# In recognition of Liberal **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [July 20, 2004, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-recognition-of-liberal/255911 "2004-07-20T00:50:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2004, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-recognition-of-liberal/255911/81 "2004-07-22T15:02:49Z")
> [@Liberal](#): > > A fine one, I’d say. No man can ask for more of his rhetoric than that it move and impassion another. Thanks, ETF. Personally, I’m most fond of coffee spurting from the nose over the keyboard, guffaws, followed by a meditative pause… Laughter is about the only effective non-violent political weapon. I tried flowers, but was disappointed in the results. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2004, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-recognition-of-liberal/255911/82 "2004-07-22T15:14:14Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > Personally, I’m most fond of coffee spurting from the nose over the keyboard, guffaws, followed by a meditative pause… > > Laughter is about the only effective non-violent political weapon. I tried flowers, but was disappointed in the results. Huh. Usually the coffee spurting from the nose is followed by screams. Maybe I’m doing it wrong? But yeah: moving people to passion isn’t really that difficult to do, if you’ve got a bit of skill with words. Doing it nonviolently is the trick. Daniel ---
**Author:** ![stpauler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@stpauler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stpauler)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2004, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-recognition-of-liberal/255911/83 "2004-07-22T15:37:17Z")
> [@leander](#): > > Hey little buddy, nobody was talking to you. Pardon me, as I’m jumping late into this thread that you, **leander,** started called “ **In recognition of Liberal** ”. Since this thread was completely directed at only one doper, namely **Liberal** , I would safely assume that all of the posts are in one form or another being addressed to him. In fact, you invited it by saying: > [@leander](#): > > Thank you, and I’m sure that others have Liberal stories to share. Then it turns out, as some pittings of users do, that it doesn’t go your way. The way you predestined a hogpile to go. With you, as King Swine on top basking in your hogpile glory. So you say: > [@leander](#): > > I know you love this attention, and I hate to break up the ego-stroking, but I’m afraid that the majority of folks still think you’re an asshole. I’m sure you’ve taken a poll of the thousands of dopers to know their opinion of course. I must not have been a part of that Gallop. (I get so busy at the malls, you know, that I just don’t have time to stop sometimes.)\*\* \*\*obligatory eye roll smiley removed for effect as well as pedestrian name calling as I can’t think of a non-cliche’d one. ---
**Author:** ![andros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e480ec/32.png) [@andros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andros)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2004, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-recognition-of-liberal/255911/84 "2004-07-22T20:20:44Z")
> [@leander](#): > > You know, **andros** , I didn’t really bother with you before because you seem rather silly, but I gotta ask: Are you **Lib** ’s little brother? Well, seeing as how I was talking to **LHoD** , and he was responding to me, I can only say: Hey little buddy, nobody was talking to you. I know you love this attention, and I hate to break up the ego-stroking, but that was amazingly damned hypocritical of you. I welcome a response to any post I have actually addressed to you, hypocrite. ---
**Author:** ![andros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e480ec/32.png) [@andros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andros)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2004, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-recognition-of-liberal/255911/85 "2004-07-22T20:36:29Z")
> [@Left Hand of Dorkness](#): > > Oh, please. It could be perceived that way, but not reasonably so. My first post in this thread quoted him as saying, “like Satan.” A link later appeared to the post in question. Any reasonable person will understand what I was saying. > > I can’t be responsible for the ways in which a theoretical unreasonable person might misinterpret what I said. You’re right, you can’t. But I think we all need to be able to recognize it, at least. Alls I’m saying is that not everyone _is_ reasonable. Common sense isn’t, and what I think is a complete no-brainer often isn’t to others. They’re wrong and stupid, of course. 😉 But seriously, when you’re dealing with someone who you _know_ thinks very differently from you, someone like Lib f’rinstance, it’s only to be expected that communication will be difficult. That’s the beauty of this medium. It’s easy to offend, and be offended . . . but it’s also damned easy to ignore people too. > [@](#): > > If you honestly think that I’m misrepresenting someone–if you DO really perceive me as being dishonest–please let me know, and I’ll try to rectify the situation. I don’t, and I appreciate it. ---
**Author:** ![Bippy\_the\_Beardless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ac8455/32.png) [@Bippy\_the\_Beardless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bippy_the_Beardless)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2004, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-recognition-of-liberal/255911/86 "2004-07-22T21:52:17Z")
> [@Liberal](#): > > Actually, it wasn’t lithium. It was Prednisone. If it is not too personal a qestion, do you take the Prednisone for your (apparent) mood swings? or do you take anything for them? ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2004, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-recognition-of-liberal/255911/87 "2004-07-22T21:55:33Z")
It was for my inflamed sciatic nerve, that was being pinched by a slipped disc. It helped only a little. Eventually, a spinal epidural cured me. ---
**Author:** ![Bippy\_the\_Beardless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ac8455/32.png) [@Bippy\_the\_Beardless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bippy_the_Beardless)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2004, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-recognition-of-liberal/255911/88 "2004-07-22T22:16:26Z")
Sciatic nerve. that one’s a bugger if it gets pinched. ---
**Author:** ![Uncommon\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Uncommon\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncommon_Sense)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2004, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-recognition-of-liberal/255911/89 "2004-07-23T12:35:34Z")
Right, and that would cause Severe mood swings. Been there, done that. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2004, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-recognition-of-liberal/255911/90 "2004-07-23T13:11:48Z")
> [@andros](#): > > But seriously, when you’re dealing with someone who you _know_ thinks very differently from you, someone like Lib f’rinstance, it’s only to be expected that communication will be difficult. That’s the beauty of this medium. It’s easy to offend, and be offended . . . but it’s also damned easy to ignore people too. Thing is, I’m _not_ that offended by most of the people around. Most of the people on this board (well, most of the reasonably smart people on this board, anyway) don’t engage in the sort of dishonest tricks and crazy-mean attacks that he engages in. It’s easy to offend when you do these things, but it’s also easy **not** to do these things. He chooses to do these things; I do not pretend to know why\*. When someone acts like that, you can engage with them, and risk getting really upset every time they break the basic rules of civility; you can let yourself be open to their attacks. Or you can ignore them, shut them out. Although that **should** be easy, as you say, I’ve got a hard time with that. Not taking **Lib** seriously–not letting myself give a shit about his cruelty–is more of a work in progress than a fait accompli. Daniel - I once thought I knew why: I once thought it was the Prednisone moodswings that was leading him to be so absurdly aggressive. Turns out I was wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Uncommon\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Uncommon\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncommon_Sense)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2004, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-recognition-of-liberal/255911/91 "2004-07-23T14:48:33Z")
Like I said, the whole ‘Prednisone back pain thing’ can cause an otherwise normal person to become a Morning Star wielding lunatic. 'Cept replace the spiked ball with mood swings and you’re in business. I shant make excuses for dear **Lib** , but that is my observation anyway… ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2004, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-recognition-of-liberal/255911/92 "2004-07-23T16:25:36Z")
I guess it could have manifested as mood swings to the world outside my consciousness, but for me it manifested as pain — relentless, searing, overwhelming _PAIN_ that shot like lightning bolts with regular periodicity from the small of my back, down my leg, and to the tips of my toes. It never ceased. No matter whether I stood, sat, or lay down. It woke me in the middle of the night, making it impossible to sleep for more than a few minutes at a time. It was my sun, and I was doomed to revolve around it all day every day,. My neurosurgeon gave the epidural a 30% chance to be a cure. There was also a 1 in 100 chance that, upon the day following day, I would experience a headache sufficiently severe as to require emergency room treatment. I had the epidural on a Friday, and over the weekend no headache came. By Monday morning, I awoke with no pain. It was one of the happiest days of my life. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2004, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-recognition-of-liberal/255911/93 "2004-07-23T18:04:19Z")
> [@RTA](#): > > Not to stray from the subject too far, but what was **Liberal** ’s screen name before he changed it to **Libertarian**? > > You know, back in the day. On the off-chance that the question was serious, I will give you the serious aswer: **Lib** first entered the SDMB community as **Libertarian**. His only other screen name was his current one, **Liberal**. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-recognition-of-liberal/255911.md?page=4)