The Off Topic Topic

[katmai]

Oh so he is still hiring? Good.

You guys are doing a remarkably bad job entertaining me today 

yeah talked to him last night.

[DGuller]

It's good that he's not dead.  But he left Languish, so he's dead to me. 

[Valmy]

Maybe he will be back! 

[Ideologue]

What's her point?

"Your question is a class-based microaggression".

But it's a really dumb point, because often even really poor people have been to Europe.

Sometimes even people with five, six hundred dollar strollers.

[Valmy]

That was a microagression against Malthus.

[Ideologue]

Macro.

[Barrister]

Spicy's photos illustrate "microaggressions" which is a thing. The first is a race microaggression (like no, where are you REALLY from) and the second a class microaggression. The sort of stuff that fuels Languish, really.

http://www.microaggressions.com/

B, it's not that we've been living under a rock and are unfamiliar with the term "micro-aggressions".  It's just that I at least don't think it's at all a useful concept.

[Valmy]

It is a useful concept for studying society I think. How biases are expressed subconsciously.

[Barrister]

It is a useful concept for studying society I think. How biases are expressed subconsciously.

Analyzing subconscious biases is useful, I agree.  And there are some biases at work in some of the questions (e.g. Where are you from really).

But what gets me is taking offence at questions that are clearly coming from an honest lack of knowledge.  Take the "where are you from" questions - knowing how people relate, where they come from (in all sense of the word) is an important part of how humans relate to each other.  So instead of taking offence, take it as a chance to explain and describe yourself (e.g. No, really, I'm born and raised in Toledo.  My grandparents came from Myanmar however.  So what's your heritage?).

[Valmy]

But what gets me is taking offence at questions that are clearly coming from an honest lack of knowledge.  Take the "where are you from" questions - knowing how people relate, where they come from (in all sense of the word) is an important part of how humans relate to each other.  So instead of taking offence, take it as a chance to explain and describe yourself (e.g. No, really, I'm born and raised in Toledo.  My grandparents came from Myanmar however.  So what's your heritage?).

This I agree with. But what makes it bad is when asking a question like this gets you labelled a monster. Then the mob forms.

[lustindarkness]

It is a useful concept for studying society I think. How biases are expressed subconsciously.

Analyzing subconscious biases is useful, I agree.  And there are some biases at work in some of the questions (e.g. Where are you from really).

But what gets me is taking offence at questions that are clearly coming from an honest lack of knowledge.  Take the "where are you from" questions - knowing how people relate, where they come from (in all sense of the word) is an important part of how humans relate to each other.  So instead of taking offence, take it as a chance to explain and describe yourself (e.g. No, really, I'm born and raised in Toledo.  My grandparents came from Myanmar however.  So what's your heritage?).

I had no idea you were from Toledo.

[Barrister]

It is a useful concept for studying society I think. How biases are expressed subconsciously.

Analyzing subconscious biases is useful, I agree.  And there are some biases at work in some of the questions (e.g. Where are you from really).

But what gets me is taking offence at questions that are clearly coming from an honest lack of knowledge.  Take the "where are you from" questions - knowing how people relate, where they come from (in all sense of the word) is an important part of how humans relate to each other.  So instead of taking offence, take it as a chance to explain and describe yourself (e.g. No, really, I'm born and raised in Toledo.  My grandparents came from Myanmar however.  So what's your heritage?).

I had no idea you were from Toledo.

You never asked.

[lustindarkness]

[Malthus]

Sometimes even people with five, six hundred dollar strollers.

Well, there's poor, and then there's destitute. 

[Malthus]

It is a useful concept for studying society I think. How biases are expressed subconsciously.

Analyzing subconscious biases is useful, I agree.  And there are some biases at work in some of the questions (e.g. Where are you from really).

But what gets me is taking offence at questions that are clearly coming from an honest lack of knowledge.  Take the "where are you from" questions - knowing how people relate, where they come from (in all sense of the word) is an important part of how humans relate to each other.  So instead of taking offence, take it as a chance to explain and describe yourself (e.g. No, really, I'm born and raised in Toledo.  My grandparents came from Myanmar however.  So what's your heritage?).

The wonderful thing about micro-aggressions is that you can always find them if you want to.

Take the "have you been to Europe" question. If you asked other people that question, but deliberately refrained from asking little miss poverty, is that "considerate" (because poor people never travel, evidently), or is it really a "micro-aggression" (because you are assuming without asking that poors never travel, and so would be embarrased by the question)?   

Ask or don't ask, either could be an offensive display of assumptions!