[ILUG-Social] Re: [ILUG] Package dependencies

[Rick Moen]

Quoting Jeremy Smyth (jer at online.ie):

> I partially blame cultural differences, and partially other
> personality issues.

That's possible.  But one problem with that theory is that I'm not
particularly American.  (I'm a USA citizen, having been born here, but
was spent most of my young life abroad, and in fact suffer frequent 
culture shock.)

And, actually, I tend to hear complaints locally that I argue like a
Frenchman.  That is, they don't like that I ruthlessly pursue the
factual point and ignore attempts to digress into personalities.
Because I assume the latter to lack interest among the readership of
public forums.

> An example from the same mail follows:
> 
>> For the record, my surname has two syllables, with stress on the first
> ...
>> I try hard not to mangle other people's names, and my wife is even
> 
> Hmmm. Correcting Herr Kate's pronunciation "mistake" - which was clearly a
> pun - while claiming the moral high-ground. Not that there's anything wrong
> with this per se, just it's not the way of the group. We tend to be a
> self-deprecating bunch of alpha-males generally, if that's not a complete
> oxymoron.

Well, you see, it would lack _class_ to (avoidably) call attention to
the fact that making weak "puns" out of surnames of people you dislike
is an embarrassingly self-indulgent schoolyard tantrum tactic.  So, I
try not to do that, but rather _adopt_ (but NOT "claim") the moral high
ground, and count on people with some semblance of taste to notice the
contrast in conduct.

Ordinarily, I would not diagram that for you, but in effect, you _did_
ask.  And, sir, the aforementioned approach isn't the least bit
American:  My fellow Yanks generally lack the sutlety.  Rather, I'd 
say it was more East Asian:  I was raised mostly in Hong Kong, you see.

> Anyway, back to the cultural thing, to which I apportion most of the blame.
> This sub-thread has come up before (usually with the word "killfile" in
> close conjunction to a particular name) reminds me of an interview Dunphy
> had with Robert Fisk and Alan Dershowitz (can't find a transcript online
> unfortunately). 

Oh dear.  You couldn't possibly find someone with a different personal 
style than yr. humble servant and Prof. Dershowitz.  I've seldom seen
such a melodramatic fellow.

Please, to the extent I partake of American culture, do recall that 
it's _Scandinavian_-American culture.  I would be mortified if anyone in
my family carried on like that.

Nor, may I point out, have I ever done so on either of your group's
mailing lists.  Nor would I.

Nor am I going the habit of bragging to the public about my killfile. 
Although I recommend their use as an aid to civility, I can't imagine 
why the contents of mine would be of general interest.

I also make a habit of hospitality to foreigners on my mailing lists,
and don't go out of my way to deliberately, for example, call them
_nationally inclined_ to behave like emotionally labile children.  If
nothing else, there would be the problem of situational irony....

I've once or twice been obliged to apologise for the outbursts of
countrymen who did such things.  But it's been very rare.

-- 
Cheers,   The difference between common sense and paranoia is that common sense
Rick Moen     is thinking everyone is out to get you.  That's normal; they are.
rick at linuxmafia.com      Paranoia is thinking they're conspiring.  -- J. Kegler