When people bash us on forums without any justification, then what and how should our response be?

Should you think about your duty, or about the consequences of your actions? Or should you concentrate on becoming a good person?

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Walker
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Re: When people bash us on forums without any justification, then what and how should our response be?

Post by Walker »

Greta wrote:Nobody is "bashed" on a forum without justification, only reasons with which they disagree.

There's a number of unbalanced members on philosophy forums who seem drawn to a kind of martyrdom and they won't stop pushing until someone smacks them. On this unmoderated forum it usually takes about two seconds. On my other forum it can take longer before someone snaps.

Inevitably these kinds of contributors will be convinced that they have found the answer to life. They preach their ways even as their obvious mental and emotional dysfunctions makes clear to most that they have simply fallen down one of the many "enlightenment" or "salvation" cul-de-sacs. I cannot overstress the importance of this. Anyone who is actually "enlightened" is going to be a delight to deal with even when views are in conflict. An enlightened person would not slam another on a web forum. They would remain calm. After all, it's only a forum, nothing for a "serious person" to get steamed about.

The "enlightenment" paradigm error comes from seeking short cuts, which is understandable because life difficult to understand and control. I spent my life looking for such short cuts and none worked. The only thing that ever worked for me, even modestly, was paying attention (admittedly, occasionally), daily effort (admittedly, when trapped like a rat in a trap) and, most importantly, finding useful things I could do in my areas of interest.

Ideally, the "I'm enlightened and you're not" game would not be played on philosophy forums. However, "bashing" those who do play that game doesn't work because then they enjoy the martyrdom.

I know it's dull, but if one feels compelled to correct the wrong information provided by "preachers", the best option IMO is to write the correction and, if their response is weak and inviting a fight, simply ignore it. Trust that others will see the weak response and similarly ignore it. That way the "enlightened one" will either be forced to construct solid arguments that deserve discussion or be a voice in a wilderness making unacknowledged interjections.
Such folks likely dance with the now rather than yearn for the not of abstraction that binds so-called philosophy in some circles, though said enlightened may be limited to identifying such dance as only a warmth of good-natured humour while the wisened who give merely random notice to crumbs from the enlightenment-table perceive hunger, seeking, and deprivation. Thus comes the pity of poor bretheren from the dabblers and the dobblers.
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