IMOS.org.uk

Thoughts from the

Broken Society

Warning: Many people would consider this book to be deeply offensive!

Wrong

  Many measures to restrict freedom, especially those that are purported to prevent discrimination, basically come down to an argument of, 'because it's clearly wrong.'
  'Yes, but why shouldn't this woman be allowed to stop gay couples staying in her guesthouse?'
  'Because it's wrong' comes the reply.
  'Why not allow this person the right to speak his mind?'
  'Because what he says is clearly wrong.' comes the reply.
  Because they're wrong? What the fuck sort of sense does that make? It's got nothing to do with whether they are right and wrong in what they say. It's a simple matter of free speech.
  If you stop people doing or saying things just because they are 'wrong,' then some person or body has to have the job of deciding what is right and allowed and what is wrong and not allowed - and then you have a police state.
  Freedom is the right to be wrong. Freedom of speech must include the right to say something that is wrong - or else it isn't freedom of speech. Freedom should mean the freedom to be racist and to express racist opinions. It should mean the right to be sexist and express sexist opinions.
  The freedom to say anything at all, other than what the state says you can't say, isn't freedom. Stopping a person from doing or saying certain things is sometimes justifiable when that person, by their actions, impinges on the freedom of others - but it's got absolutely bugger all to do with whether they are right or wrong. The right to be wrong is one of the most important freedoms of all.

Dummy

  There was this mother in the park and she had a small child with a dummy in its mouth. A 'dummy' is what we Brits call a pacifier. I say he was a small child, but he was certainly way too old to have a dummy. I said to the child, in earshot of his mother, "You know you've got something stuck in your mouth?"
  The mother took the attitude; 'Well you're not the one who has to put up with the screaming tantrum that results whenever the dummy is taken away.' I pointed out that you'd only have to go through that, at most, once - unless, of course, you were so monumentally unwise as to give the dummy back. I also pointed out the link to smoking and to obesity later in life, probably caused because the child gets used to having something constantly in his mouth.
  There was no response to the points I made - as the mother refused to comprehend what it didn't want to have to face up to. It didn't have the capacity to change its behaviour on the basis of a logical argument.
  In the case of most people, they may possibly change their ways under the weight of popular opinion or expectational pressure from their peer group, but one person talking sense to them won't make a blind bit of difference in itself.

Careful of Language

  I fucking hate it when people say, "We must be careful of the language we use here!" whenever a discussion is opened on any remotely controversial subject.
  Why? Why must we be so careful? Perhaps not saying something in a hyper-sensitive way might set in motion the end of the world!
  By all means, we ought to be careful to speak in actual English and to be precise in our use of English, so that people can understand our exact meaning, but that's generally not what people are referring to when they say, "We must be careful of the language we use here."
  What they mean is that the use of particular words might offend people because the use of those particular words in a particular context is deemed unacceptable according to the laws of political-correctness. They mean that we should pander to those people who want to jump up and shout down opinions they don't like by hiding behind the excuse that they are offended by the words that are being used. Conveniently, this can mean any words associated with any side of the argument that they don't happen to agree with and wish to censor.
  Yet, if someone is such a fucking idiot that they are simply looking for things to take offence over whenever someone doesn't entirely share their narrow-minded opinions, that should be their fucking problem. Pandering to this behaviour won't help - it'll make things worse.
  I'd like to show some of these people how careful I can be with language: "You are a stupid, fucking cunt!" There, I said exactly what I wanted to say!

Integrity

  What does it mean to have 'integrity'? It's a word that's still used - often, ironically, by politicians describing themselves. Everyone seems to know that it is supposed to be a positive attribute, but do people really know or care what it means?
  To have integrity is supposed to mean that all your words and your actions are consistent with each other and are governed by a single, non-contradictory set of principles and values. It means you say what you think and that you act accordingly. It means that the principles you espouse to believe in are the principles you follow through your actions. It means you don't say one thing and do something else. It means you don't say one thing to one person and tell a different story to someone else. It means you stick to your values in all situations instead of going along with whatever 'values' happen to be convenient for you to follow at a particular time. It means you don't change what you say and how you act according to how popular your opinions are amongst the people you are with.
  No wonder people don't want to face up to what integrity actually means - since, in practice, our modern society frequently despises integrity. It doesn't like people who are honest and speak their mind - such behaviour might hurt people's feelings. It doesn't appreciate consistency - it prefers that you bend in whatever direction public opinion happens to be leaning towards at the time.
  Despite society's professed admiration for integrity, it is actually only the word itself that is thought of in a positive light. Integrity itself and anyone who actually exhibits genuine integrity are barely tolerated, let alone appreciated. Yet, of all the problems in our society, a great many arise out of the widespread lack of integrity amongst our population in general and amongst our politicians in particular.

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