05-15-2007, 08:28 PM
[quote trisho.][quote $tevie][quote Kiva]For those of you who wish to react to Falwell's anger and hatred w/ more hatred, I have this, by Frederick Buechner:
"Of the Seven Deadly Sins, anger is possibly the most fun. To lick your wounds, to smack your lips over grievances long past, to roll over your tongue the prospect of bitter confrontations still to come, to savor to the last toothsome morsel both the pain you are given and the pain you are giving back -- in many ways it is a feast fit for a king. The chief drawback is that what you are wolfing down is yourself. The skeleton at the feast is you."
Falwell was a man so full of fear. If you hate him right back, you're just as bad as he was.
kiva
I agree with you up to a point. But I don't think a moment or two of disrespect is nearly the equivalent of an entire lifetime spreading hate and fear. I doubt if anyone on this thread actively hates Falwell to the point of savoring to the last toothsome morsel. Well, except perhaps for chas_m.
Definitely agreed with $tevie. I didn't say I hated Falwell. I was saying I'm just glad he's finally dead. And Strom Thurman. Anger and Glee are two different sentiments.
I think you may be missing the point of the quote. To dance on somebody's grave does nobody any good but feed a part of you that doesn't need feeding. this is not to say that anger is something that isn't useful, at times...think of it as the 'fuel' that gets things going. But, when it starts influencing beyond that, it becomes a problem and, IMO, doesn't help anybody.
I feel empathy for a man who appeared to live such a miserable existence and even more empathy for all the people who submitted to his influence. We need to continue to speak out against such injustice and bigotry; I hear what you're saying about the "moment or two" not being equivalent to the anger Buechner refers to..that makes sense. but pissing on somebody's grave (chas_m ;-) or being happy they're dead - that's a bit different. I just don't see how that helps anybody.
Don't get me wrong....it takes a *lot* of effort for me not to say "rot in hell, you bastard"....but I just don't see how that helps. it just further propagates the very thing that made us so disgusted by the man in the first place.
good discussion...
kiva
"Of the Seven Deadly Sins, anger is possibly the most fun. To lick your wounds, to smack your lips over grievances long past, to roll over your tongue the prospect of bitter confrontations still to come, to savor to the last toothsome morsel both the pain you are given and the pain you are giving back -- in many ways it is a feast fit for a king. The chief drawback is that what you are wolfing down is yourself. The skeleton at the feast is you."
Falwell was a man so full of fear. If you hate him right back, you're just as bad as he was.
kiva
I agree with you up to a point. But I don't think a moment or two of disrespect is nearly the equivalent of an entire lifetime spreading hate and fear. I doubt if anyone on this thread actively hates Falwell to the point of savoring to the last toothsome morsel. Well, except perhaps for chas_m.
Definitely agreed with $tevie. I didn't say I hated Falwell. I was saying I'm just glad he's finally dead. And Strom Thurman. Anger and Glee are two different sentiments.
I think you may be missing the point of the quote. To dance on somebody's grave does nobody any good but feed a part of you that doesn't need feeding. this is not to say that anger is something that isn't useful, at times...think of it as the 'fuel' that gets things going. But, when it starts influencing beyond that, it becomes a problem and, IMO, doesn't help anybody.
I feel empathy for a man who appeared to live such a miserable existence and even more empathy for all the people who submitted to his influence. We need to continue to speak out against such injustice and bigotry; I hear what you're saying about the "moment or two" not being equivalent to the anger Buechner refers to..that makes sense. but pissing on somebody's grave (chas_m ;-) or being happy they're dead - that's a bit different. I just don't see how that helps anybody.
Don't get me wrong....it takes a *lot* of effort for me not to say "rot in hell, you bastard"....but I just don't see how that helps. it just further propagates the very thing that made us so disgusted by the man in the first place.
good discussion...
kiva