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<p class=MsoNormal>Visionaries:<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>The Weathermen aka The Weather Underground was a collection
of mostly white, mostly privileged, underemployed, arguably over-educated,
little brats who threw violent and disruptive tantrums to emphasize their
outrage at the imperialistic and militaristic actions of the federal
government. There was something singularly galling (not to mention criminal)
about the post-adolescent jackasses who so arrogantly declared war on America,
blew up some buildings (and a couple of their own members) and eventually
(predictably) settled into the comfortable, upper middle-class lives they
claimed to disdain. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>Now Vision 2020 has a Weatherman<span class=diccolor><i><span
lang=LA> doppelgänge</span></i></span><span class=diccolor><i><span lang=LA> </span></i></span><span
class=diccolor>of its very own - s</span>elf important, parochially
brainwashed, rude as only the self-entitled can be, disruptive, threatening,
and unquestionably a jackass. Bill Ayers apparently offered the justification
for the extraordinarily intrusive behavior of No Weatherman while concurrently
serving as a role model. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>For all Ayers’ faults - and they are numerous - Bill
Ayers appears to live – at least at this point – in the real world.
Trolls like No Weatherman inhabit the land of Magical Thinking – where
their coercive and obsessive monopolization of conversation is a futile attempt
to fill the chasm that marks the boundary between maturity and immaturity,
gravitas and a pathetically prolonged adolescence, mental health and emotional
fragility, a sense of being grounded in the community and the wild flaying of
an untethered ego. Are his pompous pronouncements irritating as hell? You
betcha. Are his piddling pretensions of educating 2020 readers insulting and
limited in intellectual scope? You betcha. He is a sad and sorry piece of
work. You definitely betcha.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>No Weatherman’s conversational style is reminiscent of
a shrieking child in the candy aisle demanding (and getting) a bag of Skittles
to shut him up. One can’t help noticing the little monster and drawing
some pretty plain conclusions about the adults in charge of him. Similarly,
perhaps it is time to revisit the goals and ground rules of V2020. If the
intention of the founders was to encourage a free flowing, un-moderated
community conversation it appears to be a failed strategy, or perhaps it
succeeded beyond their wildest dreams. However, when an anonymous bully is
allowed, indeed encouraged because of the lack of enforced guidelines - to
dominate the conversation and threaten other posters the antithesis of
communication has been achieved. No pragmatist is surprised when a utopian
concept is hijacked. Perhaps it’s time for a realistic reappraisal of
what does or does not contribute to a successful community chat group. And, it
is to be hoped, we will soon enjoy the implementation of a structure that
actually invites diverse and respectful participation.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>Rose Huskey<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class=MsoNormal><span lang=LA><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
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