For my part, apologies to those I offended with my offhand critique of Tim Kaine's response to the SOTU speech last night. I was not careful in my language. However,I continue to note a disturbing trend here on Kos and in other liberal/progressive communities that has elevated and appropriated right winged tactics in handling dissenting or diverging opinions.
While Kos' rating system allows us to tag good comments and identify those that disparage or bring down the community - trolls -- they were not intended as punishments for "wrong" thinking. More and more, spirited comments are snowed under a blizzard of 1s or 0s as those who disagree not only feel it necessary to voice their disagreement, but to in effect punish and suppress opinion. Loading somone you know is not a troll with 0's in effect makes them disappear.
Too many times, I also read people lauding the tactics of the right as effective. They keep people in line, suppress differing opinions and run dissenters right out of town. And because they have been successful, apparently, that is the model that we should use? Forget that they also steal elections and twist the truth. Anyway that gets results is ok -- Just win Baby, right?
Its not just here. I am in a community group that is focused on growth issues in our county. We are all explictly liberal or progressive and yet the opinions of many on the group are not honored. People are ignored. We have members actually saying that they want to keep "those people" (whoever they are) -- out of certain areas. (Bellingham was a bastion of liberal hippies who are reacting to the current gentrification trends by rejecting anything that allows "those" bourgeois outsiders from further infiltrating the local culture. Now, I donot consider myself the ultime bourgeois, but I take offense since I just moved here a couple of years ago having cashed out in Atlanta. We (my husband and I have gotten heavily involved in environmental and growth issues as well as local liberal politics. We have our old beat up cars and we recycle, but no doubt, we are considered outsiders and our input, along with that of others like us, is ignored. Our leftist friends will stand with the right winged minutemen militia I guess to keep "those people" whoever they are, out - all in the name of avoiding ANY change.
Listen folks, its alarming. Here we are in the most difficult period of this country's history with tough, really tough problems and we are destroying the civil language for resolving conflicts with anything other than sticks and stones. You cannot coerce or bludgeon learning and change of heart. There has to be a willingness to trust and sometimes forgive and look past errors or mistakes or just lack of awareness. Hell, I just don't know some things but I would like to learn without the tip of a stick, so to speak, laid to my back. If every mistake or error merits punishment, even on our "team", its gonna be a long haul to convince anyone outside our immediate frame of reference about anything.
May I make a suggestion -- one that I will take myself. If you read a comment that makes your blood boil, first ask yourself: Am I reading this correctly -- does this person intend to attack in a destructive way? Is this person attacking ME? Do they intend to be funny (sometimes you can mess up intending to be funny) Do I want to know what is driving their opinion? How about starting your response with: I agree, or I hear your point (if you do) then state your understanding, BUT here is my viewpoint. Or if you donot agree, I disagree with what you say and here is why...
I was called an idiot because I didn't get Tim Kaine's name correct the first time. OK, more than once. Okay. I had a couple of glasses of wine during Bush's speech and I was a little wound up. But what is the real point? You would like me to know him, know what he stands for and take that into consideration, seriously. I hear that. Abusing me personally will not achieve that. Abusing anyone here in this community on a personal basis is destructive to the community unless you have reason to believe that they are not bona fide members and truly are trolls. If not, why not just respond without rating, try to teach as well as learn from each other.
We are supposed to be building something here and across the country and language for problem solving, learning and community building is an important component. It is critical for us to be able to do this. Forget the rating system - esp when you are mad and emotional.