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From: James Souttar <ancient@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
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Date: Wed, 20 Sep 1995 11:25:55 +0100
John Young writes:
> But it was more importantly posted to challenge the
> all-to-common Net plea for "civility" in discourse which
> customarily cloaks the urge to dominate.
What evidence is there to suggest that "civility" in discourse really
does cloak the urge to dominate? I'm talking here about *real*
empirical evidence, and not the pontifications of some PoMo theorist.
All the anecdotal evidence seems to suggest that the opposite is in
fact the case - that many people feel undermined and threatened when
their arguments are rebutted by responses on a 'fuck you' level of
communication. Looking at *failed* virtual communities, the
degeneration of discourse into the loud-mouthing of inarticulate
obscenities is a common denominator.
James