tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post2955531713845260567..comments2023-10-15T04:23:50.187-04:00Comments on College Misery: Safety pins?Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger50125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-53574465545508880462016-11-16T20:41:30.351-05:002016-11-16T20:41:30.351-05:00That this became a rallying cry for how awful Trum...That this became a rallying cry for how awful Trump is (and it did), and that the main focus the incident was always on mocking a disabled person, made those inclined to vote for Trump ---those disenfranchised middle class voters who felt ignored for years until Trump came along----it allowed "them" to focus on how "unfair" it was not to look at Trump's history of doing Bellahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15686242633678466958noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-86692319289506612072016-11-16T20:30:41.394-05:002016-11-16T20:30:41.394-05:00That this became a rallying cry for how awful Trum...That this became a rallying cry for how awful Trump is (and it did), and that the main focus the incident was always on mocking a disabled person, made those inclined to vote for Trump ---those disenfranchised middle class voters who felt ignored for years until Trump came along----it allowed "them" to focus on how "unfair" it was not to look at Trump's history of doing Bellahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15686242633678466958noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-87157029878933840202016-11-16T20:06:50.055-05:002016-11-16T20:06:50.055-05:00We could also unify together based not on politica...We could also unify together based not on political party, but on inner character, basic human kindness. Believe me, I am certainly not speaking for liberals or democrats when I say that. <br /><br />The thing is, crazily enough, some people just don't see it the way we do (and I am actually a "we" to both AM and GLG, their feelings are where my heart goes). But I passionately Bellahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15686242633678466958noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-66222505056324673012016-11-15T16:02:52.888-05:002016-11-15T16:02:52.888-05:00Ogre Proctor Help, I am hoping that I will eventua...Ogre Proctor Help, I am hoping that I will eventually get to the point of forgiveness. Right now, though, I'm nowhere near forgiving people who deliberately voted to undermine the civil rights -- and human dignity -- of millions of their compatriots. <br /><br />For now, I am embracing my new mantra, stolen straight from PIL's "Rise": anger is an energy.Great Lakes Gretahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08101613060478193833noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-37458861897235772402016-11-15T15:24:28.655-05:002016-11-15T15:24:28.655-05:00I'm trying to forgive the assholes who apparen...I'm trying to forgive the assholes who apparently were quicker than I to forgive the most famous asshole of his overt assholery. I want to get back to when I could believe that I was the only asshole. That was a planet I could deal with, a planet I could improve by being less of an asshole. But this planet... this planet is 2/3 covered in water, and I can raise the tide to lift all boats onlyOgre Proctor Hephttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17428431147495287413noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-75219786069517176732016-11-15T15:00:59.612-05:002016-11-15T15:00:59.612-05:00I hear you loud and clear, Academic Monkey. I cer...I hear you loud and clear, Academic Monkey. I certainly feel a lot less safe than I did a week ago. <br /><br />And I don't see wearing a safety pin as "virtue signaling," as others have suggested. I know people personally who have been physically assaulted in the name of hatred in the last six days and others whose property has been damaged -- and, yes, all with overt referencesGreat Lakes Gretahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08101613060478193833noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-90257846665126300742016-11-15T14:47:43.297-05:002016-11-15T14:47:43.297-05:00It's a statement I stand by. Anyone who openl...It's a statement I stand by. Anyone who openly mocked the disabled is, in my book, an asshole -- so anyone who voted for someone who would do that is as well. Likewise, anyone who voted for someone who brags about sexually assaulting women is, in my book, an asshole, as is anyone who voted for someone who wants to vilify every person of a specific religious persuasion. Doesn't mean Great Lakes Gretahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08101613060478193833noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-73015991108135455032016-11-15T11:18:30.659-05:002016-11-15T11:18:30.659-05:00*Voted for, not voted in -- although I suppose the...*Voted for, not voted in -- although I suppose they both work. Great Lakes Gretahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08101613060478193833noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-26645045523246678652016-11-15T11:17:12.579-05:002016-11-15T11:17:12.579-05:00I'm wearing one. My non-academic hetero male ...I'm wearing one. My non-academic hetero male life partner is also. In fact, he was the one who brought it up in conversation. I had already decided to do this without saying anything to him -- in the past, he has declared some gestures of protest "meaningless" -- but he is completely on board for showing people that not everyone's an asshole. I do love him. <br /><br />Not Great Lakes Gretahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08101613060478193833noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-59784562615340429742016-11-15T11:14:15.845-05:002016-11-15T11:14:15.845-05:00Exactly, Middle-Aged and Morose. Anyone who wants...Exactly, Middle-Aged and Morose. Anyone who wants to be dismissive of me now in any way can tea-partying bite me. One thing this election has taught me is that I have spent way too much time thinking about what other people think of me and my motives. Tea party them all.Great Lakes Gretahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08101613060478193833noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-61100198617486167772016-11-15T00:06:09.036-05:002016-11-15T00:06:09.036-05:00....
I don't even understand your argument.
.......<br /><br />I don't even understand your argument.<br /><br />Those of us who are people of color and LGBTQ certainly seem pretty united about this while we watch white people wring their hands over it.<br /><br />Fine. Don't show any sense of community. Continue to wring your hands.<br /><br />It's what Democrats do. They defeat themselves.Academic Monkeyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07086078244493768565noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-5360708099590968082016-11-14T14:39:27.811-05:002016-11-14T14:39:27.811-05:00I don't believe the pin signals that either, a...<br>I don't believe the pin signals that either, as I tried to explain earlier in comments lower down this page. I've also been a big-city-dweller almost my entire adult life, and as such certainly don't advocate that anyone disable the 911 feature on their mobile or engage in vigilantism; on average, we are far safer with police presence, and there are practical and legal limitationsOgre Proctor Hephttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17428431147495287413noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-84959502611067564212016-11-14T09:37:27.319-05:002016-11-14T09:37:27.319-05:00one of my students came up to me after my 8:00 am ...one of my students came up to me after my 8:00 am class and quietly thanked me for wearing it. <br /><br />Context is important I agreeMiddle-Aged and Morosehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04046076243513948921noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-66709664627331189912016-11-14T08:18:34.777-05:002016-11-14T08:18:34.777-05:00I don't have any teeth!
Actually, I do, but I...I don't have any teeth!<br /><br />Actually, I do, but I'm not kinky like that.<br /><br />I think it is neither silly nor useless. <br /><br />Like Cassandra said, it seems context is very important. I know that in certain contexts, it does more harm than good.Bellahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15686242633678466958noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-39314661287232639342016-11-14T07:44:10.990-05:002016-11-14T07:44:10.990-05:00I am wearing one. if you think it's silly or u...I am wearing one. if you think it's silly or useless: bite me! Some of my students are SCARED and if they see the pin and know they can come to me to talk about their fear, or to report harassment, then great. it did its job. Middle-Aged and Morosehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04046076243513948921noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-55126568624067745332016-11-14T03:37:04.000-05:002016-11-14T03:37:04.000-05:00I understand what you are saying and I am so glad ...I understand what you are saying and I am so glad this has been a comfort to you. If I thought it would cause only comfort of this kind, I'd be all for it. <br /><br />But not everyone feels as you do, even those who could possibly be targets of abuse (as Cassandra pointed out). And there are many who take our stated need for the pins to be a statement saying that they will be going aroundBellahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15686242633678466958noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-10734277655762347742016-11-13T22:16:33.702-05:002016-11-13T22:16:33.702-05:00My feeling is this: being surrounded by people don...My feeling is this: being surrounded by people donning safety pins -- as I have for the past week at plays, on trains, at the doctors office, and at work -- has made me feel safer and more comfortable in an otherwise devastating and difficult situation.<br /><br />I also think we tend to do ourselves a disservice by tearing things down that are designed to be positive. Let's focus on the manyAcademic Monkeyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07086078244493768565noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-78331456785191922462016-11-13T20:24:05.134-05:002016-11-13T20:24:05.134-05:00I've seen a few people post what I believe are...I've seen a few people post what I believe are the pins that keep grenades from firing to twitter. I wouldn't be quite sure how to interpret that one (other than to check the ground for a live grenade, on the off chance that the whole thing was hanging on the lapel a second ago). On the analogical level, it might be all too apt a symbol. Contingent Cassandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08161652083031423415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-47701319191888043812016-11-13T20:21:14.381-05:002016-11-13T20:21:14.381-05:00I'm still trying to think through the possible...I'm still trying to think through the possible parallels between current electoral politics and current internal higher ed politics. The closest I've come to a conclusion is that my precarious (though not all that precarious) position in the academy, and the fact that I played by the rules as I understood them and didn't end up where I expected, makes me understand the "blow it Contingent Cassandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08161652083031423415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-16493592785608174222016-11-13T20:09:14.520-05:002016-11-13T20:09:14.520-05:00I'll be seen wearing a firing pin for an AR-15...I'll be seen wearing a firing pin for an AR-15.Bigengineerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03601652410895080191noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-91948138858999975122016-11-13T18:32:29.953-05:002016-11-13T18:32:29.953-05:00I don't suppose anyone would see the funny sid...I don't suppose anyone would see the funny side of a Prince Albert remark first thing on a Monday morning, would they?EC1https://www.blogger.com/profile/13414931249618049097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-214487797903281202016-11-13T13:20:44.256-05:002016-11-13T13:20:44.256-05:00I think this is important and worth following up o...I think this is important and worth following up on. It seems like there's a lot of "how could you?" directed (mostly, in my observation) at those whose votes (or lack thereof) led Trump to victory. It helps to remember that people are multidimensional and really can't be sorted just by who they vote for. (Well, they technically can, but the resulting groups are far from Ogre Proctor Hephttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17428431147495287413noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-90718387704297953772016-11-13T10:35:35.442-05:002016-11-13T10:35:35.442-05:00I think the administration at my uni has figured t...I think the administration at my uni has figured this out. Keep the faculty at each other's throats and, for a while, they're too distracted to rail against the continued administrative expansion.Ogre Proctor Hephttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17428431147495287413noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-74058954364673778612016-11-13T08:52:07.756-05:002016-11-13T08:52:07.756-05:00That last paragraph, I fear, is all too accurate (...That last paragraph, I fear, is all too accurate (and if this election convinces at least one party to pay actual, practical attention to the plight of the working class, then it will have accomplished something positive. It will almost certainly take a while, but that's one thing for which we can hope). Contingent Cassandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08161652083031423415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-20124696655103294192016-11-13T08:49:37.085-05:002016-11-13T08:49:37.085-05:00You bring up an important point, Bella: context ma...You bring up an important point, Bella: context matters. One thing I didn't say in my initial post, because it was getting long enough, is that I'd be thinking a bit differently about the possibility of wearing a pin if I thought a significant number of my students had voted for Trump (and that I'd therefore possibly be sending the message that they are therefore, by definition, Contingent Cassandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08161652083031423415noreply@blogger.com