(no subject)
May. 18th, 2009 06:12 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
majutsukaiI try, you know? I try damn hard.
In a world where everyone seems to hate everyone else, I try to be the one that sees the good in people. I try to be the optimistic one-- to not let a dram of evil spoil all the noble substance, as it were.
So why does it seem like people are trying so damn hard to disprove that outlook? Everywhere I look, there seems to be a counterexample. Is there no room in this world for optimists?
Assuming the best of people always seems to get you screwed over, too. So I'm naive, then? Is the line between optimism and naivete so fine as to be nonexistent?
...
A lot of what's bothering me is people's attitudes towards other people. Sometimes it seems... that ideas are more important than people.
What do you mean by that, Matt?
Well...
(I'm only using this overly specific pseudo-hypothetical situation because I failed at racking my brain for a purely hypothetical situation to explain what I meant.)
Say there's a thread in a forum about a controversial topic. Well... not even controversial; this "debate" is pretty one-sided, with the majority of people having severe objections to one particular side, with varying levels of rationality.
The OP of the thread, however, is picking up the unpopular side and defending it. He does this pretty competently-- but takes a lot of flak for being on the "bad side", whether or not he actually "agrees" with it, as such.
Say that I then decide to post in this thread. I say that I don't really agree with the unpopular side, but admit that my reasons for doing so may be irrational, and for that reason I'd rather not debate for or against it, given that I'm uninformed on this topic and find it uncomfortable to discuss anyways. Additionally, I state my reservations against the prospect of depicting the other side in a strongly negative light, given that I myself have had opinions that have been treated this way. And finally, I commend the OP on his courage for taking up such an unpopular side and defending it, in spite of all the abuse he's getting.
Cue the crapstorm. I'm accused of pandering to this side, of being "hyper-PC", and basically am looked at as a wet noodle. And, of course, you can tell by the language that the response uses that I am now officially lumped in with the unpopular side.
A lot of people's reputations in the forum in question are tainted due to the fact that they dared to defend the "bad side".
So... yeah. Ideas become more important than people. My efforts to support a person got interpreted as support for an idea, as if the two had become synonymous.
Of course... ideas are important. I won't pretend they aren't. But where's the line? When do they become so important that people stop mattering? And how many people am I going to alienate by thinking that they really don't?
And that's the kicker, really. If you try not to alienate people, you get alienated.
And this isn't even all I'm complaining about. Just a small bit of it. There are countless other ways that optimism seems to become a flaw, a maladaptation.
So, is that it? Am I in fairyland for still wanting to be that kind of person? Am I naive?
Fuck me sideways. I'm too optimistic to believe it.
In a world where everyone seems to hate everyone else, I try to be the one that sees the good in people. I try to be the optimistic one-- to not let a dram of evil spoil all the noble substance, as it were.
So why does it seem like people are trying so damn hard to disprove that outlook? Everywhere I look, there seems to be a counterexample. Is there no room in this world for optimists?
Assuming the best of people always seems to get you screwed over, too. So I'm naive, then? Is the line between optimism and naivete so fine as to be nonexistent?
...
A lot of what's bothering me is people's attitudes towards other people. Sometimes it seems... that ideas are more important than people.
What do you mean by that, Matt?
Well...
(I'm only using this overly specific pseudo-hypothetical situation because I failed at racking my brain for a purely hypothetical situation to explain what I meant.)
Say there's a thread in a forum about a controversial topic. Well... not even controversial; this "debate" is pretty one-sided, with the majority of people having severe objections to one particular side, with varying levels of rationality.
The OP of the thread, however, is picking up the unpopular side and defending it. He does this pretty competently-- but takes a lot of flak for being on the "bad side", whether or not he actually "agrees" with it, as such.
Say that I then decide to post in this thread. I say that I don't really agree with the unpopular side, but admit that my reasons for doing so may be irrational, and for that reason I'd rather not debate for or against it, given that I'm uninformed on this topic and find it uncomfortable to discuss anyways. Additionally, I state my reservations against the prospect of depicting the other side in a strongly negative light, given that I myself have had opinions that have been treated this way. And finally, I commend the OP on his courage for taking up such an unpopular side and defending it, in spite of all the abuse he's getting.
Cue the crapstorm. I'm accused of pandering to this side, of being "hyper-PC", and basically am looked at as a wet noodle. And, of course, you can tell by the language that the response uses that I am now officially lumped in with the unpopular side.
A lot of people's reputations in the forum in question are tainted due to the fact that they dared to defend the "bad side".
So... yeah. Ideas become more important than people. My efforts to support a person got interpreted as support for an idea, as if the two had become synonymous.
Of course... ideas are important. I won't pretend they aren't. But where's the line? When do they become so important that people stop mattering? And how many people am I going to alienate by thinking that they really don't?
And that's the kicker, really. If you try not to alienate people, you get alienated.
And this isn't even all I'm complaining about. Just a small bit of it. There are countless other ways that optimism seems to become a flaw, a maladaptation.
So, is that it? Am I in fairyland for still wanting to be that kind of person? Am I naive?
Fuck me sideways. I'm too optimistic to believe it.
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no subject
Date: 2009-05-18 08:33 pm (UTC)I'm assuming it had something to do with politics... thus making it really, all in all? Just opinions. No "good" or "bad" side. Unless there are facts to prove one side is negative... but anyways.
The internet is filled with stupid kids.
no subject
Date: 2009-05-18 09:09 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-05-19 02:22 am (UTC)On the internet, you don't really have to have sources or valid reasoning in order to debate a point. People fight and debate over ideas and opinions daily with little or no proof, just because it is what they were taught to believe, or it's an opinion formed before even really knowing what they're fighting for.
No one bothers to become informed nowadays, despite this being the age of information, where such a thing is widely available, and takes a few key presses and clicks of a mouse to find.
Optimism is a dying mindset. With the way the world is nowadays, finding a true optimist is, sad to say, a rare occurrence. And even some optimists, once they're thrust face first into the actual real world become embittered and lose that terribly sunny outlook to life.
But, you can be an optimist without being naive. I wouldn't place you in the naive category. You take it upon yourself to be informed. Naivete is on par with ignorance, I feel, in which really not knowing is bliss, because then you have this preconceived notion of how things are based on what you DO know. And, sometimes, learning something shatters that world view, and you find that you would have rather have been ignorant to it all.
In a completely unrelated topic, I'm vaguely thinking about trying out a WoW PS.
no subject
Date: 2009-05-19 04:07 am (UTC)Hm. Well, I don't think that I'll be able to join you, but lemme know if you ever decide to switch to the official version-- that way I can refer you and we can both take advantage of the referral benefits.
Lemme know if you ever need/want info, either way. :D
no subject
Date: 2009-05-20 07:52 pm (UTC)People who start drama and bashing other post in forums are typically ill educated or people looking for the drama fame. Sadly that is a good portion o what the internet is anymore..
My only advice here would be not to let what happens online taint your view of people in general, there are a lot of good people out there..
Ima shut up now cause its past my bed time and I am babbling..
<3 - Nikki