Aggressive language on python-list

[Oscar Benjamin]

On 18 October 2012 00:17, Steven D'Aprano
<steve+comp.lang.python at pearwood.info> wrote:
> On Wed, 17 Oct 2012 14:10:34 -0700, rurpy wrote:
>
>> On 10/17/2012 02:28 PM, Oscar Benjamin wrote:> On 17 October 2012 19:16,
>> Chris Angelico <rosuav at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>> On Thu, Oct 18, 2012 at 3:48 AM,  <rurpy at yahoo.com> wrote:
>>>>>On 10/16/2012 08:45 PM, Steven D'Aprano wrote:
>>>>>> Except that you've made a 180-
>>>>>> degree turn from your advice to "ignore" bad behaviour, but
>>>>>> apparently didn't notice that *sending private emails* is not by any
>>>>>> definition "ignoring". So apparently you don't actually agree with
>>>>>> your own advice.
>>>>>
>>>>> Do you have Asberger's by any chance?  Can you understand that I said
>>>>> "ignore" in the context of public discussions in this
>>>>> newsgroup/maillist?
>>>>
>>>> That's nothing to do with Asperger's. Ignoring something/someone does
>>>> not include sending a private message. What you may be trying to say
>>>> is that we should refrain from publicly responding to bad behaviour,
>>>> which is not the same thing. If you want to pull a Humpty Dumpty and
>>>> use "ignore" to mean "not respond to in public", then go ahead, I'm
>>>> not stopping you - but do please make it clear somewhere in your post.
>>>
>>> I would also assume that ignoring a post means not replying on or off
>>> list.
>>
>> Then I hope my reply to Chris clarified that for you as well.
>>
>>> Moreover, I think it's unfortunate for you to make this comment with an
>>> irrelevant reference to Asperger's syndrome. I'll give you the benefit
>>> of the doubt that you didn't mean it this way but the comment is easily
>>> interpreted as being disparaging to people with Asperger's.
>>
>> Yes, on rereading that, I agree it was uncalled for and I retract it and
>> apologize to any who may have been offended by it.
>
> Excuse me, I think that anybody who was offended by it needs to take a
> long, hard look at themselves. Would you be offended if Rurpy asked "Are
> you diabetic?" There's no more shame in being Aspie than there is in
> being diabetic, or allergic to wheat, or colour blind.

(rurpy, I know you already regret what you said so I'm not trying to
rub it in but I want to respond to what Steven said)

Steven, I almost followed that up with a post pointing out that it was
also quite offensive to you. But then I thought: No, Steven can look
after himself!

You're right, of course. There is nothing wrong with Asperger's. I
don't see much wrong with saying "Do you have Asberger's by any
chance?" (apart from the South-Park style mis-spelling) but I do see
something wrong with following it up with a patronising "Can you
understand..." as if only the other party having Asperger's can
explain your inability to understand one another.

To put it another way, I could say:

    You're an idiot. Why can't you understand the simple things I say?

which is rude but it's rude at one (relevant) person. Instead I could
choose to say:

   Do you have Down's? Can your mongoloid brain just not understand me?

which is rude at so many irrelevant people (I find it difficult to
write that since my cousin and some other very lovely people I know
have Down's but I that's roughly how I interpreted rurpy's comment the
*first* time I read it).

It came across to me as an offensive comment both to you and to people
with Asperger's that I would not tolerate generally. It is retracted
so I hold no ill will and don't want to dwell on it. In fact the very
quick retraction is a good thing to happen in relation to the many
things discussed above in this thread.


Oscar