"'I won't say this is what comes of dealing with the Darkness -'" (p. 379)
But she has said it! How often do people try simultaneously to challenge and yet to avoid the consequences of their challenge? In fact, the Matucheks' Jewish neighbor is not so bad. Asked to care for the youngest Matuchek children during a crisis, she offers to ask her rabbi to give her house a new barucha.
Half-hearted challenges that I remember:
"I don't want to argue with you but -"
My response: Either you do not say it or you say it and listen to my reply even if that becomes an argument.
"I could ask you why, with your beliefs, you teach in a private school but I won't..."
My response: "I could answer that question but, since you haven't asked it, I won't!"
"How do you justify...?" - said very quickly by someone who instantly broke off and started talking about something else...
No doubt blog readers can think of other examples.
3 comments:
Kaor, Paul!
I think we have all of us sometimes talked like this. Another example I can think of would be variants on this: "I have to risk hurting your feelings if I'm to speak frankly."
Ad astra! Sean
"But" generally reverses the meaning of a sentence. For example, if someone says "I'm for free speech, but" they invariably and without exception want to censor and silence someone.
Kaor, Mr. Stirling!
I agree! And we are seeing a lot of that lately, in the Black Lives Matter movement, which the left in the US is using to shout down and suppress all opposition.
Ad astra! Sean
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