admin April 13th, 2006
In defense of Pia de Solenni
Lest anyone think I only dislike nastiness from right-wingers…
Never fear – Geoff Staples has given me a perfect opportunity to offset my anti-Coulter diatribe. Who is Geoff Staples, you ask? I have no idea, except that he would seem to be the person who posted this.
(In case the link doesn’t work, it’s a blog post called “My Cruel Fantasy” in which Staples describes a hypothetical situation: the teenage daughter of Pia de Solenni, who is a well-known pro-lifer, dies through a series of ironic circumstances. Most notable among the circumstances is the parental-notification-caused delay of a medically-necessary abortion.)
It’s satire. It is, as the post’s title suggests, a cruel fantasy. I think it’s a nasty, vicious spark of someone’s imagination, and it whispers to me that Geoff Staples (if that is his real name) would secretly (or openly) revel in a tragedy like the hypothetical one he described.
Sarcasm can be funny. The thing is, like any joke, sarcasm is usually founded on a nugget of actual or perceived truth, and sarcasm is usually a bit more cutting than most teasing. Staples finds that cruel fantasy amusing and/or rewarding because at least a little tiny bit of him would like to see that happen. (I sincerely hope it’s only a tiny bit.)
This bothers me on so many levels, I am not sure I can name them all. I can, however, name at least two: general and specific.
General: As I mentioned earlier, it suggests that Staples would actually enjoy such an event transpiring. I realize that he structured the situation such that, in his opinion, it would be some sort of divine (or, more likely in his case, karmic) justice for de Solenni’s vocal opposition not just to abortion, but specifically to minors being able to get abortions without parental consent. It would certainly be ironic; but it would not be less tragic.
I guess I just have no sense of humor. But then, my sister’s been telling me that for the better part of 30 years.
Specific:
I’d bet a cookie that Staples has never bothered to read de Solenni’s articles, interview her, read an interview with her by someone else, or hear her speak. In short, he’s never tried to understand her arguments or her positions beyond knowing that they differ from his. Take, for example, this article, which I think is very reasonable (and even more reasonable considering that it’s about abortion, which seems to disable reasoned debate and bring out the screaming child in most people).
I’ve met Pia de Solenni. I’ve heard her speak; I’ve been in a workshop with her. I’ll grant that this does not give me some deep insight into her character. However, I have yet to see one glimmer of the kind of nastiness that Staples demonstrated on my first exposure to him. I thought she was quite nice, actually, and I have a fair bit of respect for her as both a philosopher and as a human being. I’m sorry to say that Geoff Staples has not, so far, inspired any more respect than I automatically afford to any person I encounter; and in fact, he has already chipped away a bit at that.
Nastiness. It’s not just for Ann Coulter anymore.
