Posted by caraher on December 15, 2008, at 8:54:29 [reposted on December 15, 2008, at 11:07:45 | original URL]
In reply to Re: respect and respectful ness » Racer, posted by Partlycloudy on December 15, 2008, at 5:41:12
I think the insistence that the civility guidelines *ought* not to be seen as restricting one's ability to express oneself can feel quite invalidating, no matter how beautifully and sensitively expressed.
It seems to me that they in fact do (by design!) limit self-expression. In many circumstances it is helpful for someone to find other ways to express what they think and feel, and I've seen some productive exchanges on Babble where people have explored that. But I don't think there's any use in pretending that, if only we were clever enough about reframing and rephrasing, we could all say what we want to say within the rules. That only heightens the frustration of those who feel stymied.
poster:caraher
thread:868896
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/admin/20081003/msgs/868904.html