Please don't take anything I'm about to say as anything other than my own
view, and as one friendly denizen to another, and for the sake of List
Harmony.
John wrote:
> No - but I had eight years of competitive debate in school.
That seems to explain an awful lot.
Brin-L isn't a competition.
If you treated Brin-L as light-hearted banter instead of a Serious Debate,
we'd all get along way easier, John.
I know I sometimes (often... usually...) babble, and make a lot of flippant
remarks, but I am still genuinely interested in learning stuff from others,
and everyone here has plenty to offer. We're primarily here to discuss Brin,
and I respect your efforts with the current Glory Season critique, even
though I can't contribute (by reason of my copy being in a box 2500 miles
away...).
We're a group of vastly diverse opinions and attitudes, but until a year
ago, we managed to get along OK, even the most serious discussion seemed to
go along swimmingly.
It's all down to attitude. We're here to learn from each other, not win
debates. I'd be a lot happier to sit and admit when I'm wrong (which isn't
infrequent), if I felt that we were all friends, not adversaries. We all
have views. Us from the greener pleasanter side of The Pond tend to have
very very different views on... um... everything to our North American pals.
These aren't necessarily Right or Wrong, they just are opinions, and we're
coloured by our upbringings as much as you are.
So can we please go back to basics on Brin-L, and assume the best of people
and not the worst, and treat Brin-L as a friendly chat about whatever?
Yes, we have a place for serious debate, long factual posts, everything.
However, let's just remember the essential spirit of Brin-L: IAAMOAC. We're
on the same side, we all want roughly the same things (a bright future and
security for humanity), even if we don't agree about the best way to get
there.
Cheers.
Charli5
