Friends:
Personally, David's posts don't offend me, but I can see, on an
objective level, why they might others. Different people, from
different parts of the world and different parts of the country, with
different ages and backgrounds, have different patterns to the way they
speak English; this seems like an obvious statement, but it's much more
obvious on the net than in person. We get little visual clues from
people in person that we don't get in a typewritten form, and that can
cause confusion a lot of times. I come from Ireland; even in person,
I've had a lot of Americans give me really strange looks for what passes
for humour on the Emerald Isle. We have apparently a sort of flat,
deadpan way of making jokes that Americans don't get sometimes.
Northeasterners have a kind of 'in your face' way of making jokes that
sets people off sometimes. Brits have a sense of humour that most people
consider dessicated, outside of Old Blighty.
Personally, I'd use the rule of assuming anything offensive you see is a
joke, until firmly proven otherwise. That's what I was taught was good
manners, back when I was a lad. Lighten up and just ignore anything you
don't like. I've never yet seen anyone hurt by a computer post. Fence
posts are another matter entirely.
Corey
75 MGB 'Rags'
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