Comic Discussion > QUESTIONABLE CONTENT
WCDT Strips 3551 to 3555 (21st to 25th August 2017)
Shjade:
Well, for one, it's unlikely your privilege only has an impact on one other person in the world, so even if you think the person addressing you about the issue is rude and someone you have no reason to respect or care about, what they're saying is probably still true and relevant to other people you do deign to care about and, therefore, is worth considering on a larger scale.
For two, May's an asshole. Of course, a fair amount of the time, assholes act the way they do to cover their own issues - we've all got 'em - and while that isn't an excuse for their behavior, it's worth understanding where they're coming from to get past that (as Dale did in their initial interactions...eventually...with great patience). It's messed up to be rude to everyone who isn't in your circle of exceptions ("NICE LIST DOT TEE EX TEE"), but hey, some people are messed up. That doesn't mean "lie down and take it," but you can't expect everyone to strictly adhere to a set list of social expectations, either.
That's not saying "if you don't hang out with them anyway you're an intolerant jerk," either, 'cause no. It's saying, "shit's complicated."
castn:
--- Quote from: Emperor Norton on 23 Aug 2017, 16:50 ---How is the default manner you treat people being rude not messed up?
How can we want anyone to care about our struggles, how can we demand people care about anyone who isn't like them when we don't care enough about anyone who isn't in our friend bubble to treat them with respect?
You talk about calling people on their privilege, but why should they care how it impacts you if you clearly don't care how what you do impacts them?B
--- End quote ---
Does someone have to be polite to you, for you to care about them being discriminated against? Being rude or being a douchebag... yeah that's bad manners. But privilege is different, privilege is the disparity between someone who is and someone who isn't being routinely shat on by a system from which you benefit. Rudeness is micro, person-to-person. Privilege is macro, occurring between demographics.
idk maybe it's just how I feel about rudeness in general. It's horrible but it's not as bad as actual discrimination, and it doesn't disqualify the individual nor the entire demographic from being treated as a human being by systemic forces (government, societal standards, etc).
Emperor Norton:
I never said that it didn't make sense for them to do. But they are doing it out of damage, not out of a moral right.
It isn't "OK" to by default treat everyone rude. Yes, some people do, and it can be complicated, especially if they have a past that caused that kind of attitude, but to say it is morally fine is going beyond saying "I understand" it is saying "I condone it."
I can understand some people are acerbic because of circumstances that happened to them. But that doesn't mean I think it is OK for them to also damage others. Abusers usually have abuse in their past. That doesn't make the abuse OK, even if it does make it understandable.
We should have compassion for people. Wanting something from them (friendship), should not be the reason we care about their feelings. Empathy, even for people we don't know, should be the norm.
Emperor Norton:
--- Quote from: castn on 23 Aug 2017, 17:04 ---idk maybe it's just how I feel about rudeness in general. It's horrible but it's not as bad as actual discrimination, and it doesn't disqualify the individual nor the entire demographic from being treated as a human being by systemic forces (government, societal standards, etc).
--- End quote ---
Of course it doesn't! But I also don't subscribe to a mindset that "if they aren't my friends it doesn't matter if I hurt their feelings". Which is a dangerous mindset. That is the mindset that says that your bubble matters, the other doesn't.
And that belief that my actions should be designed around the idea that everyone's feelings matter is WHY I care about discrimination.
EDIT: To clarify, I mean 'hurt their feelings through being rude/mean'. Some people get their feelings hurt just by being told that hey, they're wrong about something, or perhaps a bit ignorant about something. I can't protect them from that, they have to learn somehow. But I can be not an ass while I help them through it.
DannyboyTheDane:
Reading a bit ahead from May's introduction arc, I stumbled upon this strip from when Claire got her ears pierced:
http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2540
A funny little parallel.
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