SMPT in Claremont in Less Than Two Weeks

[_Jersey Girl]

Gadianton's callous abuse of Liz's trust is one of the more distasteful aspects of his months-long spoof.

ROFLMAO!!!

Ahem, I mean, uh yes. Indubitably.

I just have to assume at this point that there are numerous levels of irony at play in this discussion. Otherwise, I'd lose my marbles.

Or you could read the exchanges between Gad and Liz, and comment from an intellectually honest perspective like I asked you to, instead of the cavalier reply that you dished up in order to play the game.

This is what happens when the "running gag" hits the wall, Trevor.

[_Jersey Girl]

I think you're taking this much too lightly, Trevor. Seriously, I do.

This game has gone on much too long, even if it is designed to satirize and caricature the ever-fantasizing Scratch.

If Liz truly believed that Gad was sincere about presenting at SMPT, I apologize. I admit that at this point my own mental adjustments to deal with this bizarre odyssey have probably placed me far outside of the normative range of response to it. It all strikes me as so thickly ironic and satirical that I have a difficult time understanding either side of this dance anymore. Over time it has slowly dissolved into a carnivalesque spectacle before my eyes. I simply can't read it straight anymore. I'm incapable of it. My sincere apologies to those who actually claim to be victimized.

You don't understand either side of "the dance"?

Here, take my hand, Trevor.

Gad lied.
People, including Liz, believed the lie.
Liz made a sincere effort to determine the truth.


Liz was scammed, Gad made no effort to correct the situation and you wrote it off as a joke.

That's both sides of the so-called "dance".

Still laughing your ass off?

[_Ray A]

for what it's worth, I believed Gad was spoofing all along, but I did have a moment or two of "wondering", so I can see why some may have taken it seriously.

[_beastie]

The humanity, the humanity!!!

[_Gadianton]

You know Doctor Scratch, you are right, Jersey Girl is the squeaky wheel of the board. If she thinks someone has broken the rules, or rather if someone sets off one of her hobby pet peeves, even if it's by a long shot, she'll badger the administration and anyone stupid enough to argue with her for the next month. And if she were mod, she'd spend til kingdom come editing out content that she thinks violates the rules. So it is kind of interesting that she take a cheap shot at Harmony saying sarcastically, "Good luck!" on hunting down what she knew were scores of rule violations, some of them by herself.

[_Jersey Girl]

You know Doctor Scratch, you are right, Jersey Girl is the squeaky wheel of the board. If she thinks someone has broken the rules, or rather if someone sets off one of her hobby pet peeves, even if it's by a long shot, she'll badger the administration and anyone stupid enough to argue with her for the next month. And if she were mod, she'd spend til kingdom come editing out content that she thinks violates the rules. So it is kind of interesting that she take a cheap shot at Harmony saying sarcastically, "Good luck!" on hunting down what she knew were scores of rule violations, some of them by herself.

Shouldn't you be coming up with a sincere response to Liz's post?

[_Gadianton]

Gadianton's callous abuse of Liz's trust is one of the more distasteful aspects of his months-long spoof.

ROFLMAO!!!

Ahem, I mean, uh yes. Indubitably.

I just have to assume at this point that there are numerous levels of irony at play in this discussion. Otherwise, I'd lose my marbles.

Actually, what I think is callous here, Trevor, is DCPs use of Liz's supposed "abuse" to further his own ends.

I wonder what Liz would be out here-- let's see, not 10% of her income, she didn't have to sleep with me, I didn't tell her an angel drew a sword to force her to believe, there's a whole lot of things that I haven't done, that the man you praise as second to Christ would have. So if I did lie, which I didn't, then I'd say I'm one of the nicer charlatans around.

[_Trevor]

You don't understand either side of "the dance"?

Here, take my hand, Trevor.

Gad lied.
People, including Liz, believed the lie.
Liz made a sincere effort to determine the truth.


Liz was scammed, Gad made no effort to correct the situation and you wrote it off as a joke.

That's both sides of the so-called "dance".

Still laughing your ass off?

Jersey, I am happy that you prefer this straightforward approach to life, where it is a simple matter of Gad lying and Liz sincerely trying to determine the truth. You are undoubtedly a much more contented person than I am. But, really, I couldn't disagree with you more in your assessment of the range of possible and legitimate interpretations. Perhaps you are privy to other views through email and PMs from Liz and others. I don't know.

In the immortal words of Daniel Peterson, let's all "get a life."

Here is a little peek into my take on this discussion forum:

1. This is, at base, a form of entertainment and a pastime.

2. From almost its inception, critics and apologists have been free to say almost anything they want, regardless of truth or accuracy.

3. Scratch, Gadianton, and others have taken criticism of apologetics to new levels by making a spoof of apologetic behavior and material part of their critique. They have done this for hundreds of posts now and have a pretty well-established M.O.

4. Now that the gloves are taken off and irony has reached new levels, it is conceivable that almost anything could be gamed in this fashion. As an onlooker and participant, I feel must have one eye constantly peeled for gags and fake pronouncements.

5. You add all this up together, and you find me having a difficult time knowing what I can or should take seriously, especially given the first assumption.

Am I still laughing my ass off? All the time and with a great deal of pleasure. Does that make me a callous monster? No. But, again, if you think this is all so straightforward, maybe in your eyes I am a callous monster. After all, so many of us have done a bang up job of interpreting Daniel Peterson exactly that way, why not include me now? I may be a small fry, but repetition just may get boring after post 10,000.

And by the way, I did intend my response and apology sincerely. And I can't help it if the level of complexity my interpretation takes here amounts to "intellectual dishonesty" in your eyes. I very well may be wrong, but I would also be honestly wrong.

[_Gadianton]

Don't you think Jersey Girl, that you should quit using the alleged victim status of Liz to further your own selfish ends?

[_beastie]

If anyone doubts that Trevor’s assessment is spot on, I offer this is evidence:

DCP:

It was very interesting, though Gadianton's paper, delivered mostly in ungrammatical Albanian and in a droning monotone to an audience much more interested in washing their hands and escaping from the men's room than in listening to him, represented a real low point.

Gad’s reply:

What a shocking reversal. As Dr. Peterson has recently admitted, I did present at SMPT and according to him I was monotonic and boring. And now he's essentially admitting that he didn't participate in the conference, and that this has been a ruse from the beginning!

DCP later, apparently in all seriousness, commented:

DCP

It's important at least in this sense: Gadianton has given absolutely no hint that he's been joking on this matter.

Yes, indeed. Gad obviously thought that DCP’s statement that Gad gave his presentation in ungrammatical Albanian in the men’s room was a concession that Gad had really presented!!




Like Trevor, I think it’s obvious, and has been obvious, that Gad is engaging in satire. And like all good satire, it really has revealed the trait it was intended to reveal all along – how pretentiously seriously we take ourselves in this nonsense.