Re: The amazing Dr. Smith (was Re: Active case-marking natlangs)

And Rosta <a.rosta@...> writes:

> Joerg -- what you describe Marcus's argumentation as being like
> sounds like ordinary constructive and productive academic discourse,
> at least within the world of anglosaxon linguistics.
It is a pity that academic discourse is conducted that way (not only in
linguistics).  In fact, it was one of the reasons I forsook an academic
career (it wasn't in linguistics, though).

>       It sounds
> like Marcus is trying to enquire into the nature of active languages,
> not attack you. He could have just agreed to differ, so as to
> placate you, but he persisted because he wanted to find the right
> answer.
I have understood that.  He is following an approach I do not subscribe
to, and uses definitions that, to me, fail to make sense, but I am not
going to elaborate on that here.  It is his opinion; mine is different.
This fruitless debate only deserves to be retired.

> (That said, I've enjoyed the passion and intemperance of your recent
> tirades, though I felt your assertion that conlangers were responsible
> for A*******z a bit too extreme for even my tastes, even though it was
> clearly too laughable to be taken seriously.)
This was a general (and admittedly overdone) comment on people who keep
silent on even the most outrageous, murderous proposals.  I just find it
alarming when grossly inhumane ideas (which was as what I understood
Brian Phillips's post) are just taken for granted, and no-one bothers
raising his voice against them.  One of the reasons why the Third Reich
and the Shoah could happen was that too many people didn't say anything
about the barking mad ideas of the Nazis as long as there was still time
to discuss them (i.e., before they got into power).  This is the way
such things started.

Of course, I never claimed that it were *conlangers* who were
responsible for it.  It was just that I observed (or rather, believed to
observe) the same kind of behaviour that made the Nazi regime possible
among the people on this list.  With "people like you" I referred to the
kind of people who keep silent on such madness.  I admit that I did it
for shock value.  One sometimes must speak a harsh word in order to
alert people.

If someone here feels offended by my statement, I apologize for it.

Jörg.