Venezuela, Hugo Chavez, and provocative statements in general.
I read this article today about Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez. He was addressing the U.N., and referred to Pres. Bush as “the devil”. He referred to the “American empire placing at risk the very existence of the human species”. My favorite bit is when he says the podium still smells like sulfur (GW addressed the U.N. from the same podium the day before).
Anyhow, it struck me as ironic, because not an hour earlier, Allena and I were discussing posts in forums, and how it’s the provocative ones that get reactions. I’ve noticed that if you say something insightful or profound in an online forum, you *might* get one or two responses. If you say something provocative, you get a LOT of responses. It doesn’t matter how innocuous the topic, a provocative statement will open the door wide to everyone else that has an opinion on the subject.
For example, if I say that I always put my left shoe on first. That’s pretty lame, and nobody will respond. If I say I put my left shoe on first, and to do otherwise indicates some kind of social problem on the part of the right-shoe-first person, then I better duck quick because the responses will fly. The funny part is, some people will just flame away, and other people will post legitimate opinions about why it’s really better to put on your right shoe first. Others will post stuff like “right on! tell it like it is brother! left-shoe-first people rock!”.
I find I get similar reactions in work related discussions. If I ask a group “how should I handle situation ‘X’?”, I almost always get either no response at all, or “I don’t care” or the like. If I state to a group “this is how I’m going to handle situation ‘X”, then suddenly everyone has an opinion. Try it sometime…it’s startling.
I have to wonder why Chavez chose to rant about our president, our country, and the aroma of podiums at the U.N. What kind of response was he trying to provoke? It’s funny…the article was all about his comments. It didn’t even say what the subject of his actual speech was. Maybe all he did was rant?
BTW…all you right-shoe-firsters are wacko. :)
(ducks)
Allena said,
September 20, 2006 @ 12:40 pm
I put on my right shoe first as do all our children are you nuts? Why didn;t you ever tell me you were a left shoe firster? All three of our children learned right from left ny three, by what means? “First your right foot, now the left”. Come to find out all these years have been a farce, I live with a stranger and you have purposely deceived me all these years into thinking of you as a right foot firster.
Any person with half a brain knows that either right or left first is ok, it’s not about which foot is first but how you put on the shoe. Right handers should put on the right shoe first and lefties the left. Anything else just totally blows my footware fung-shui.
People whoa re right handed and put on the left shoe first are just trying to get attention for themselves because they have to be the center of attention. You should just go with the crowd and not stick out, anything you do that is different can be perceived as “bad” therefore it is right and proper that you stop this insanity now and get help.
I can’t believe you’ve kept this dark side of yourself from me for so long, I need to go look at Darth Kitty and the white and nerdy video to regain my good spirits.
I feel so rejected and betrayed.
http://jimmyakin.typepad.com/defensor_fidei/2006/09/hello_vader.html
and click Mikes blog link tot he right for The white and nerdy video.
jerome said,
September 24, 2006 @ 11:48 am
OK allena’s response cracks me up….
your post reminds me of the statement - never argue with an idiot on a message board - invariably they will drag you down to their idiotic level and then beat you with their expertise!!!
Beau said,
September 24, 2006 @ 3:05 pm
Jerome??? Are you calling me an idiot?!? On my own BLOG!!!???
Well, I guess you must be one of those wacko right-shoe-firsters. Harumph!
Oh, uh…sorry Allena…nothing wrong with right-shoe-firsters…just kidding..hehe…(ducks again)
jerome said,
November 3, 2006 @ 9:34 pm
I’d only call you an idiot if this were some sort of forum - then we’d have flame wars, then four or five people would jump in on each side and then some pompous arrogant moderator would lock the thread. then some one else would start a thread called -Read that other thread….
can you tell that I am just now catching up - I have been working 12-14 hour days for the man ….