Nickyitis – An Epidemic of Humorous Proportions

Interpret the words, not the tone of voice.

That's what my dad always said when I was growing up. Still does, as a matter of fact. Reading about Andre Bauer's recent media circus event brought it back to mind.

It's a funny thing, that saying of my dad's. Because sometimes it's great advice and will save you much heartache. Maybe even most times. And sometimes following it can start a war. Or at least a small police action.

Maybe you're trying to make idle conversation and the person with whom you're speaking gives you a few accurate but clipped responses and looks to end the conversation as soon as possible.  "Hey, what did I do?" you ask yourself.  "What a jerk!" you think, wondering why such rude people infest the world.

And then you find out that his beloved brother died unexpectedly of cancer the day before. Oof. NOW who's the jerk? That would have been a good time to have just listened to what was being said and not how it was delivered. When someone's distracted or worried or simply shy, they can often come across as rude without the slightest suspicion that they're doing so. 

On the other hand, there's the time your wife says "I don't want anything at all for my birthday. Really." You can simply believe the words if you wish but maaaybe you should pay some attention to tone and body language. Getting this one wrong won't be pleasant. (I'll make up for it next time around dear! Dear? Uh oh …)

Which brings me to Herr Bauer. You can listen to exactly what he said right here (it's always nice to hear all the words and not just snippets):

Of course, if you've been reading the paper (or listened to that clip to the end) you know that the take-away for most of the media has been "Bauer says the homeless are vermin and should be starved to keep them from breeding!" That's sure Ms. Maddow's take. But that's not really what the words said.

He started by saying his poorly educated grandma thought feeding stray animals would increase their numbers. Perhaps he mentioned her lack of education to bolster her street cred, given how much credit is given nowadays to those without much training but who can think "from their gut." Hard to say. But the basics are fine. Feeding stray animals will certainly help keep them alive and, being alive, they'll be able to breed.

He then mixes animals and people together (we'll ignore the fact that people are fully accredited members of the animal kingdom for now) and says that, given food, they'll both reproduce. Kind of goofy in that it's pretty self-evident that people who are alive (food helps there) will eventually reproduce (making babies is fun!).

So far all I hear are facts. They're presented in a way that's pretty strange but they're all "true."

Then he makes the statement that the schools in S. Carolina with the cheapest lunches have the lowest test scores. I haven't looked into it but I presume he's being factual. Certainly that's something that can be looked up and I wouldn't be surprised at all if it were the case.

So – if I use the "just interpret the words" test I'd come away saying that there were some facts presented. And that's all.

It's the reading BEYOND just the words that raised the ruckus, obviously. But before getting all riled, it would have been helpful to have simply asked for some clarification. Because he never outright said what his critics say he said. He didn't say that the homeless should be starved. He didn't say that the poor should be sterilized. And he didn't say that subsidized food makes kids stupid.

Of course, his words lend themselves to those conclusions. So why not pin him down? Ask him to clearly state that he's saying one or more of these things or he's not. And, if not, why did he make those statements? Just to fill air time? We could ask why he feels there's a causitive relationship between cheap food and low test scores and whether he's aware that two things being simultaneously true doesn't at all mean that one leads to the other. (One might credibly argue that low-priced school food occurs predominantly in low income neighborhoods and low income neighborhoods often have poor schools and students with poor test performances. One doesn't cause the other – they both coexist as a corollary to the surrounding environment.).

I guess my main point is that, rather than getting upset over what you think someone meant, it can be helpful to really be sure before running wild. Once you've gotten confirmation that the guy really does have his head on backwards, then feel free to go in with all guns blazing.

- And that's today's word from the bird