Oh dear GOD. At this point, I'm forced into wondering if this whole thing isn't maybe some form of performance art. A study in Not Getting It, illustrated by Bear, Cramer, Shetterly, and others. Because otherwise, there's a whole bunch of pro SF writers who are THIS CLUELESS about interacting with other people. I just....it makes me want to cry, honestly.
I think the whole Harlan Ellison & Connie Willis incident lowered my expectations of the pro SF community enough that I'm not too disillusioned, but I am still blinking somewhat at the use of the "self destruct" button. It's kind of like a fight over who gets the literary Darwin awards or something... not something you even want to compete for, let alone win.
Some small part of me is hoping that this is some kind of big experiment for a sociology class.... *sigh* I've been employing "shut up and listen" as well. But this is just so OUTRAGEOUS - "I pretended that They had a point, because They were Other, and I pretended to listen to Them, but now they're being mean to my friends who are just Well-Meaning Assholes Online and therefore no one ever needs to take Them seriously." ARGH.
The reasoning behind why "you read the book wrong, therefore your reaction isn't valid, so therefore I can ignore your criticism, and also some of the people that agreed with you are MEAN" is so incredibly offensive that even a dumbass like ME can figure it out. I'm blown away that a supposedly "multi cultural, sensitive, raised-by-pagan-lesbians intellectual" can't catch on.
That after all of this, all of it, Bear is retreating back to that basic argument- that AW read the book WRONG- is so far beyond mind boggling that I feel like SHE has to be the sockpuppet, because a real person, a thinking and feeling person couldn't possibly have written that.
At this point, I'm forced into wondering if this whole thing isn't maybe some form of performance art. A study in Not Getting It, illustrated by Bear, Cramer, Shetterly, and others. Because otherwise, there's a whole bunch of pro SF writers who are THIS CLUELESS about interacting with other people.
I just....it makes me want to cry, honestly.
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*sigh*
I've been employing "shut up and listen" as well. But this is just so OUTRAGEOUS - "I pretended that They had a point, because They were Other, and I pretended to listen to Them, but now they're being mean to my friends who are just Well-Meaning Assholes Online and therefore no one ever needs to take Them seriously."
ARGH.
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You're right that it's outrageous. It's like a boil just burst and all the pus came out. Under all the nice words, it really is that bad.
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That's a perfect description, and I would add that it's the really stinky, wound gone septic type of pus.
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That after all of this, all of it, Bear is retreating back to that basic argument- that AW read the book WRONG- is so far beyond mind boggling that I feel like SHE has to be the sockpuppet, because a real person, a thinking and feeling person couldn't possibly have written that.
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