I occasionally touch on somewhat sensitive matters here...moral, ethical, religious, personal matters. It is not uncommon for the angle of my writing to have a tone of exhortation, as if "I" am telling "you" what to think or do. The natural feeling then in receiving these words may be that I feel I know more than you or have experienced more than you or have more authority than you.
On the contrary, it is probably quite safe to assume that I actually know less, have experienced less, and am in no way authoritative on whatever the topic is.
What I have here at this blog is simply a tool for expression of thought. So the "I" and "you" is mostly internal. The title of this site is "A Piece of Mike Terrell's Mind" and you should read my writing with that perspective...that you are getting a glimpse of what "I" tell myself. If I used the title, "From My Pulpit to Your Pew" then you could take a different view of my writing.
I think that Neuroscience will one day prove that the human brain actually has a little command center inside with micro-computers and a tiny little person sitting in there processing and analyzing data and telling us how to act based on his assessment of the world cross-referenced with a variety of life goals. Meanwhile, let's pretend that is true and my blog is mostly a conversation between me and that tiny person in my head.
If that's what this blog is, there is no need for you to write to me complaining that because I am a complete jerk in real life, I shouldn't blog about people needing to be nice and respectful. The obvious fact is that the tiny little man in my little command center sometimes gives me direction that I fail to follow. It's called being a hypocrite. Believe me, I really am an authority on this particular issue!
Let's try the most common example where I know with certainty that I have failed on many occasions in real life. I would know exactly what to do and what to say if I were writing about it, whereas in real life, I screw up: How do I deal with the variety of people I encounter in the world? It's easy to be nice when everyone does just what I want them to do. But how do I handle generally disrespectful, cynical, and intolerant bullies? How do I handle careless, thoughtless boobs? How do I handle people who represent the "other" point of view? I am someone who wants to say that there is a way of being respectful and gracious even in situations where you feel strong disagreement or possess an honestly low opinion of someone. But while I may say that with words, my actual real-life behavior can sometimes be marked by impatience and disdain as (I somehow rationalize in the moment) such is "deserved" by the other person. I say to myself, I'm just giving people a dose of their own medicine. But this is not okay, okay?
If, in one example, the other person is being a jerk, it is not okay for me to behave in such a way that an onlooker would not be able to detect who the real jerk is. If, in another example, the other person is being stupid, it is not okay for me to be impatient and rude because "they should know better." It is not an excuse for me to act outside of what I know to be "better" just because another person seems to be acting in a "wrong" way.
It is also not okay for me to acknowledge this on my blog and think that this blog entry somehow takes me off the hook. I have to actually take what I learn about myself and make real-life adjustments.
On the contrary, it is probably quite safe to assume that I actually know less, have experienced less, and am in no way authoritative on whatever the topic is.
What I have here at this blog is simply a tool for expression of thought. So the "I" and "you" is mostly internal. The title of this site is "A Piece of Mike Terrell's Mind" and you should read my writing with that perspective...that you are getting a glimpse of what "I" tell myself. If I used the title, "From My Pulpit to Your Pew" then you could take a different view of my writing.
I think that Neuroscience will one day prove that the human brain actually has a little command center inside with micro-computers and a tiny little person sitting in there processing and analyzing data and telling us how to act based on his assessment of the world cross-referenced with a variety of life goals. Meanwhile, let's pretend that is true and my blog is mostly a conversation between me and that tiny person in my head.
If that's what this blog is, there is no need for you to write to me complaining that because I am a complete jerk in real life, I shouldn't blog about people needing to be nice and respectful. The obvious fact is that the tiny little man in my little command center sometimes gives me direction that I fail to follow. It's called being a hypocrite. Believe me, I really am an authority on this particular issue!
Let's try the most common example where I know with certainty that I have failed on many occasions in real life. I would know exactly what to do and what to say if I were writing about it, whereas in real life, I screw up: How do I deal with the variety of people I encounter in the world? It's easy to be nice when everyone does just what I want them to do. But how do I handle generally disrespectful, cynical, and intolerant bullies? How do I handle careless, thoughtless boobs? How do I handle people who represent the "other" point of view? I am someone who wants to say that there is a way of being respectful and gracious even in situations where you feel strong disagreement or possess an honestly low opinion of someone. But while I may say that with words, my actual real-life behavior can sometimes be marked by impatience and disdain as (I somehow rationalize in the moment) such is "deserved" by the other person. I say to myself, I'm just giving people a dose of their own medicine. But this is not okay, okay?
If, in one example, the other person is being a jerk, it is not okay for me to behave in such a way that an onlooker would not be able to detect who the real jerk is. If, in another example, the other person is being stupid, it is not okay for me to be impatient and rude because "they should know better." It is not an excuse for me to act outside of what I know to be "better" just because another person seems to be acting in a "wrong" way.
It is also not okay for me to acknowledge this on my blog and think that this blog entry somehow takes me off the hook. I have to actually take what I learn about myself and make real-life adjustments.
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