I am not quite sure whether it is me or the people I come in contact with and/or read, but there seems to be a discrepancy concerning how important concise communication is to our existence. It can literally be a matter of life or death. For example, it is not okay for your doctor to write the wrong prescription for you because she/he thought that the pharmacist "knows what he or she means." Likewise it is not okay for your brother's attorney to place incorrect terminology in his motion for appeal. It is not okay for your chef to use baking soda in lieu of baking powder. Why then has it become okay for everyday language to lose its meaning in the name of being polite or using your brain power to "know what I" mean?
It has become apparent, to me, that the bond between person and her/his word has become irrelevant. To ask for clarification is now seen as the vocation of the asshole. I am often seen as a nitpicker because I want people to own their words...to be mindful of what they are saying. What I mean by mindful is to give some serious thought to your audience and how they will perceive and react to your words. You must not be vague in your speech, if you are, your actions and thus your results will be inconclusive. This is evidenced by the many ways laws and contracts are written. Politicians and attorneys draw up laws and contracts in such a way as to leave loopholes for some people to be helped and others to be harmed.
This is only possible in a society that is not bonded to its word. When we speak the word [not biblical] it must have a concise meaning. I will give you an example of my vocation as an asshole. A friend of mine recently asked me, in reference to a barbershop dispute he had, "Who is the best point guard in the [NBA]?" My response was by what criteria do we determine the best. My friend wanted me to just answer the question, but I was incapable. I cannot answer a question that has no basis to be answered. To answer would be to give my opinion, but he did not want my opinion; no, he wanted either my support or to explain why my choice was not the best. You see, there was a whole verbal game that needed to be played in order to end up nowhere. There were a dozen of other ways he could have inquired into my opinion of who the best point guard is, like, "In your opinion..." But he didn't. Not because he lacks the mental capacity to do so, because he lacks the the care or the need to.
As I finish this post, I am unsure whether or not I am being too much of a stickler or maybe I am clinging on to the last defense we have against injustice. As I see it, without a critique of the word, its intentions, and implications we are bound, not only to accept endless barbershop quarrels, but we will invariably elect leaders (political, religious, etc.) that speak with the proverbial forked tongue. Why? because they could have meant something else... and this is precisely my point...word is bond yo!
None More Blind than those who refuse to dialogue.
It has become apparent, to me, that the bond between person and her/his word has become irrelevant. To ask for clarification is now seen as the vocation of the asshole. I am often seen as a nitpicker because I want people to own their words...to be mindful of what they are saying. What I mean by mindful is to give some serious thought to your audience and how they will perceive and react to your words. You must not be vague in your speech, if you are, your actions and thus your results will be inconclusive. This is evidenced by the many ways laws and contracts are written. Politicians and attorneys draw up laws and contracts in such a way as to leave loopholes for some people to be helped and others to be harmed.
This is only possible in a society that is not bonded to its word. When we speak the word [not biblical] it must have a concise meaning. I will give you an example of my vocation as an asshole. A friend of mine recently asked me, in reference to a barbershop dispute he had, "Who is the best point guard in the [NBA]?" My response was by what criteria do we determine the best. My friend wanted me to just answer the question, but I was incapable. I cannot answer a question that has no basis to be answered. To answer would be to give my opinion, but he did not want my opinion; no, he wanted either my support or to explain why my choice was not the best. You see, there was a whole verbal game that needed to be played in order to end up nowhere. There were a dozen of other ways he could have inquired into my opinion of who the best point guard is, like, "In your opinion..." But he didn't. Not because he lacks the mental capacity to do so, because he lacks the the care or the need to.
As I finish this post, I am unsure whether or not I am being too much of a stickler or maybe I am clinging on to the last defense we have against injustice. As I see it, without a critique of the word, its intentions, and implications we are bound, not only to accept endless barbershop quarrels, but we will invariably elect leaders (political, religious, etc.) that speak with the proverbial forked tongue. Why? because they could have meant something else... and this is precisely my point...word is bond yo!
None More Blind than those who refuse to dialogue.
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