Ugly JoeDec 19, 2022
Jeff Jarvis
"Women, of every age, of every condition, contract and retain a taste for novels.... [T]he depravity is universal. My sight is every-where offended by these foolish, yet dangerous, books.... I have actually seen mothers, in miserable garrets, crying for the imaginary distress of an heroine, while their children were crying for bread."
The Sylph, No. 5, Oct. 6, 1795
#MoralPanic
Dec 19, 2022 at 3:33pmWeb
Show threadMeecheDec 19, 2022
@jeffjarvis The original “Things that did not happen”
Show threadStrappo HughesDec 19, 2022
@jeffjarvis the cultural mandarin always comes across like a censorious ass who fears everything new.
Show threadMr. Big John Dec 19, 2022
@jeffjarvis wow, I didn't know them Fifty Shades Of Gray books were that old.
Show threadAdministratorDec 19, 2022

@jeffjarvis "I have actually seen"

No, you haven't, you long-dead exaggerator, you. You saw no such thing.

Show threadhankDec 19, 2022
@jeffjarvis The history of moral panics is pretty absurd and reading about it has really altered my response to modern analogues (e.g. smartphones, the internet). It has also made me much warier of anyone hypothesizing the dangers or harms of some new thing - we are very, very bad at predicting the future, and so they mostly come across as an attempt to manipulate and control others, rather than as genuine concern.
Show threadJeff JarvisDec 19, 2022
@hankteford Glad to hear that because I'm working on a next book with that at its center.
Show threadMike | Raymond TecDec 19, 2022

@hankteford @jeffjarvis I agree with the spirit of what you're saying, in that a moral panic is a misnomer. I think it could, more accurately, be ascribed to being fearful of change.

I don't believe the majority of the people who set out to maintain the status quo do so with ill intent.

However, their resistance clashes with those who desire growth, thus forcing the resistant to become entrenched with a "This is bad. Everything is bad," attitude.

They're still oppressive dicks, though. 🤷

Show threadhankDec 19, 2022

@mike @jeffjarvis I am dubious of the idea that people who resist change are "forced" to become entrenched in their views.

I think that some people, faced with a change that makes them uncomfortable, and unable to point to a concrete pattern of harm, will attempt to frame that change as a symbol of a moral failure.

Because many moral codes are not based on an internally consistent ethical framework, it's an easy argument to make, and hard to refute.

Show threadMike | Raymond TecDec 19, 2022

@hankteford @jeffjarvis Forced was a poor word choice, I agree with you.

Making the resistant take on a defensive stance by willfully choosing to ignore reason, logic, or facts in favor of their "moral" codes would have been a better way to put it.

It still all comes down to being fearful of change, a lack of understanding, and usually a lack of empathy with a side of dehumanization/depersonalization.

Show threadhankDec 19, 2022

@mike @jeffjarvis I think we mostly agree on this topic, but your use of "making" seems to me like it is shifting responsibility away from people who are resisting change.

No one is compelled to ignore evidence and reason. They might make that choice from a place where they're emotionally compromised or ignorant or using motivated reasoning. But it is a choice and they are responsible for that choice.

I may be splitting hairs, though - I suspect that we're 99% in agreement overall.

Show threadMike | Raymond TecDec 20, 2022
@hankteford @jeffjarvis Correct. We are in agreement, as indicated by the fact that I explicitly stated “I agree.” In both cases you chose to “split hairs” about word choices and miss the overall point. Good on you for realizing it, though. Everyone, myself included, can use more of careful word choices and meaningful reflection. I hope you have a wonderful day and continue on your journey of self reflection and improvement!
Show threadKim ScheinbergDec 19, 2022
@jeffjarvis
"The picture puzzle is the worst epidemic that has happened to the American people since la grippe. Sooner or later puzzles come to every home to enslave it, upset it, and make a joke out of the clock. It is estimated that out of the 90m of us, 10m are suffering from puzzle pictures, 10m more are just coming down with them, and 10m more are convalescing and are beginning to take a weak, uncertain interest in theaters, baseball, and love once more."
Colliers on jigsaw puzzles, 1909
Show threadhankDec 19, 2022
@kims @jeffjarvis That feels like it *must* be satire, but it's probably just an example of Poe's Law. 🤦
Show threadakaFlamingogrrlDec 19, 2022
@kims @jeffjarvis   That would be me and my family, we just finished our 1st 1,000 piece puzzle and have our 2nd on order, arriving Wednesday LOL
Show threadBlock Me AmadeusDec 21, 2022
@jeffjarvis
Why was this guy in that Garret and not helping the starving kids?
Show threadJohn ShirleyDec 21, 2022
@jeffjarvis Evidently I need to write my books with more depravity and foolishness. They'll sell better.