Everybody Loves a Comic.....or Not.

Some of you may remember the time I chose to keep my mouth shut instead of arguing with a disrespectful teenager. His status updates on Facebook became increasingly profane, and I was tired of reading them. But, rather than confront his ignorance and risk hurting the way he sees Christians, I simply removed him from my friends list quietly. (Well, quietly except for the post I wrote here.)

Today is a story of another Facebook issue...and a different response I chose: logic and a bit of humor. Turns out, if somebody actually is wrong, being witty makes that person even more angry than calling them names and possibly slapping their mother....Though, I've never slapped anyone's mother, so maybe I'll post again the third time this happens?

Anyway, here's the story. I have a handful of politically-outspoken acquaintances, and--for whatever reason--they tend to be Liberal-minded college freshmen. Read: I get along with most college freshmen. Even some Liberal-minded college freshmen. But few things are more irritating than a 19-year-old regurgitating his professor's lectures and NBC's headlines daily on your newsfeed.

Okay, continuing. Most of the time, I read whatever emotionally-charged propoganda is posted by one of these individuals, and move on with a roll of my eyes. Sometimes I blog about the reasons I disagree with their views. But, yesterday, I felt the need to ask, "Are you SERIOUS?" And I meant the question. "Seriously?!"

A young pup we'll call "Joe" posted a link to the Arizona shooting story and announced, "Looks like Sarah Palin got her wish."

Now, I'm not Sarah Palin's biggest fan. Maybe she just needs a new publicist. Actually, she probably was much more likable before she had publicists at all. But, her biggest issue is the same as mine: feeling the need to respond with a statement every time someone slanders her. As a result, she became the Conservative Lindsay Lohan--always ending up in the news with a family scandal, always on the defensive, and never sounding very smart.

At any rate, I agree with the critics who say Palin is not ready for Presidency. But, that's neither here nor there. I could not figure out, having read Joe's post, how even a punk kid who devours leftist ideas like cake at his 4th birthday (incidentally, not that long ago) could think Palin and the Arizona shootings had a link.

So, I asked: "Are you really suggesting that Palin wanted 6 people killed in Tuscon today? I mean, REALLY?" Just a few minutes later, I got a response, which I would quote if I could. (I'll explain why I can't later.) But, the paraphrased version is: Sarah Palin posted a map of the US on her website with the heading "Take back these seats in 2010" with crosshairs marking the House seats she wanted to see occupied by Republicans instead of Democrats. The representative shot in Tuscon (Gabby Giffords, Democrat) was marked on that list--with crosshairs above her district. Therefore, the "atmosphere of violence" Palin helped create makes her at least partially responsible for the shooting--"whether intended or not."

Well, I'd already involved myself, so I decided to offer my own take on the situation. I suggested anybody willing to kill in ANY capacity is out of his mind. Murderers are unstable at best and completely duranged at worst. You cannot blame any one person, on either side of the aisle, for the actions of a madman.

To drive the point home, I offered the classroom example I use a lot. If one of my students says, "Jack made me mad, so I hit him," I still hold the hitter solely responsible for the violence. Furthermore, I would be even less impressed if the student said, "Another person hates Jack, and so he drew a picture of me hitting Jack, which I found and interrpreted to mean I should hit Jack. So I hit him." I mean, I'd be impressed by a preschooler's use of the word "interrpreted," but I still wouldn't buy the rationalization that the artist of the picture is responsible for the crazy conclusions or violent actions of the Hitter. And I honestly couldn't believe that Joe wanted me to buy that in the Palin case.

I asked him if he holds the Quran responsible for terrorist attacks, too, since extremists routinely justify acts of violence using its text--and since Holy Books can be likened to moral "maps" like the one Palin used. Shouldn't we blame the Quran for creating the "atmosphere of violence" regardless of "whether it was intended or not?" Or should we agree that, whether its the priest who kills abortion doctors or crazies yelling "Allahu Akbar!"--only the psycho killer is responsible for the psycho killer's crime.

Joe mentioned something about the Quran being an ancient document, so it doesn't count...(?) And he agreed he won't blame Palin specifically until the Arizona gunman says "I saw her map and thought it meant 'shoot'". But, if the gunman DOES try that excuse, Palin is partly guilty. Period.

At this point, I was done with lengthy, logic-filled prose. And I decided to let him have the last word. In response, I simply would hide his future posts to prevent them from making my eyes bleed. But, I happened to scroll down his page and come across a note from another friend of his which I couldn't pass up. It read:

Dear Death,
We will exchange Dobby* for Justin Beiber*.
Sincerely,
The World

(*Dobby is a cute, elf character from Harry Potter, who almost teleports away from an enemy, but is stabbed fatally just before he disappears. Justin Beiber is a real-life popstar, adored by junior high girls and considered talentless and annoying by just about everyone else.)

I remembered my dad told me the best way to make a point sometimes is to use humor. So, I wrote:

"Careful, guys. You are creating an atmosphere of violence around Justin Beiber. And, whether you intend it or not, some lunatic could interrpret this to mean you want Justin dead. If Justin gets stabbed while trying to disapparate, you will be partly responsible."

hehehe. I still giggle thinking about this. Because, my dad also warned that a witty response is similar to the Bible's words about an act of kindness done for an enemy. You know, the whole "heap burning coal on their heads" thing? I knew the more clever I was, the more it would get under Joe's skin...

But I expected him to write back and tell me why my analogy--like the Quran one--didn't apply in this situation, and then I was going to drop it. Really! I would thank him for being the expert on "How to Assign Responsibility 101," and I'd promise to return next time I had trouble discerning the absurd from the rational. But I wasn't going to try and convince him he was wrong any more.

Unfortunately, Joe only wrote "act your age" on my wall.

And then he unfriended me.

Note to self: well-written arguments, example stories, and a jab at the end= immature.
Unfriending someone on Facebook= acting my age.

I guess I'll go back to that response next time (unless I decide to slap someone's mother).

But, here's a lesson in the meantime, Kids. Everybody loves a comic. Unless the comic makes too much sense.

UPDATE: Found this article interesting and applicable. "Many college students are found lacking critical thinking and reasoning skills..." and cannot resist being swayed by emotional testimonies.