June 20, 2010

Taste for mobbing

While yet again struggling with putting up reasonable posts here reasonably regularly, let me offer these lines:

"Those who savage me and my article from behind anonymous Internet tags emulate the cowardice, dishonesty, and taste for mobbing of the Nazi thinker they revere. It has often been that way with dupes who defend Heidegger - an abysmal thinker and writer, an immoral monster, and a disgrace to the historic enterprise of philosophy."

That's Carlin Romano, responding to anonymous criticism of an article he wrote criticising Martin Heidegger. He's quoted by Jeffrey R. Di Leo here: In Praise of Tough Criticism.

Di Leo continues:

Whether or not one agrees with Romano's views of Heidegger, his take on anonymity is worth thinking about. Anonymity has more in common with cowardice than with courage—and is antithetical to critical dialogue.

Food for thought, perhaps, for various anonymouses on these pages. Or maybe not. With anonymouses, who can tell?

(Thanks, N, for the link to Di Leo's article).

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Talk about ad hominem.

By allowing anonymous comments (like this one) one, as a journalist,
is open to using them in one's publication or blog.

Disparaging remarks about anonymous contributoRs are the worst form of journalism. The remarks, disparaging or otherwise, should address the contributioNs instead.

Not all anonymous contributors need be "cowardly". Nor all outspoken tenured professors need be "brave":).

Jai_C said...

Dilip,

Just turn off anon commenting? Ppl like me can log in and WP/LJ/etc. can use OpenID perhaps. Seems to work well on nanopolitan.

Sadly, we will lose the wisdom of the Chandrus but we will have to survive somehow :-)

thanks,
Jai

Dilip D'Souza said...

No, I'm not interested in turning off anonymous comments. I have no problem with people who want to remain anonymous for some reason or another - until they choose to use that anonymity only to fling abuse about.

Jai_C said...

Ok... but if there is a mechanism to downvote comments, esp anon comments that would be useful too. Below some level the comments wouldnt even show up unless retrieved with clicks.

LJ and some other platforms seem to have it, but I guess Blogger doesnt :-(

thx,
Jai

Ketan said...

Dilip,

I think, even with turning off of anonymous comments, there's margin to remain anonymous, and that's by assuming a pseudonym. It'll ensure consistency in expression of ideas without revealing the identity of the person.

Anonymous said...

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/2010/07/07/2010-07-07_cnn_fires_octavia_nasr_for_twitter_post_praising_hezbollah_terrorist_says_credib.html

Perhaps she (Octavia Nasr) should have done her twitter anonymously? What are your thoughts dcubed?