User:The Cunctator/Vulgarity

I suspect that I have a greater tolerance for vulgarity than most people do, and forget how personally some people will take it if it's directed at them.

That said, I haven't deleted every case in which I've used vulgarity in my commentary, as I would feel somewhat dishonest about pretending that I didn't use it. But maybe that isn't really dishonesty, it's just civility.

So; what did I mean by "dick" in How to Destroy Wikipedia? A combination of rudeness, self-righteousness, and aggressiveness flavored by the careless implicit threat of the use of power over the target of the aggressive or rude behavior.

Thus when Michael Bloomberg makes sexist jokes in front of his employees, I think he's being a dick.

When the United States drops food packages from 10,000 feet and calls it humanitarian aid instead of propaganda, it's being a dick.

When someone writes a screed about potential hurdles to the success of a genuinely noble project, in such a way as to imply that other earnest participants are conspiring to destroy the project, he's being a dick.

I don't think being a dick is entirely bad, especially if one's willing to admit his faults, and not be hurt when people criticize his actions, even misinterpret his motivations.

Well said! Aplause from me -- User:Mathijs