nan | 楠木

I am not a chatty person by nature, I think. In real life I like talking to people, but that does not mean I am attracted to the act of chatting itself. I think it would be more appropriate to say that I like communicating with others, regardless of the physical form of the process itself.

But that’s straying from the topic, I guess. Though I am yet to announce my topic.

I am lucky to be of one the generation of spoiled brats who grew up with the internet (though I might be even luckier if I am only growing up now, but that’s another issue for another day). I began using, or to be more precise, enjoying, the internet back in junior high. I got my six-digit oicq (now qq) number in grade one in high school (which doesn’t mean a lot, except that I’ve been lucky not to have been robbed of it with all the hacking going on).

Anyway, I think I first became attracted to forums and bbs back in my high school days. The first real forum that I went to was probably a games forum. There I first had a taste the manner in which people talk on the net. It’s amazing–and also ironic, so to speak– how normally gentle people who wouldn’t even dare raise their voice in a discussion can be so tenacious in this virtual reality. I bet a lot of the famous debaters on the net have a totally different image in real life.

I don’t know if this is good or bad, or frankly, if this is a problem in the first place. Just a curious observation, if you will. People have diverse appearences; it’s only natural that a person is different in different circumstances. And since the consequences of expressing your views directly and often offendingly is much milder on the net than in real life, why not be a angry and outspoken voice? After all, it’s the idea that matters, not the language, and if we only go into chat rooms to blindly appease others, what’s the point of it all?

But there is another side of that coin. Expressing your ideas boldly and directly does not equal being rude and ignorant. Too many times have I seen some fellow surfers (even some fellow THU students, sadly, which is a disgrace to us all) just bark out words like “sb” without the least respect to others. Yes he might have insulted your intelligence, but if you’re only able to come up with a reply like the afore-mentioned, then I would have to say you don’t have much of a intelligence anywise. Swearing in dirty words is the stupidest form; insulting others without one dirty word would be much better.

No, I am not encouraging verbal abuse. On the contrary, I make it a rule not to personally insult anyone, whether in real life or in this virtual world. Call me weak if you like. I’ve always believed that you can only gain the respect of others if you respect them in the first place. Call me old school if you will. I have always enjoyed the fact that I have many many friends, that I’m a easy-going person who can fit in in any group of people, and I think the reason for this is that I do have respect for others.

But enough with this self-appraisal already! Back to my little debate. On top of the afore-mentioned type of surfers who swear and insult their own intelligence, there is the kind of know-it-all surfer who likes to bash ignorant new comers who doesn’t know to DIY but instead always asks the same stupid questions. Yes it is indeed boring if you’re a frequent visitor of a discussion board that there are always ignorant and obtuse people who come in the board probably once in a life time to ask a really really silly question, like “who is XXX?”, XXX being the most famous celebrity in your specific board. Yes it is very annoying. But think of our education system, or any education system. What do they do? They do the exact thing we hate– teaching the same, boring, information that you think every person with a normal I.Q. should know to one group of ignorant people after another. Do teachers ever moan that they have the stupidest job in the world? No! So be kind and share the wealth, if you know the answer to a silly question that’s been asked hundreds of times, speak out.

This most of us can do, and will do, I think. But we can further our discussion a bit. Sometimes these ignorant new comers come up with something even sillier: their own opinion on a matter you happen to know a lot. Yes, their opinion is probably not only stupid but insulting. And unfortunately yes, a lot of the know-it-all elites turn to sarcism and mocking instead of a decent discussion based on mutual-respect. What a shame. You might have gained some sense of achievement in your distasteful words, but you’ve also once again showed your ignorance. Trully great men never makes fun of others, except probably for a harmless joke which is not meant for abuse. Again, I think people should just speak out their opinions honestly and respectfully, which is far more constructive at the end of the day then just finding delight in abusive phrases.

I think I’ve gone far enough in this, far enough to have shown a lot of my own arrogance and ignorance. Which is totally unintentional, I would like to say, but that’s just me. Anyway, I just wanted to speak out– as I’ve emphasized so many times in this unmeaningful array of words– my opinion on some of the things I’ve come across. I mean no offence to anyone, and I’d be more than willing to have discussions, on the grounds of mutual respect.

Yes, I guess that’s what I’ve been talking about, respect.