Yes, this is another handwringing, hair-tearing, garment-rending diary about the lack of civility on Daily Kos. Someone said something mean to me or to someone I like or respect, and I think the level of discourse has deteriorated to the point that I have to go Meta. It's important that I go Meta. I like how it feels when I go Meta!
Anyway, yes- it was so much better in the old days, when we operated on kerosene lamps and had to hand-crank our computers to get them running. Back then, everyone liked me. Everyone agreed with me. Everyone thought I was brilliant and witty and handsome and charming, and no one ever hurt my feelings! It was me and my brother, and the Gazebo sisters down the street, and none of this riff-raff and rabble with UIDs higher than ours! Those were the days, my friends, we thought they'd never end. And then kingdoms fell, constitutions were written, and people were allowed to vote! It's been downhill from there! And I miss Fragonard, and Watteau, and de Cuvilliés, too!
Politics is bad for Daily Kos. Let's talk about something else. Didn't your parents ever tell you not to talk politics or religion at parties? It's not polite. My parents never told me that, and that's why I never get invited to parties, anymore. Daily Kos is like a big party, with thousands of regular users, and more total registered users than can fit in most football stadiums. And everyone talks politics. Not all the time, but often. It's very rude. It provokes arguments. It gets personal. Cliques and factions form, and they do battle; and amidst the mud and fog, feelings get hurt, the original arguments get lost, and people forget why they were arguing in the first place. That's what happens when people talk politics. Politics is bad for Daily Kos.
There's a lot going on in the world. There's a lot to talk about. The weather outside is frightful- except where it isn't. There are some good movies out, right now. How about that new Coen Brothers masterpiece?! And football season is finally getting to the point when games actually matter! Go Ducks! And go Beavers! And celebrities and their hangers-on ceaselessly remain easy topics of non-confrontational social discourse. So, let's stop bickering and arguing about who killed who! No more politics on Daily Kos! And no religion, too!
Caryl Churchill's Mad Forest is a play about the Romanian Revolution. It begins during the last days of the Ceauceascu regime. Not only is the poverty overwhelming, but the political oppression is absolute. People are afraid to talk. People are afraid to think. People are afraid to love. The cafe is nearly silent. Then, the Revolution explodes with an unexpected rapidity and ferocity. People are exhilirated, overwhelmed, and frightened. The sudden success is so unexpected that conspiracy theories emerge. The new regime is not what many had hoped for. Perhaps it was all deliberate- not really a Revolution, but a coup. New political policies are clumsy and confusing. Some people like them, some don't. People debate. They argue. The once quiet cafe becomes a din of discord.
Freedom is contentious. Freedom is messy. Freedom is not easy.