Posted by John Nichols on March 15, 2008 at 18:10:54 from 74.192.13.5 user Mcneacail.
In Reply to: Re: Where is this other TarBoard? (was Re: Beckfoot or not Beckfoot. posted by Mike Field on March 14, 2008 at 22:49:46:
In academic circles one get used to very nasty attacks on one's research and by extension to the time one has invested in the project.
It makes one feel angry in the beginning. As a good friend once said, "have you calmed down yet?" after 3 days of rampaging temper. I said "I was calm", he said," fine, fix the hole in the wall then".
It takes time to learn that people say things way more intense then is required to convey the point in question, and I take them way to seriously. Many years ago, a very nasty human being made some very nasty comments about my PhD work. I know the person from meetings, and he doesn't know I know who made the comments. Peer review is supposed to be confidential, but in this case someone slipped up.
I take a very practical view of his work, I ignore it. It is long on words and short on quality. Nothng I can do about it, and why get distracted by such stuff.
Of course this leads to the earlier comments of a somewhat wiser man than myself:
< Following text is taken from Wikipedia, thank you to a great invention, possibly the greatest peer reviewed work in history.>
Turning the other cheek is to respond to an aggressor without violence. The phrase is from the Sermon on the Mount in the Christian New Testament.
In the Sermon on the Mount in the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus says:
You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.' But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.
—Matthew 5:38-42, NIV
A parallel version is offered in the Sermon on the Plain in the Gospel of Luke:
But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you.
—Luke 6:27-31. NIV In the end ignoring someone is a powerful statement in itself, fighting back only promotes the person to your level. Of course I have attempted to improve my English as a result of such comments. I can now discourse with English majors on the attributes of Strunk. Now, that surprised me, and my mantra is "Less is better." I realize I am never going to be much of a writer, but I try. The Beckfoot in MM is of the wrong proportions. Ed and I have discussed this point on the board at some length. Clearly it is time to reenter the discourse on Beckfoot. The critical picture is the one from PM, where Dick and Dot observe Nancy mow the lawn. Before I start I suggest you get yourself a copy of that picture and we can then start the geometric analysis and the mapping. Ed is a great man, who else typed in all the books. That is a wrol of true love. PS: Is Joyce any good as writer? I read something about him last night, but I have not read his books.
This passage is viewed as promoting nonresistance, pacifism or nonviolence.