Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Things I Am

I have to say, I was a bit nervous about posting my latest video, Twelve Things I Am, because I touch on a couple of pretty sensitive topics and I was worried about potential negative reactions. I think the candid, unabashed presentation worked out well for me, though, and I'm especially glad that there's been a lot of very good feedback and interesting discussion going on in the comments.

People seem to have this idea that labelling is inherently bad, but I think it's really the only objective way to discuss who and what you are in certain terms. We are, after all, linguistic creatures, and we have a natural ability to exchange a symbol with a concrete thing or abstract concept. The negativity and hurtfulness of labels has only to do with their social and cultural connotation; in polite discussion, a label should always be able to be used for its strictly denotative meaning. After all, a word is a tool, and as Ani DiFranco once wrote, "every tool is a weapon if you hold it right".

Anyway, I'll be doing another video tonight, in sort of the same style as this one. Stay tuned!


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