I think I’ll take a swing at this, because apparently I’m a glutton for punishment.
First, a minor digression, which will apply - a certain favorite (not absolutely Good, but favorite) SciFi series featured a Time-Prophet, whose mantra included the following (and is a concept found in any number of philosophies and fictions including Robert Jordan’s works) :
“Time Begins, and then Time Ends, and then Time begins once again.
It is happening now, it has happened before, it will surely happen again…”
@MrDibble - I’m not telling you to calm down, shut up, or change your mind. But remember what I said about being too damn certain of your own certainty? Yeah, that.
For that matter, I’ll refer you and the others to an earlier thread hijack on the circumstances of passion vs reason, reason informed by passion, and empathy. A lovely little digression on how and why we are moved, and what makes the best arguments.
MrDibble has a great deal of passion, and plenty of reason and intellect to back it up, but often flunks the empathy portion due (entirely IMHO) being far to focused on the passion and righteousness of their POV. Which, frankly, often makes him a jerk. Not a troll, but a jerk.
Back to the quote above, no, I don’t think they’ll change, I’m not even 100% certain I want them to change, but it does mean I think they’ve been a jerk before, are being something of a jerk now, and will likely be jerkish (at times) again in the future. Meh, figure it’s the price I pay for having an interesting poster and POV to ponder on.
Oh, and if I must, for this screed, perch atop the thorny bush, I feel good in knowing that I certainly won’t be the only poster sharing their thoughts with a gigantic stick up their ass today!
