Scholastics
Nov. 15th, 2006 01:48 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ciroccojQuick clip from school yesterday: Student A is striding down the hallway, looking concerned, as Student B approaches, somewhat upset. A looks more concerned, gives B a hug, gives B a comforting kiss and puts B's head on his shoulder, rubbing B's back and listening sympathetically as B starts to unload whatever the trouble is. Touching, but nothing out of the ordinary, except that A and B were both male. Neat :)
***
Classmate: So... do you see the Islamic world as a kind of monolithic threat?
Guest Speaker David Harris: I wouldn't be confident calling it a monolithic threat; I guess I would have to be Clintonesque and say it depends what you mean by monolithic...
***
Classmate: So you stopped Muslim Celebrity X from coming into Canada, because you said he was inciting hatred and was anti-Semitic, and I applaud you for that, but then you let Billy Graham come in. Same guy who called Islam a "wicked religion."
Harris: But he's just an ass.
***
Film: [Arabs blowing up things, going on killing sprees, cheering the Twin Towers falling, bombing London & Madrid, chanting Death To America, Death To Israel, etc etc...]
(Post-movie discussion)
Angry Young Cynic: This film doesn't even make sense. What does the school thing in Russia have to do with the Twin Towers? What does rioting in France have to do with Israeli bombs?
Harris: Well, that's the point of the movie. That we think of these things as unconnected, but they are all part of a pattern of Islamic Jihad all over the world.
Angry Young Cynic: But they're different people. In different parts of the world. They don't have anything to do with each other.
Harris: Maybe they are. Some people might say it's racist or narrowminded to lump them all together just because of their religion. But maybe we're being naive, for not connecting the dots and identifying the problem for what it is.
Angry Young Cynic: But they don't have anything to relate to each other. Other than being Muslim. They're different groups, fighting for different reasons.
Harris: Yes, they are, but the film points out that maybe we should be looking at what ties them all together. Now remember, the film says very clearly that most Muslims are peaceful and are good citizens of whatever nation they live in-
Angry Young Cynic: But then it puts together all of these different factions and says they're all the same. What do they have to do with each other? Nothing.
(Rinse, lather, repeat)
(I start to tune out their conversation and make one up in my head)
Me: You know, none of us have to agree with the message of the movie. But when you refuse to understand what it's supposed to be about... you may think you're being so very virtuous that your mind can't even make sense of the racist message, but you don't sound virtuous. You sound a little dim.
Angry Young Cynic: But I don't understand the point. I really don't.
Me: Stop being disingenous.
Angry Young Cynic: I'm not being dis-in-gin... um...
Me: Disingenous. Pretending to not understand.
Angry Young Cynic: I'm not pretending!
Me: Then maybe you really are a little dim.
(Briefly tuning back into the conversation)
Angry Young Cynic: (Stubbornly) But the situations don't have anything to do with-
Me: OK, let's get rid of the 'maybe' in that sentence.
***
Prof: (Discusses "improper inducements" in getting evidence, including promising a lesser sentence if an accused confesses)
Classmate: OK... you know somebody was gonna ask this at some point in the year... but you know Law & Order?
Prof: (Smiles) Ah yes, of course. The Law & Order question.
Classmate: So... do you see the Islamic world as a kind of monolithic threat?
Guest Speaker David Harris: I wouldn't be confident calling it a monolithic threat; I guess I would have to be Clintonesque and say it depends what you mean by monolithic...
Classmate: So you stopped Muslim Celebrity X from coming into Canada, because you said he was inciting hatred and was anti-Semitic, and I applaud you for that, but then you let Billy Graham come in. Same guy who called Islam a "wicked religion."
Harris: But he's just an ass.
Film: [Arabs blowing up things, going on killing sprees, cheering the Twin Towers falling, bombing London & Madrid, chanting Death To America, Death To Israel, etc etc...]
(Post-movie discussion)
Angry Young Cynic: This film doesn't even make sense. What does the school thing in Russia have to do with the Twin Towers? What does rioting in France have to do with Israeli bombs?
Harris: Well, that's the point of the movie. That we think of these things as unconnected, but they are all part of a pattern of Islamic Jihad all over the world.
Angry Young Cynic: But they're different people. In different parts of the world. They don't have anything to do with each other.
Harris: Maybe they are. Some people might say it's racist or narrowminded to lump them all together just because of their religion. But maybe we're being naive, for not connecting the dots and identifying the problem for what it is.
Angry Young Cynic: But they don't have anything to relate to each other. Other than being Muslim. They're different groups, fighting for different reasons.
Harris: Yes, they are, but the film points out that maybe we should be looking at what ties them all together. Now remember, the film says very clearly that most Muslims are peaceful and are good citizens of whatever nation they live in-
Angry Young Cynic: But then it puts together all of these different factions and says they're all the same. What do they have to do with each other? Nothing.
(Rinse, lather, repeat)
(I start to tune out their conversation and make one up in my head)
Me: You know, none of us have to agree with the message of the movie. But when you refuse to understand what it's supposed to be about... you may think you're being so very virtuous that your mind can't even make sense of the racist message, but you don't sound virtuous. You sound a little dim.
Angry Young Cynic: But I don't understand the point. I really don't.
Me: Stop being disingenous.
Angry Young Cynic: I'm not being dis-in-gin... um...
Me: Disingenous. Pretending to not understand.
Angry Young Cynic: I'm not pretending!
Me: Then maybe you really are a little dim.
(Briefly tuning back into the conversation)
Angry Young Cynic: (Stubbornly) But the situations don't have anything to do with-
Me: OK, let's get rid of the 'maybe' in that sentence.
Prof: (Discusses "improper inducements" in getting evidence, including promising a lesser sentence if an accused confesses)
Classmate: OK... you know somebody was gonna ask this at some point in the year... but you know Law & Order?
Prof: (Smiles) Ah yes, of course. The Law & Order question.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2006-11-15 07:06 pm (UTC)ROFLOL!~!!!
I enjoyed reading this entry a lot. :-)
no subject
Date: 2006-11-16 12:28 am (UTC)Heh - I enjoyed being in the class, actually - although I coulda done without the Angry Young Cynic's ranting, as per usual. But it was actually a really neat class. Our guest speaker was really well-spoken and intelligent, and it was really cool having a dialogue with somebody who was coming at the topic from a totally different (and, for most of us, opposing) perspective.
Plus he had a good sense of humour :)
no subject
Date: 2006-11-15 07:11 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-11-16 12:29 am (UTC)Yeah... you gotta give him that, he is true to what he believes. I just wish what he believes weren't so
stupidmisguided so much of the time.no subject
Date: 2006-11-15 07:13 pm (UTC)Angry Young Cynic should probably be Angry Young Dim Cynic.
The first segment was very sweet. Awww.
no subject
Date: 2006-11-16 12:32 am (UTC)I gave a little fangirly squee
Angry Young Cynic should probably be Angry Young Dim Cynic.
AYDC, for short ;)
The first segment was very sweet. Awww.
It was. And they were both so (outwardly, at least) totally unself-conscious about it.
no subject
Date: 2006-11-15 07:24 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-11-16 12:33 am (UTC)LOL yeah, I've thought that a few times, reading your lj :) :)
Seriously. I have arguments with people like this in my head all of the time :\
Hey, it passes the time and can at least provide amusement during otherwise tedious time spent listening to them, right?
no subject
Date: 2006-11-15 10:25 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-11-16 12:39 am (UTC)Oh dear... I can't remember, now that I think of it!
I think the question he eventually asked was, Why is it that on Law & Order, cops tell suspects all the time that if they confess now, the cops will put in a good word with the DA and the DA will give them a reduced sentence? By Canadian law, you're not allowed to do that. But L&O is based in New York, where either it's OK to do that, or the law has been interpreted to mean that as long as you don't outright promise that they'll get a better deal it's OK to lead the suspect to believe that they'll get favourable treatment. And since that's the way it works out anyway (suspects who confess get favourable treatment) nobody challenges what the cops said to get the confession.
I think. I may be totally misremembering. And I'm feeling rather grateful right now that we are unlikely to have to answer a L&O question on our exam ;)
no subject
Date: 2006-11-16 06:28 pm (UTC)