ANST - Taking offence - not again!

[Michael Tucker]

Greetings, all:

Regularly, someone on this forum posts a message that offends someone else. It
sometimes seems impossible to say *anything* without offending *someone*. Just
as regularly, some well-intentioned soul jumps up to "take offence" on someone
else's behalf, who presumably *ought* to be offended by something that was said
to or about them.

For those of you who are new to the list, and don't remember the zillion times
this has happened before, I have something to say to you:

TAKING OFFENCE FOR SOMEONE ELSE NEVER HELPS THE SITUATION.

Not once, in all the years I have frequented this list, have I ever seen such an
action yield a positive result. Now, admittedly, I have not always been a
subscriber to this list. In fact, I only resubscribed a few months ago after a
long hiatus, brought about in large part by bickering induced by someone "taking offence".

I recall that Mistress Gunnora had some excellent things to say on the subject,
educating us to the Norse period practice of "taking offence", and counseling
more appropriate measures in these Current Middle Ages. I invite her to
reiterate her earlier words for our benefit.

Please, good friends, I ask you: if you read something in this forum that you
think ought to offend some individual (other than yourself), you are welcome to
bring it (privately!) to their attention. But then, it is no longer your
concern: let them handle it as they see fit. To do otherwise is to rob them of
their honor, and bring undignity to yourself. If they choose to "let it slide",
then please follow their example. Of course, if they *ask* for help trouncing
the offender, that is another matter entirely! ;-)

Yours in friendship and service,
Michael Silverhands (who occasionally gets exasperated, too)
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