tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1396682199178122530.post4833527190677741581..comments2023-12-28T22:22:42.307-08:00Comments on Nobody In Particular: The Soft Zen of Low ExpectationsAaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128359303310478673noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1396682199178122530.post-47708768564564287262011-01-20T14:57:27.959-08:002011-01-20T14:57:27.959-08:00My point wasn't simply to tell people that you...My point wasn't simply to tell people that you were angry. And I didn't mean to point that out as a criticism. I'm not sure that I expressed it well, but my point was that you have <i>expectations</i> of people, and it angers you at times when people don't live up to those expectations. I lack anger at people because I lack expectations of them. You can't be disappointed in people when you don't expect anything from them in the first place.<br /><br />But not expecting anything from people can either be dealing with reality, or a quiet way of reveling in one's one perceived superiority. And honestly, I'm starting to suspect that I'm on the wrong side of that divide.<br /><br />You're right. Anger isn't a virtue. But I suspect that smugness, and pride that it stems from, is even less so.Aaronhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03128359303310478673noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1396682199178122530.post-17234862206483483142011-01-19T07:41:50.489-08:002011-01-19T07:41:50.489-08:00I'm not sure anger is a virtue.
More specific...I'm not sure anger is a virtue.<br /><br />More specifically, I don't think angry <i>writing</i> is good writing.<br /><br />As the blogosphere has evolved, I've found myself moving away from blogs like InstaPundit and Andrew Sullivan that offer rapid-fire reactions to today's news. Those tend not to offer me much besides knowing what the blogger like and doesn't like.<br /><br />If the main takeaway from my post is, "Boy, John sure is pissed off about this," then nobody's really learned anything. If instead, it's "John makes a good point," or "I hadn't considered that," then I may have added value.<br /><br />So, I think your observation that my post came off as angry is a valid criticism, that my "Well, I <i>am</i> angry" response doesn't adequately address.<br /><br />That being said, I think that anger can be a justifiable response to any number of things going on. But we need to channel that into something more than just letting the world (or my dozen or so readers) that I'm angry.JohnMcGhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07476537916134121570noreply@blogger.com