None of us is as dumb as all of us.
Originally Posted on August 4th, 2007
Up until a few months ago, I had no idea we had such an abundance of knowledgeable people in the Peoria area. Why, not too long ago one of them announced to the world that their logic was infallible. Another claimed he was able to debunk any opinion or argument that he disagreed with. That is just knock-your-socks-off impressive, if you ask me. I’ve heard a number of claims in my time, but it takes real cojones to say that everyone is wrong but you.
The Peoria Journal Star has been called many things over the years, but since they’ve implemented the commenting system on their news articles, we can add another one: an intellectual haven. Yes, the degree to which we’ve progressed as a society since its inception has been astounding–dare I say, we’ve entered a new age of enlightenment.
Before long, we’ll pick up a newspaper and be greeted by the headline “PJStar.com Peanut Gallery Solves Poverty!” or “PJStar.com Users Fix Everything, EVER!!!” Before I became a regular visitor to that site, I had no idea that the problem behind every social ill was because of Democrats, Republicans, liberals, white people and black people. I also learned, through the various contributions of family members of criminals or people under criminal investigation, that the person charged with the crime is always innocent, always a good person, and was always right in the middle of turning their life around. In retrospect, now that I’ve been infused with the wisdom of these local savants, it all makes sense.
I’ve even opted to throw my hat into the ring at considerable length from time to time; a fact which I intend to vehemently deny later in life. My piddly contributions, all of which were debunked or logically impossible according to the smartest of the bunch, are nowhere near the caliber of excellence commonly contributed by the smart masses. We ought to be ashamed of ourselves for daring to question these people. They know it all, we don’t.
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Some of you have known me to go into long diatribes on PJStar.com. While I stick by most of what I’ve said, it doesn’t excuse the fact that I was senseless enough to be roped into it in the first place. I assure you, I’m ashamed of every contribution I’ve made. For days I’ve been googling psychiatric help for “addiction to redundant stupidity.” If any of you wish to refer me to someone, my gratitude is yours.
Don’t get me wrong. Healthy debate is great. Of all the freedoms I enjoy, the ability to share and discuss ideas is near the top of the list. It’s good that Peoria now has a place to provide feedback in a quick, modern and visible (albeit, knee-jerk) fashion. My hat is off to Jerry Smith who diligently monitors the boards to ensure things don’t get too out of hand. I also appreciate his openness and bluntness when dealing with the aforementioned “savants” and their accusations that the “evil, liberal Journal Star” is conspiring to silence their views, some of whom believe it’s their god-given right to post them there.
That being said, the amount of garbage that people contribute is simply harrowing. Whenever there’s a crime, particularly in the problem-prone areas of the city, there is always an overwhelming response. Every time, there are six sides that partake. The first group is the “can’t we all just get along” group. These are the ones who, whenever race is mentioned, reflexively drone on about how it doesn’t matter what color our skin is, we’re all human, we’re all Americans, we’re all equal, etc. While they’re right on a basic level, one portion is simply trying to keep the peace while the other is mindlessly parroting what has been fed to them. Their intentions are good, but they are in the minority.
The second group is similar to the first group in that they’re not overtly bigoted or malicious, but they are willing to talk about race as a topic without breaking out into a crescendo of white/black supremacism nor finger-wagging and judgmental sermons while holding hands and singing “We Are the World.” This group is also in the minority.
The third group is usually the least represented–the ones who leave comments on the article instead of, as much as I loathe referring to it as such, “debating” with the others.
The fourth portion, often as outspoken as the groups to follow, cries racism at everything. “This article is racist!” “No, you’re the racist” “Everybody here is a racist! (except me)” They are white, they are black, they are everything inbetween. They, as a group, contribute the least to the discussion, in my opinion.
The fifth and sixth groups can be summed up as follows: it’s the blacks’ fault or it’s the whites’ fault, respectively. These two make up the largest subsection of responders when these articles appear. The Journal Star staff have gone so far as not to even mention the race of the person in question when writing their articles, but it does no good. Much to the chagrin of those involved, Mr. Smith will often disable comments on the article and be done with it. I can’t say I blame him.
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Some of you will read this and say,”reno, you damn hypocrite! You contribute to the various debacles on PJStar.com as much as the people you’re complaining about!” To that, I concede on principle: it is true, to an extent. Overall, I think I’ve done more good than evil, but I personally think it came to a peak this week when I helped contribute to the complete derailing of discussion concerning the inspection of Illinois bridges. I wasn’t the only one, of course, but I couldn’t leave it alone. It was a slow day and my fingers were aching for something to do. So to preempt the hecklers I will lead by example and STFU a bit. My sense of trolling has limits, you know.
Rodney King is often misquoted as asking,”Can’t we all just get along?” To the esteemed mavens who’ve been sharing their enlightenment with the rest of us through PJStar.com, I ask,”Can’t we all just shut up?”