[Reader-list] Lists and assaults

[Jeebesh Bagchi]

Thanks Rana for beginning a reflective thread.

This is probably a rare instance in the list, when a big "event" is  
not the center of discussion. List usually does well with "big  
events", as it ensures, that many drop in a few lines about what they  
feel, or what they oppose or what can be done etc. A kind of public  
positioning. (Beslan was an exception)

But in this instance it was about our ordinary ideas of how we think  
our belonging, our social practices and ways of being with others.  
Unfortunately it became too narrowly 'indo-centric" and thinking  
about suffering became rhetorical. If this list can produce some  
serious thought on "suffering" and "being with others' - and how we  
deal with it in our ordinary life, it may contribute to our  
intellectual life in a substantial way.

For me, the last few weeks have made me wonder, as to how far a  
thought can travel if it gets tied to polemics and self-righteous  
indignation. The loads of personal and historical material that has  
come to this list in this weeks is amazing, and i hope that those  
survive and does not get buried in the after taste of polemics and  
condemnation.

Will think about your point on disgust.

warmly
jeebesh

On 08-Sep-07, at 4:30 PM, Rana Dasgupta wrote:

> It's been an interesting few weeks on this list.  Some might say  
> "We've
> never had it so good" - since there have been far more posts, with far
> more responses, than usual.
>
> Others might feel that this has been the Reader-list's lowest ever  
> point
> - its usual solemn tone and good opinions giving way to a running
> sit-com of ad feminam assaults.
>
> Given the seriousness of some of the issues at stake, and the enormous
> gulfs of understanding between some of the contributors, I have to say
> I've admired the restraint of many of the writers on the list.  People
> have held themselves back from expressing outright disgust, or from
> violent attacks.
>
> It seems that there's a sense that one can't say just anything.  Or if
> one did, it would erode the fabric of the list.  People have to  
> balance
> their own irritation or repugnance with a desire to uphold the
> hospitality and vitality of the list.
>
> I think this says something very positive about the culture of a list.
>
>
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