There are things I might say when I'm drunk - perhaps ranting about leftist "envy" driving their politics - that I don't say sober and don't really believe sober. They're statements about my emotional reaction to things, not my rational take. They don't include hatred of any groups of people (except leftists I suppose).
Yes, people say and do stupid things while they are drunk. What Derbyshire says rings true.
Also, "I oppose human weakness" is probably the most Trumpian line I've read in this Substack. (But I haven't been reading it that long.) Don't take it personally.
I didn't realize you are a teatotaller, sir. You're in good company: Trump, Hitler, Osama Bin Laden, etc. 😛
I rarely drink. I've never been an alcoholic. There have been times in the past when I drank too much but have since learned from my mistakes. I have even gotten all scientific about it: I created a spreadsheet, drank a certain amount of alcohol, calculated my approx BAC using an online calculator and recorded observations of my subjective experience at each level of intoxication. I have found my "sweet spot" is aboot .03% if I've got stuff to do (#BallmerPeak!), .07% if I can relax and party! At .10% I get "negatively introspective" and it's more unpleasant than pleasant At .12% I throw up. (I'm a light weight, I know).
With certain other substances that are legal in Canada, I find I just get itchy, paranoid, feel like I'm not "in control" of myself and will sometimes say "edgy" things that I don't actually believe like racist comments or slurs. I am not racist. I find it stupid. I never was really "into" such substances and I really don't get hwhy others are.
I guess there's a certain part of me that likes annoying people. I get a kick out of how easily other people can get annoyed aboot certain things like intentional misspelling or mispronunciation of words and it makes me laugh seeing them get upset aboot it. I also have several "contrarian views" and I really don't "fit the mold" (any mold!) For example, I'm pro-life, atheist and pro-immigration. So maybe part of me is used to people being "offended" by me so maybe part of me sees being offensive = I must be doing something right!
I am actually aboot at the median in terms of neuroticism. But very low in agreeableness.
Point is: I can relate to the urge to be "edgy" and perhaps that's hwhat Mel Gibson was doing: being edgy. Perhaps he wasn't actually an anti-Semite but he liked trolling people who thot he was. I "get" that.
"Some people do indeed harbor strong negative emotions that social norms urge us to conceal." I would say that all people harbor such emotions (or impulses). They might not include anger... but if you're free from envy, lust, wrath, acquisitiveness, fear, gluttony, aggression, and general selfishness, than I have some bad news for you: you're almost certainly actually a bad person who doesn't realize that you are. EVERYONE is inhibited by society.
And alcohol doesn't release some true inner you. That's a myth and a misunderstanding. By changing the way your brain operates, alcohol changes your personality. Moreover, alcohol decreases inhibitions for basically everyone but for some people (the "mean drunk") it increases disagreeability and aggression and bellicosity. That means that such a person might be likely to say a lot of things just to UPSET PEOPLE... not because he or she actually believes or feels them.
After Israel's Gaza genocide began, Derbyshire wrote, "The Gazans are a beggar people." It should still be online. I had been a big Derbyshire fan until then. NO MORE.
I encourage every reader of Bryan Caplan's Subtack to read John Derbyshire's "The Talk: Nonblack Version" of April 5, 2012 as linked in The Nation article cited and linked by Bryan (two clicks will provide direct access to the piece). Seek and ye shall find.
Other than the personal opinions and recommendations voiced by Mr. Derbyshire in his piece, the facts he presents are uniformly accurate, unbiased, and sourced by reliable and scientifically-valid social science research and government statistics. From my perspective and from those of other people who have actually read Derbyshire's piece, I find very little that is either objectionable or not presented in the best interests of those to whom the "Talk" is addressed.
As someone who drinks wine but doesn't associate with people who play board games heavily in my presence, I have some experience. Alcohol lowers some inhibitions but doesn't really fundamentally alter people so I agree.
Alcohol is not the point, really, just a convenient peg.
We all have deep sin, some of which we recognize, most of which we don't.
That which we recognize, most of us keep under control most of the time. But sometimes we lose it. A man kills his wife. A woman bets her family wealth on the roulette wheel. Mel Gibson gets drunk and insults everyone.
Most Americans don't have suppressed hatred of people groups, I think. We've been educated out of it-- it really is quite natural, without education (by which I mean what your mother tells you, mainly).
We should excuse lapses when they are harmless (Mel Gibson insults someone when drunk), but not when they cause harm (an Israeli paratrooper economist beats his wife to death). Mel Gibson may have an underlyng desire to kill lots of people, but he keeps it suppressed.
There are things I might say when I'm drunk - perhaps ranting about leftist "envy" driving their politics - that I don't say sober and don't really believe sober. They're statements about my emotional reaction to things, not my rational take. They don't include hatred of any groups of people (except leftists I suppose).
Yes, people say and do stupid things while they are drunk. What Derbyshire says rings true.
Also, "I oppose human weakness" is probably the most Trumpian line I've read in this Substack. (But I haven't been reading it that long.) Don't take it personally.
I didn't realize you are a teatotaller, sir. You're in good company: Trump, Hitler, Osama Bin Laden, etc. 😛
I rarely drink. I've never been an alcoholic. There have been times in the past when I drank too much but have since learned from my mistakes. I have even gotten all scientific about it: I created a spreadsheet, drank a certain amount of alcohol, calculated my approx BAC using an online calculator and recorded observations of my subjective experience at each level of intoxication. I have found my "sweet spot" is aboot .03% if I've got stuff to do (#BallmerPeak!), .07% if I can relax and party! At .10% I get "negatively introspective" and it's more unpleasant than pleasant At .12% I throw up. (I'm a light weight, I know).
With certain other substances that are legal in Canada, I find I just get itchy, paranoid, feel like I'm not "in control" of myself and will sometimes say "edgy" things that I don't actually believe like racist comments or slurs. I am not racist. I find it stupid. I never was really "into" such substances and I really don't get hwhy others are.
I guess there's a certain part of me that likes annoying people. I get a kick out of how easily other people can get annoyed aboot certain things like intentional misspelling or mispronunciation of words and it makes me laugh seeing them get upset aboot it. I also have several "contrarian views" and I really don't "fit the mold" (any mold!) For example, I'm pro-life, atheist and pro-immigration. So maybe part of me is used to people being "offended" by me so maybe part of me sees being offensive = I must be doing something right!
I am actually aboot at the median in terms of neuroticism. But very low in agreeableness.
Point is: I can relate to the urge to be "edgy" and perhaps that's hwhat Mel Gibson was doing: being edgy. Perhaps he wasn't actually an anti-Semite but he liked trolling people who thot he was. I "get" that.
Derbyshire is a moral relativist. And a bigot.
"Some people do indeed harbor strong negative emotions that social norms urge us to conceal." I would say that all people harbor such emotions (or impulses). They might not include anger... but if you're free from envy, lust, wrath, acquisitiveness, fear, gluttony, aggression, and general selfishness, than I have some bad news for you: you're almost certainly actually a bad person who doesn't realize that you are. EVERYONE is inhibited by society.
And alcohol doesn't release some true inner you. That's a myth and a misunderstanding. By changing the way your brain operates, alcohol changes your personality. Moreover, alcohol decreases inhibitions for basically everyone but for some people (the "mean drunk") it increases disagreeability and aggression and bellicosity. That means that such a person might be likely to say a lot of things just to UPSET PEOPLE... not because he or she actually believes or feels them.
I used to do that all the time.
https://jmpolemic.substack.com/p/two-weeks-in
I've never said anything I don't mean when drunk, perhaps less eloquently defended than sober, but no change in substance.
After Israel's Gaza genocide began, Derbyshire wrote, "The Gazans are a beggar people." It should still be online. I had been a big Derbyshire fan until then. NO MORE.
I encourage every reader of Bryan Caplan's Subtack to read John Derbyshire's "The Talk: Nonblack Version" of April 5, 2012 as linked in The Nation article cited and linked by Bryan (two clicks will provide direct access to the piece). Seek and ye shall find.
Other than the personal opinions and recommendations voiced by Mr. Derbyshire in his piece, the facts he presents are uniformly accurate, unbiased, and sourced by reliable and scientifically-valid social science research and government statistics. From my perspective and from those of other people who have actually read Derbyshire's piece, I find very little that is either objectionable or not presented in the best interests of those to whom the "Talk" is addressed.
As someone who drinks wine but doesn't associate with people who play board games heavily in my presence, I have some experience. Alcohol lowers some inhibitions but doesn't really fundamentally alter people so I agree.
Alcohol is not the point, really, just a convenient peg.
We all have deep sin, some of which we recognize, most of which we don't.
That which we recognize, most of us keep under control most of the time. But sometimes we lose it. A man kills his wife. A woman bets her family wealth on the roulette wheel. Mel Gibson gets drunk and insults everyone.
Most Americans don't have suppressed hatred of people groups, I think. We've been educated out of it-- it really is quite natural, without education (by which I mean what your mother tells you, mainly).
We should excuse lapses when they are harmless (Mel Gibson insults someone when drunk), but not when they cause harm (an Israeli paratrooper economist beats his wife to death). Mel Gibson may have an underlyng desire to kill lots of people, but he keeps it suppressed.