A few notes on ProperThink™

[The Good Reverend Roger]

After the recent devastation, I just thought I'd get a few things out in the open, so that we can all learn to recognize the horrible smell of monkey ass, and perhaps avoid it in the future.  Please note that this is NOT a reaction to the recent feminism threads in particular, and applies equally to drug threads, mahdgickque threads, and even the libertarian bullshit.  But not to Captain Utopia or Babylon Horuv  threads, which didn't get half the kicking around they deserve.  Thus endeth the disclaimer.  And so:

If it just splits your bits to see a Discordian doing what ever the hell it is they want to do, if you can't at least leave them alone to do it if not get behind them and cheer them on even if you'd never dream of doing it, if you can't manage to disconnect the word SHOULD from your brain WHENEVER you think about what someone else is doing...Then simply ram a bucket full of your own bullshit down your throat, and while you're choking on it, super glue your lips together to keep it from ever escaping again, and set yourself on fire and jump in front of a train and suck down some Drano and play Kurt Cobain's last song on the bass shotgun OR KILL ME BECAUSE I CAN'T FUCKING STAND TO SEE THE LAST BASTION OF INDIVIDUALITY TURN INTO A BUNCH OF FUCKING PINK SUNDAY SCHOOL TEACHERS WITH THEIR OWN FUCKING IDEAS OF CORRECT BEHAVIOR BEING ENFORCED ON ANY FUCKING BODY.

LIKEWISE, if you see a Discordian NOT getting on the fucking bus, if you see them NOT buying into what you think is the only proper behavior for a Discordian™, if you see them NOT trying to save the fucking world from their keyboard, then perhaps you should pause for about ten fucking seconds before blowing the fuck up, because LAST TIME I CHECKED, THIS ISN'T ABOUT GROUPTHINK.  I have MY Discordia, you have YOUR Discordia, and if you can by power of persuasion get maybe 6 people on board, then THAT IN ITSELF IS A VICTORY.  You're bloody lucky to get THAT many, and you have NO RIGHT TO INSIST THAT EVERYONE JOIN YOUR CRUSADE.

Pat Robertson insists that everything be done his way.  Robert fucking Tilton insists that everything be done his way (which apparently means throwing your wife down the stairs and then running down the street naked, screaming that rats are eating your brains).  Paul Goddamn Ryan insists that everything be done his way.  Are we to emulate them?  No.  We are SUPERIOR MUTANTS, and one reason for that is that WE DON'T PRETEND TO HAVE THE ONE SIZE FITS ALL SOLUTION TO ANYTHING.

And if you feel the need to coerce someone (physically, socially, or emotionally) into doing it YOUR WAY, then don't mind that low popping noise.  It was just your soul.

Christ.  Now I've shat myself.

[LMNO]

[Luna]

Yes.

[tyrannosaurus vex]

I approve this message.

[The Good Reverend Roger]

Be advised that this isn't aimed at anyone in particular, because WE'RE ALL FUCKING GUILTY OF IT.

If RWHN wants to start a drug thread, that's his right.  If you don't like it, don't click.  If Garbo or Pixe or someone wants to start a feminism thread, good on them.  If you don't like it, don't click.  If I want to start a thread about the mite colony forming in the hair of my ass, too bad.  IF YOU DON'T LIKE IT, YOU'RE DAMNED.  I mean, don't click.

Conversely, if someone doesn't AGREE with you or isn't TOTALLY ON BOARD, this does NOT mean that they oppose you.  It just means that they don't agree with you, or aren't totally on board.

"If you're not with us, you're against us."
- George W Bush

Is THAT any kind of example for a superior mutant to follow?  NO.  IT ISN'T.  We're not better than that because we have all the ANSWERS, we're better than that BECAUSE WE HAVE INCONVENIENT QUESTIONS.

If you want your beliefs 169% affirmed, with no criticism, then find a Pagan board.  I hear they're into that shit.

Also, if someone LOSES THEIR TEMPER during a conversation, this does NOT equal "I HATE YOU" or "YOU'RE NOT MY FRIEND ANYMORE" or "YOUR IDEA SUCKS".  Or at least it shouldn't.  If there's anything we KNOW about PD, it's that tempers get hot during arguments.  It's not a sign that your opinion isn't respected, it's a sign that you're under their belief system and that it ITCHES when that happens, or perhaps that they're just FRUSTRATED.

PD is not your "instant crusade, just add beliefs".  It is not where you come for validation, or to save the world.  It's where you come to hang out with people who THINK, just like YOU think, even if they don't think the SAME THING you think.

Annnnnnd shat myself again.

[Verbal Mike]

Yes.

The thing is that it's no small task to notice this while you're doing it.

This does apply to the feminism thread, and it's the only one of the examples I've experienced, so here's how it looked from inside the uniform.

Until some point this morning, I was convinced that I had been spending time clarifying a theoretical point. I was very confused by the talk of uniforms, because I was wearing mine so snug I didn't notice it was there. Only because of the rage I was seeing about it did I really take a step back and try to figure out how it could be perceived as trying to put my uniform on someone else. And once I managed to wrap my head around that, it made sense. But it wasn't easy to get there. I was convinced that I was trying to explain something to someone who was being stubborn and refusing to understand it, that I was defending a discussion's right to take place, etc. It took a while to realize that without noticing it, my goal had actually become (or even been) to change other people's minds, and then I kinda recoiled. That goal was unconscious, so there was no moment of feeling an urge come on or anything. Just a slow slide into preaching.

So while I think you're very right with the OP, dear Fidel, it does seem like post-hoc rage might work better than forewarnings, at least some of the time or for some of us.

[Verbal Mike]

It's where you come to hang out with people who THINK, just like YOU think, even if they don't think the SAME THING you think.

BINGO. Most of this group consists of "like-minded people", but not in the usual sense of "having minds with mostly the same thoughts in them". It's easy to get confused about that, because this kind of group hardly exists anywhere, ever. We're probably not biologically adapted to it.

So yeah. A minute ago I was thinking I don't like the mutant label. But suddenly it makes perfect sense. For the moment, at least.

[The Good Reverend Roger]

Yes.

The thing is that it's no small task to notice this while you're doing it.

And THAT is why the moment you stop examining your own beliefs and actions, you have - temporarily - turned into one of THEM.  At that point, you should START examining your beliefs, your actions, and even your motives.

This does apply to the feminism thread, and it's the only one of the examples I've experienced, so here's how it looked from inside the uniform.

Until some point this morning, I was convinced that I had been spending time clarifying a theoretical point. I was very confused by the talk of uniforms, because I was wearing mine so snug I didn't notice it was there. Only because of the rage I was seeing about it did I really take a step back and try to figure out how it could be perceived as trying to put my uniform on someone else. And once I managed to wrap my head around that, it made sense. But it wasn't easy to get there.[/b] I was convinced that I was trying to explain something to someone who was being stubborn and refusing to understand it, that I was defending a discussion's right to take place, etc. It took a while to realize that without noticing it, my goal had actually become (or even been) to change other people's minds, and then I kinda recoiled. That goal was unconscious, so there was no moment of feeling an urge come on or anything. Just a slow slide into preaching.

EXACTLY.  And it's not easy at all.  If it was, EVERYONE WOULD DO IT.

So while I think you're very right with the OP, dear Fidel, it does seem like post-hoc rage might work better than forewarnings, at least some of the time or for some of us.

Blow ups happen.  It's almost always easier to dissect them than to prevent them.

Plus, it makes the day go by.

[The Good Reverend Roger]

It's where you come to hang out with people who THINK, just like YOU think, even if they don't think the SAME THING you think.

BINGO. Most of this group consists of "like-minded people", but not in the usual sense of "having minds with mostly the same thoughts in them". It's easy to get confused about that, because this kind of group hardly exists anywhere, ever. We're probably not biologically adapted to it.

So yeah. A minute ago I was thinking I don't like the mutant label. But suddenly it makes perfect sense. For the moment, at least.

Yeah, labels should be temporary things, things used for VERY specific purposes.  Otherwise, they start GROWING, and then the next thing you know, you're wearing another snappy uniform.

Take the "cis" label.  It is useful ONLY when there is a need to differentiate between cis people and trans people, just like Gay is only useful if the differentiating between sexual orientations is relevant to the discussion.  If the differentation isn't necessary, then NEITHER IS THE LABEL.

In this case, the superior mutant label was used to describe the difference between people that think for themselves, and people who think what they believe they're supposed to think.  ETA:  Outside of this sort of discussion, there is no need to use the term.

[Verbal Mike]

[Nephew Twiddleton]

Labels should be temporary things.

I like that.

[Anna Mae Bollocks]

After the recent devastation, I just thought I'd get a few things out in the open, so that we can all learn to recognize the horrible smell of monkey ass, and perhaps avoid it in the future.  Please note that this is NOT a reaction to the recent feminism threads in particular, and applies equally to drug threads, mahdgickque threads, and even the libertarian bullshit.  But not to Captain Utopia or Babylon Horuv  threads, which didn't get half the kicking around they deserve.  Thus endeth the disclaimer.  And so:

If it just splits your bits to see a Discordian doing what ever the hell it is they want to do, if you can't at least leave them alone to do it if not get behind them and cheer them on even if you'd never dream of doing it, if you can't manage to disconnect the word SHOULD from your brain WHENEVER you think about what someone else is doing...Then simply ram a bucket full of your own bullshit down your throat, and while you're choking on it, super glue your lips together to keep it from ever escaping again, and set yourself on fire and jump in front of a train and suck down some Drano and play Kurt Cobain's last song on the bass shotgun OR KILL ME BECAUSE I CAN'T FUCKING STAND TO SEE THE LAST BASTION OF INDIVIDUALITY TURN INTO A BUNCH OF FUCKING PINK SUNDAY SCHOOL TEACHERS WITH THEIR OWN FUCKING IDEAS OF CORRECT BEHAVIOR BEING ENFORCED ON ANY FUCKING BODY.

LIKEWISE, if you see a Discordian NOT getting on the fucking bus, if you see them NOT buying into what you think is the only proper behavior for a Discordian™, if you see them NOT trying to save the fucking world from their keyboard, then perhaps you should pause for about ten fucking seconds before blowing the fuck up, because LAST TIME I CHECKED, THIS ISN'T ABOUT GROUPTHINK.  I have MY Discordia, you have YOUR Discordia, and if you can by power of persuasion get maybe 6 people on board, then THAT IN ITSELF IS A VICTORY.  You're bloody lucky to get THAT many, and you have NO RIGHT TO INSIST THAT EVERYONE JOIN YOUR CRUSADE.

Pat Robertson insists that everything be done his way.  Robert fucking Tilton insists that everything be done his way (which apparently means throwing your wife down the stairs and then running down the street naked, screaming that rats are eating your brains).  Paul Goddamn Ryan insists that everything be done his way.  Are we to emulate them?  No.  We are SUPERIOR MUTANTS, and one reason for that is that WE DON'T PRETEND TO HAVE THE ONE SIZE FITS ALL SOLUTION TO ANYTHING.

And if you feel the need to coerce someone (physically, socially, or emotionally) into doing it YOUR WAY, then don't mind that low popping noise.  It was just your soul.

Christ.  Now I've shat myself.

Mittens are overdone, but

Fuck, if everybody SAW EVERYTHING EXACTLY LIKE I DO, I'd talk to my damn self.

[The Good Reverend Roger]

Labels should be temporary things.

I like that.

Yes, if you use the label to describe yourself when it's not relevant to the topic at hand, it's a uniform.  When you use the label to describe someone else when it's not relevant to the topic at hand, it's a nice little box to put someone in.

"I have this friend, he's nuts for football."

"I have this Black friend, he's nuts for football."


"Cameron from accounting had a fender bender in the parking lot."

"Cameron, that chick in accounting, had a fender bender in the parking lot."

See what I mean?

[AFK]

Very much agreed with the OP.  Good points all around!

[P3nT4gR4m]

After the recent devastation, I just thought I'd get a few things out in the open, so that we can all learn to recognize the horrible smell of monkey ass, and perhaps avoid it in the future.  Please note that this is NOT a reaction to the recent feminism threads in particular, and applies equally to drug threads, mahdgickque threads, and even the libertarian bullshit.  But not to Captain Utopia or Babylon Horuv  threads, which didn't get half the kicking around they deserve.  Thus endeth the disclaimer.  And so:

If it just splits your bits to see a Discordian doing what ever the hell it is they want to do, if you can't at least leave them alone to do it if not get behind them and cheer them on even if you'd never dream of doing it, if you can't manage to disconnect the word SHOULD from your brain WHENEVER you think about what someone else is doing...Then simply ram a bucket full of your own bullshit down your throat, and while you're choking on it, super glue your lips together to keep it from ever escaping again, and set yourself on fire and jump in front of a train and suck down some Drano and play Kurt Cobain's last song on the bass shotgun OR KILL ME BECAUSE I CAN'T FUCKING STAND TO SEE THE LAST BASTION OF INDIVIDUALITY TURN INTO A BUNCH OF FUCKING PINK SUNDAY SCHOOL TEACHERS WITH THEIR OWN FUCKING IDEAS OF CORRECT BEHAVIOR BEING ENFORCED ON ANY FUCKING BODY.

LIKEWISE, if you see a Discordian NOT getting on the fucking bus, if you see them NOT buying into what you think is the only proper behavior for a Discordian™, if you see them NOT trying to save the fucking world from their keyboard, then perhaps you should pause for about ten fucking seconds before blowing the fuck up, because LAST TIME I CHECKED, THIS ISN'T ABOUT GROUPTHINK.  I have MY Discordia, you have YOUR Discordia, and if you can by power of persuasion get maybe 6 people on board, then THAT IN ITSELF IS A VICTORY.  You're bloody lucky to get THAT many, and you have NO RIGHT TO INSIST THAT EVERYONE JOIN YOUR CRUSADE.

Pat Robertson insists that everything be done his way.  Robert fucking Tilton insists that everything be done his way (which apparently means throwing your wife down the stairs and then running down the street naked, screaming that rats are eating your brains).  Paul Goddamn Ryan insists that everything be done his way.  Are we to emulate them?  No.  We are SUPERIOR MUTANTS, and one reason for that is that WE DON'T PRETEND TO HAVE THE ONE SIZE FITS ALL SOLUTION TO ANYTHING.

And if you feel the need to coerce someone (physically, socially, or emotionally) into doing it YOUR WAY, then don't mind that low popping noise.  It was just your soul.

Christ.  Now I've shat myself.

Mittens are overdone, but

Fuck, if everybody SAW EVERYTHING EXACTLY LIKE I DO, I'd talk to my damn self.

Fucking yes! This is why, Mr Tigger, me and you have come to loggerheads on a million topics, a million times but I don't recall us ever having anything but the utmost respect for each other, regardless how loudly we might have been screaming "Your opinion is fucking retarded", at the time.

This is why when someone accuses me of not thinking what I should be thinking, on a given topic, my reaction invariably involves my middle finger.