So who died and made you ALL-KNOWING?

"That which we cannot speak of we must pass over in silence"

-Ludwig Wittgenstein

So I generally surround myself with people who think before they speak, know what they are talking about, and/or are at least interested in expanding their knowledge when they do not. Accordingly, I have recently discovered that I am particularly annoyed by ignorant people, especially those who verbalize their ignorant thoughts. I mean, to the extent that one has not experienced or researched (or, ideally, both) to a substantial extent reasonable evidence for one’s views on an issue, one should…um…not speak on that issue. How hard is it, really, to remove one’s self from a conversation simply by not speaking?

I swear, when it comes to issues of sexuality, poverty, race, religion, politics, and other people’s business, people seem to find it entirely appropriate to just blurt out unfounded statements. What’s worse, some people will argue their point with you until you either agree to disagree or just give in to them…! Honestly, this has happened on several occasions, when I knew I was right, knew the other person was wrong, knew that he/she had no premise for their argument, or all three.

I think this realization has emerged by way of my recent involvement in Act on Racism. There have been so many situations during which a white girl whose “best friend” is black (whose name, by the way, she cannot seem to recall), so she believes that she is an expert on the black experience in America. Then, there’s the unlearned individual who talks about “Asian culture” (as if there is just one culture for an entire race of people) based on the waitress at the Chinese food place around the corner, the woman that does his sister’s nails, and/or the really smart Korean dude from his high school who was adopted. But wait, there is more.

Interestingly, people in general enjoy discussing sexuality as if they understand it. Actually, this is a whole other post, so I will discuss it in depth later. Just keep this in mind: the next time you decide to elaborate on what you think you know about the “nature” (or lack thereof) of homosexuality, just know that you or any of us could be homosexuals. In fact, sexuality exists on a continuum—gay at one end and straight at the other—and a very small minority of us falls on either end; most of us are somewhere in the middle. And yes, indeed I have researched this using a more scholarly source than Google.

PLEASE do not misunderstand me; I realize that people create ideas about the world based on their personal experience, what they have seen. I am aware that an image that is in line with one’s preexisting schema is more powerful than an image that contradicts that schema (what is that called again?). I understand that there are sound arguments for and against most topics of discussion. These I know. Yet, what bothers me is when people’s arguments are not sound; when they will not consider that that schema was erroneously constructed; that they could be wrong because their social network is homogeneous in terms of race, sexuality, socioeconomic status, religion, culture, and/or politics; because they have learned everything about these issues from the media, their parents, and friends. And then, they talk about it, as if they know. it. all.

So, in the event that you are interested in maintaining your personal legitimacy during a conversation with me, refer to this general rule of thumb: if you must first question yourself about whether or not you know what you are talking about before you speak, look into it, ask someone who knows, or just don’t speak.

thanks, bye.