy for a victim tends to count in decisions. Yet in the end the quality of evidence presented counts more than anything else.
The back and forth in the comments section has provided understanding that news reports don’t, giving histories and other bits of information that are missing. Even if it’s rough and angry, it is good to know. It keeps the press and government official a little more cautious. At least it should. If it offends some, they certainly have the chance to post their own versions too.
OK, another partial credit gives you a complete star. How’m I doin’? You are Correct that innocent people have been railroaded for centuries. That’s why an evidence-based, all inclusive, adversarial court system is the only way. IN COURT.
Anybody can be ruined in public media by the concerted effort of a dedicated, small, relentless group of zealots. That’s bad. But the standards are much higher in criminal court because of the high stakes; looser in civil court because penalties are less and looser still in the court of public opinion. But Kym still says that personal Trumpian, ad hominem insults and baseless, off-the-wall accusations with no apparent relationship to reality may be censored. Gray areas abound. Tough job but somebody’s gotta do it.
A free society and democratically based republic absolutely depends on the electorate discerning truth and justice and actively voting for it. Right now it’s not looking good. Honor our veterans who have sacrificed so much by exercising your franchise. Register, save your paperwork, and vote.
You mean to tell me I can’t call this whiney wimpering people what they sound like when they are commenting about the ridiculous laws we now have in place?
Insulting individuals may make you feel better but it makes at least two people feel worse, the target and me. So, please spare the wear and tear on my soul and just talk about the subjects you disagree with someone about not on how their mother wears Army boots.
How can you know you are winning unless the opponent resorts to juvenile name calling? Especially the Great Distorting Spelling To Express Complete Contempt insult. It’s like watching someone win the Golden Donald Duck in a debate. Just picture them leaping into the air, madly windmilling their fists, wearing a sailor suit but naked from the waist down. Impossible to get angry at that.
How about a guideline that comments should be at least tangentially related to the topic and/or other comments, rather than, say, posting rants about trump on threads about vehicle accidents, and the like…
I’ve only got so much energy and sometimes what is irrelevant to one person has value to another. I draw the line at policing that.
OK Kym, you own it and you have shown great tolerance the last couple years. But isn’t it kind like ‘building a wall’. I mean , like……. I agree with you but just sayin’…..????
I have a limited tolerance for editing/deleting comments but I have less tolerance for the name-calling that the site degenerates into if I don’t try to keep the worst comments from proliferating.
Constant cacophonous callous comments (cranky community cowpokes, counterproductively cajoling career criminals, confusing completely crazy conspiracy contemplations, councilmember crony criticism, cuckoo cultivator contamination concerns, …) causing citizens consternation – can curator’s carefully crafted criteria cure carnal customs?
Cute!
Cute comment!
Crap. Contrite but couldn’t control the caprice.
Wow! Wonderful! Wish I was the writer.
Don’t change the subject. It is “c” , not “w”.
It’s your site, govern it at your own will. Guess I’ll exercise my freedom elsewhere. Don’t want to hurt nobody’s feelers……
I’m with you. I just deleted this site from my favorites list.
There is no alternative that I know. It covers news that I want to know, even if it doesn’t cover everything. Basically I read sites from Fox through the CBC, at least 5 a day, to try to sort it out. This site is better than most by a good bit.
The thing to always remember is that it is not all about you- any “you”. It’s a shared place and some boundaries are needed just to keep going.
Thanks for your service, Kym!
Yes.
Mostly your pot using types break the rules, it’s in their outlook.
Great site and great news.
[edit]
Wow this is good for my self control!
I like it!
It’s about time. Good bye Trollville, hello positive reflection.
If you actually think that, I may need to reply violating Kym’s rules. 🙂
Those have been the rules. Kym just drags it out periodically go wave at people when it gets worse than usual.
One must have negativity and positivity in life for balance. Reading nothing but positive remarks all day and watching people jerk each other off with ego boosting BS is boring.
I’d like to try constructive criticism as opposed to “Libtard and Repuglican” taunts.
Kym, we are all grateful for this site and for all you do to bring us the local news. These guidelines for comments are both practical and sensible. Is there a way to put them up on your site, like over on the right side, so everyone can read them all the time?
I’ll ask Bobbi Wisby. She does my computer work.
“Sneering nicknames?” Never thought I’d see that phrase in my life.
LOL
Kill your internet.
rule 10, never speak bad of marijuana or growers thereof, they are incapable of wrongdoing and are medicine makers/healers! They are most definitely not oppurtunistic talentless shit bags that dodge taxes , trash the environment, collect social services and are supremely smug.
Oh, lordy, girl, how can you talk that crazy stuff? It amazes me that folks like you who claim I don’t allow bad talk against marijuana growers can even face themselves in the mirror. Here’s something I wrote about a week ago. https://kymkemp.com/2018/05/10/glowing-greenhouses-light-up-rural-hills/
C’mon, just because I try to occasionally (and I do mean occassionally–I’m literally embarrassed at how few positive pieces I put out compared to the number of fine people I know that grow marijuana) post something positive, does not mean that I’m blind to the problems that SOME marijuana grows cause.
Perhaps you might try being as open to the positive parts of cannabis as I am open to the negative parts.
And for lord’s sake, girl, the Honeydew Chump is or at least was (please don’t take that as an invite to come back, Honeydew C.) a frequent commenter and I dang sure never deleted him because he commented negatively about marijuana.
The HBC was negative about nearly everything Cannabis especially but most everything else as well!!!
Kym, if people open to the negative sides of pot, it would not be so scary. But, at least in comments here, way too many pot users can’t even tolerate consideration of its negative effects. And I mean personal negative effects. You can almost smell the stink of pot in the erratic logic of its users when they post comments where they can’t follow the thread of their own thoughts. Yet denial is universal.
Well, at least you are right that here is a place where some of negatives can be mentioned. At least the environmental costs, if not the social costs. Even if they are immediately trivialized away. Legalization was needed, not because it is a product everyone should be able to access but that it now means that real research can take place about pot, both negative and positive.
I definitely agree with the last sentence. Research is needed because we can’t know the effects of something until it is freely researched. I imagine it could be personal bias but to me it seems like at least half of the commenters here are very negative about marijuana and growers. I wish somebody with the time would go through and do a scientific study and see.
“half the commenters”
Would that be half of the comments or would that be half of the individuals commenting?
It seems to me there are a dozen or so volumous contributers who hate pot and pot users vociferously. And a broad majority of people who feel like it’s either good or no big deal.
I’m in the last category myself. It never hurt me and it’s been good for my economy. The drivers who use it slow down so that doesn’t freak me out.
But I don’t think pot is so much better than Willow that gave us asperin, or fox glove that give us digitalis, or peppers that give us capsassin, etc. Plants are medicine, not just ganja.
As far as the people fuming right now because something bad happened to someone they know who smoked pot, let’s talk statistics…how many per 100,000? When you get the number of (not accidents) traffic fatalities down to that same number per 100,000 and I’ll give that reason some serious contemplating, until then stay away from your car and all the streets that contain cars. Those things will surely kill you man.
That’s a good point. I’m not sure of the answer to whether it is half the comments or half the commenters. Probably it is the former as you suspect.
Or not. I think not as any post involving pot, especially negatives, will have 4 or five times the numbers of commenters as anything else, no matter how important. It’s apparent that the only thing that rouses some to post is a threat to their beloved pot. Otherwise they are quiet. That is scary.
Also scary is the almost universal statement that their personal experience is that pot does not effect their thinking negatively (the old slowing down while driving chestnut without bothering to ask why the slowing down is done.) They don’t perceive their impairment when outside observers are wondering what they can be thinking. As one person who was forced to quit for health reasons said “I admit my thinking is clearer now”. But it took a couple of months to get there. Pot seems to provide a set of blinders with its use. Pot users would be a lot less dangerous if they recognized this. They think that, because they are not drunk in terms of alcohol, they are not impaired. But they are.
Say honeydew bridge chump 3 times….. like Candyman
I am guilty of causing Kym the need to delete or edit my posts.
I started my blog commenting on LOCO and have been a bit slow to catch up with this protocol.
I no longer read the LOCO blog, I get all my local news thru Kym’s ..
I truly appreciate your news source and the comment section. Thank You Kym
Good post to round up the comment er base; and an interesting site to open up and peer into someone else’s local mindset.
Ok
Thanks for the reminder, Kym. Your site is a valuable service to the community. The comment section on your site really is one of the ugliest places on the internet, though, second only to LoCo, but that’s because Humboldt is an ugly place, and not a fair reflection on your efforts to provide us with information.
Lol The comment section here is as far from the ugliest on the internet as the Quakers are from the KKK. Humboldt, like all places, has some really ugly people in it but I doubt as if we would agree with exactly who those people are. Long live the oddball, off the wall and generally different and difficult human being who doesn’t adhere to the Nation TV definition of morality that is all political correctness on the surface and utter corruption underneath.
Don’t be nice! Be thoughtful and a realist. Love the ideal of being good yourself and despise what only wants others to be good.
We No Need No stinkeen Badgers!
PS: Blog posts aren’t like news articles in that corrections, errors, etc.. aren’t as serious. This here comment board is 4 colloquial hillbilly doper internet speech, meant for info-tainment.
Kim does a great job of posting the news anyway. Jah Bless her.
you should just shut your site down then! you wanna censor just about everyone with those rules!
what happened to freedom of speech?
please block me now,as I know I wont refrain from some of what is said.
3:13 am? Nonetheless…..
It does not seem like a violation of the first amendment to refrain from name calling. Otherwise our kindergarten teachers were violating our civil rights.
I’m older than the median, but way back then, we all had to learn debate in high school. It seems like the worst blows to our society have come from removing that and maps from our schools.
In debate, one has rules of rhetoric and logic that must be followed. And to torment you until maturity in thinking took root, you had to be able to argue both sides of any topic you were assigned.
With maps, one learns one’s relationship to others…. Beginning with the basic understanding that the others exist.
I always say that kindergarten teachers were the worst at violating my civil liberties. “Don’t pee in the corner! Put your pants back on! Quit flipping off little Johnny!” It was pretty much all downhill from there.
I somehow missed this yesterday and got a much needed laugh today. Perfect timing for a sad heart. Thank you, Mike.
Anyone who uses bad grandma, whom can’t talk good, reflects an uneducated smart-phone addicted
mind which shouldn’t be given much credibility, why protect ignorance?
You don’t want them criticized because they are a goodly portion of your commenters whom (who? now I’m the idiot) you want to keep commenting. (And of course you’re nice, don’t want to hurt people.)
Unfortunately we live in an age where the uneducated just elected our idiot prez, are fascinated with the royal family, and think they are going to win the lottery.
Well hello again. Same theme, same tactics, new name.
This one has to be ironic. We are the idiots because we “use bad grandma”. Lol, just gets more illogical and bashing on others while making the poster look misguided and hateful. But it’s a joke right?
Irony was my assumption
Very happy to see number 7. It’s sad how many people bash victims of accidents and crimes on here with only a few “facts” that could easily be wrong since first reports are often flawed in nature. Even with a small amount of accurate facts it’s absurd to judge a stranger who is injured, dead or victimized.
Excellent and well thought-out guidelines. Thank you for posting this, Kym.
Thanks for this.
Thank you Kym.
I have a question for you, if you don’t mind. When you say “those in a minority who don’t have power”, are you labeling certain groups as a weak & powerless group or are you referring to any individual at all. Individuals are the smallest minority of all. The individual(s) are often attacked by the groups that have taken it upon themselves to overpower the individual. Which one is protected in your blog? The individual or groups whose numbers are lesser than other groups due to sheer numbers overall?
There’s so many absurd stories that come out of this area. Reading the deservedly dished out snark in the comments can really turn a bad day around. There’s some serious educated humor going on at times. I read things I’m thinking, but didn’t want to bother saying. Keep up the excellent writing Kym and hopefully let the comments remain as free as possible.
Thanks to all the commenters. After a particularly stressful day, it gave me a smile.
“Also, grammar, punctuation, spelling criticisms should come from parents, teachers, and bosses not anonymous people on the internet.”
Most adults do not have a teacher, parent or boss who helps them improve their language skills by pointing out mistakes. Grammar, punctuation and spelling are critically important to effective communication. Poor communication hampers the free exchange of ideas. Using a correction in lieu of an argument or in order to insult a person is entirely different than helping someone improve their writing.
It is entirely separate to cordially offer advice privately and to publically sneer at someone’s grammar who has offered a different political opinion. But my website isn’t the place to teach someone.
Also, take it from a former teacher, learning doesn’t usually take place well when someone is criticized in public. It takes practice and generally a warm and supportive tone of voice which is almost impossible to convey online to someone you don’t know.
I’m going to stick with my no grammar correction rule. Over the years, I’ve seen where it solves a lot of issues and I really don’t find that grammar corrections have helped much.
Yeaaaah, you dont have to criticize (sneer) someone in helping them improve their English. Even if it is in public, which this is not since few use their real names. Not helping much is superior to not helping at all.
“Mocking people in positions of authority is acceptable. Mocking children, the disabled, those suffering from misfortune, those in a minority who don’t have power is something a bully does.”
This clearly means no more comments about neck tattoos. Poor whites do not have power. A poor person has less social power than a wealthy, black, disabled woman.
“The disabled” is no longer politically correct.
http://nda.ie/Publications/Attitudes/Appropriate-Terms-to-Use-about-Disability/
Mocking, by definition, is not morally acceptable regardless of the target.
The “punching up vs punching down” concept is entirely illogical.
Also, those you perceive as having social power may have faced far more struggle than you can understand.
The extremely wealthy (of any race) are a minority group but have the most social power.
Updated the term disabled.
I do flinch over the tattoo snark. My dad had multiple tattoos. People I love have tattoos, nose rings, purple hair, dreads, holey jeans, and wear funny sweaters. However, all of those are choices. I chose to allow the smack talking currently, but I am honest enough to admit that it leaves me uncomfortable enough I might eventually change my mind.
Mocking is not always morally unacceptable. An easy example of this is Jonathan Swift’s mocking of the morality of the wealthy in A Modest Proposal For preventing the Children of Poor People From being a Burthen to Their Parents or Country, and For making them Beneficial to the Publick in which he advocates poor parents selling their children to provide food for the wealthy. I find mocking useful at times. And, I’m not morally advanced enough to rise above finding it absolutely funny when done well.
Civility sometimes takes a back seat to humor and intelligence for me.
I don’t think that accusing a politician of lying is on the same par as accusing a child of lying who claims to be the victim of sexual abuse. I allow a much more loose look at politicians than I do possible minor rape victims. I don’t see me changing that anytime soon.
It has nothing to so with the choice to have a neck tattoo and everything to do with being socio-economically disadvantaged.
“Mocking is not always morally unacceptable.”
Nothing is always morally unacceptable, morality is objective. I just assumed we shared the moral axiom that, making fun of someone or something in a cruel/derisive way does not magically become ok when we PERCEIVE that person to be in a socially advantageous position.
The punching up vs punching down concept is logically and morally flawed. We should base the way we treat others upon their actions, not their intersectional identities.
Good grief, people! Kym has basically asked those of you who post on HER website to follow the First Rule of Kindergarten:
“Play nice or go home!”
There is any amount of snark I could use for followup to this. Out of respect for Kym, I forbear.
Wait, there’s a limit on memes? Oh no!
Where is the bar at on rule 2? Because folks get all sorts of spicy at each other!!
I’ve seen : moron, derp, u fuck, plebian, dipshit etc . . .
Name calling should all be deleted though I admit I left plebeian because I was wowed with the vocabulary. If it’s repeated, I’d delete it but I figured it upped everyone’s intelligence just to see someone try to scoop a wider net through the English language.
Here’s a definition.