I agree here. Not having an opinion is just how badness continues to
flourish.
For example the rise of the Nazis was largely facilitated by the large number
of people who just didn’t have any opinion on atrocities as long as they had a
strong government and well functioning infrastructure.
--srs
On Sun, Sep 15, 2019 at 11:15 PM +0530, "Nishant Shah" <itsnish...@gmail.com>
wrote:
My only 2 cents to that would be to consider the following:
1. Not having an opinion about something that is a crisis in your 'field'
is a state of privilege. If you are removed from it, are not directly
affected by it, and do not have to take that opinion, it is fine, but then
for those who do get embroiled in this case, let them also have their
opinions.
2. Not having an opinion does not mean neutrality. It means that you will
not state your opinion, but it is good to make sure it doesn't become
weaponized against the people who are affected by these situations. Not
having an opinion doesn't mean continued work and relationships with those
who have been accused of abuse. It does not mean absolution from
responsibility.
3. Having an informed opinion is not the same thing as having an informed
stand-point. In unfolding cases like these, it is feasible to have a
differed understanding, and not engaging in instant meaning making and
opining, but sometimes inaction is betrayal, and even in ill-informed
situations, especially if you hold influential positions, your standpoint
has to be clear, even if you have no comments on the incident at hand.
Ok, more than 2 cents, but I have seen this 'no opinion' used as a defense
by enablers (not directly pointing fingers at anybody on the list or
thread) and has the danger of silencing those who dare to protest and call
out.
Warmly,
Nishant
On Sun, Sep 15, 2019 at 2:07 PM Udhay Shankar N wrote:
> I saw this line from silklister Heather Madrone on another list, and it got
> me thinking (shared with Heather's permission):
>
> > I have no opinion on Ito and MIT and the Media Lab. I'm not
> > interested in doing the work to develop a considered view of that
> situation.
>
> Setting aside the specifics of the Media Lab clusterfuck, this is a
> remarkably concise way of conveying that
>
> 1) It takes *work* to build enough perspective to have an informed opinion
> about something;
> 2) Having an informed opinion is a good thing; and
> 3) Not having an opinion is OK if one can't have an informed opinion.
>
> Thoughts?
>
> Udhay
>
> --
>
> ((Udhay Shankar N)) ((udhay @ pobox.com)) ((www.digeratus.com))
>
--
Dr. Nishant Shah (Ph.D.)
Vice-President Research, ArtEZ University of the Arts, The Netherlands.
Visiting Professor, Leuphana University, Germany.
https://nishantshah.online
