Confessions of A Naughty Girl

And Now, A Public Service Announcement Regarding Taking Swings

People think arguments are bad. Why? I would argue that a meaningful, intelligently-argued debate is essential to progressive growth. To evolution. Everything we see in this life has stemmed from a good debate. Our political structure, our family structure...hell, the f*cking highway infrastructure would cease to exist as we know it without any sort of discussion. I'm sure that somewhere along the line, your parents argued whether or not they'd do it in the bedroom or the gas station. I'm sure Lewis and Clark bitched back and forth about who got to hold the compass. It's a natural thing, and it's not always bad.

Recently, my earlier "No One Likes Getting Smacked With A Dick" post was critiqued on the ModishMeN blog. The post was dated November 14th and titled, "It Takes Balls To Defend A Dick". (Yes, we should all get points for the clever post titles.) I would highly encourage anyone who is interested and hasn't read it to check it out - both in post and in comments. The debate was sparked by a mutual reader, and, to the ModishMeN's credit, they took the challenge and ran with it. And of course I was a little defensive. Who wouldn't be? When you write about something that you are passionate about - no matter how foolish the vernacular, or silly the metaphors - you're bound to feel a little territorial when someone does their best to rip it to shreds. No one likes to believe that their arguments are unfounded, or worse, wrong altogether. So obviously, in defense of my writing (and because I just can't keep my f*cking mouth shut), I responded. And then the wheels really fell off the bus.

Now, because I happen to know the ModishMeN personally, it became pretty difficult at a certain point not to bring the personal into the argument. Naturally, if someone says something in a way that you feel may be reflective of something you feel may pertain to them personally, your first inclination is to attack. But the key to a healthy argument is to stick to the issues and not to stray - not only because I would bet that most people don't want to intentionally hurt other people's feelings - but also because resorting to personal attacks makes your argument that much weaker. I don't think that anyone should ever be scared or intimidated to say what they mean, and mean what they say. People may not always agree with you, but in speaking up for yourself, you will earn their respect. And respect matters, it really does.

So with a few slipups aside, I feel that there were some great perspectives in that post - from all sides. I mean, it's 11 pm on a Tuesday, and I'm spent.

To conclude, I would encourage anyone who reads this or any other blog to question what's being written. Think about what someone's posted. Challenge it. Take a f*cking swing. I would recommend against personal swings, because not only could that get ugly, but it also reflects rather poorly on your discourse. Speak intelligently, and with conviction. It's a good habit to get into. Because if you don't stand up for your ass, no one else will.

posted by KA @ 10:03 PM