[IndiChix] [x-post] LC-india domain

[Nirbheek Chauhan]

On Wed, Dec 31, 2008 at 12:53 PM, Vid Ayer <vid at svaksha.com> wrote:
> IME, a woman (and maybe some men too) have to be thick-skinned to
> tolerate bullying, name calling, intimidation, online stalking and
> personal attacks, usually indulged in by a very small subset of highly
> vocal individual(s). Over the years I have experienced this negativity
> and learnt to ignore it while moving ahead with the positive support
> and attitude shown by a silent majority.... Thanks (you know who you
> are) !!

The general procedure for a victim is not to develop a thick skin, but
to ask the "silent" majority to be vocal in their favour.
Firemen^H^H^Hpersonell have a good laugh everytime someone talks about
"fighting fire with fire" or with a "thick skin". They swear by water,
CO2, and cutting off the fuel for the fire.

In any well-organised open source community (where people care about
their reputation {which are about the only ones worth being a part
of}) trolls, flamers, fuel, stalkers, and attackers are chastised,
ridiculed, and in general looked down upon. Besides, blindly ignoring
"negativity" means you ignore pretty much all criticism that you get.
And 'moving ahead' without atleast *listening* to your critics is not
what I would call a wise approach.

Silent majorities don't cause change. If you think you're a victim,
get the majority to speak up in your favour. "All that is necessary
for the triumph of evil is that good men (do|say) nothing. "


Sincerely,
Nirbheek Chauhan
Member of Non-extremist Majority.