[cputnal]

Hi everyone -

Not being one to avoid controversy (ahem..), I've been thinking for the last day or so about the various speedchat phrases at our disposal, both the standard ones, and the ones available in special circumstances (say, in the CEO).

Phrases that deal with the action the person has taken seem to me to be quite different than those that attack the person doing the action. In my discussions with my kids, I frequently remind them that being critical of someone's actions is different than being critical of them - that what someone is doing might be bad (at that time), but that you can't categorically say that the person is bad.

We have a number of phrases that can be percieved situationally as an attack one the person's character, ie:

"You Stink"
"Are you new here?"
"Please go away"

However, I would argue that we have other phrases that quite clearly address a behavior that just occured, and, depending on the situation, are useful and often appropriate:

"Please save the snacks for the sadder toons."
"Stop that!"
"That wasn't nice"

In these phrases, the reference isn't to who a person is, it is to what they are doing. Now this may seem like a very fine distinction. However, it is a quite important one, I believe. If someone repeatedly uses a lvl one gag on lvl 12 cogs, saying "Stop that!" "You should use a different gag" seems quite appropriate to me. Saying "Are you new here?" on the other hand, doesn't impel them to a different behavior, it only is critical of the person behind the toon.

In a recent post, the OP explained the actions of a kid who was, well, perhaps over indulging on the snack table in the CEO. I wasn't there, so I can't judge the degree of indulgence. Apparently, this toon was then hit with many "You Stink" "Please go away" phrases. I would argue that those were uncalled for, as they attack the person.

However, I would equally argue that saying someone who had said "Stop that" or "That wasn't nice" would be saying valid things, in an attempt to change the behavior of the person.

We can't be all cotton candy and sweetness, nor should we be all vinegar and salt. Is the differentiation I've discussed valid and useful in how we attempt to guide our fellow toons?

I know that there are those who will want us to always simply try to lead by example, rather than through discourse/SpeedChat, and while I agree that setting a good example is certainly an excellent way to guide behavior, in addition to leading, sometimes you need to push from behind as well, through the words we have at our disposal to use.

Just a few thoughts for your comment and conversation.....

Craig