Word Warfare and Intellectual Intimidation

[Klythe]

    This may be a funny place to put this post, but part of the argument is that intimdation is a delecate art, so I put it here instead of in General Discussions.  If you think it's better there or somewhere else, send me a private message and we will discuss it.

Abbot nej vIt from Klingon Behaviour in Conventions]
Klythe,

     One is NEVER to Intimidate the Public in order to Gain "Obedience" That is Precisely the Sort of thing that Gets Folks into Trouble... And Knowing When to Smile (If Menacingly), and When to Break Character in Recognition of a Guests Real World Discomfiture is Imperative and Basic to the Social Skills Required to Keep things Fun for Everyone...

    Knowing the Difference between an Action that is Going to Make Someone Feel Threatened, or Unsafe, and When to "Play" can be a Matter of Experience I Think, as is How to Disarm a Situation Before it can get out of Control... And may well Harken Back to a Discussion on another Board (And May have Taken Place here as Well), That Someone Brought up about the Need for More and Better "Mentoring" of New Klingon Fans...

[Klythe]

    Yes.  Sometimes I forget to soften my words.  Establishing authority is definately intimidation no matter how it is done.

    Some people who argue think that it is some glorious noble thing, detached from the violence of war or a bar room brawl.  But in a fundamental way, arguments are still one the same way fights are.  Arguments are attacked, each side attempts to establish authority though what amounts to glorified intimidation.   When an arguer says something like "I should know I'm the local cheif goombah of the muckety-mucks" or "I've been following this since before..." they are hoping to intimidate their opponent who they are certain does not have equivallent or better credentials, and think they therefore can't possibly know what they are talking about.   

    Scientists and politicians might have enobled themselves as above such things, but in their own way they are every bit into intellectual bullying as your average street thug.   We just don't recognise it as readily because hyoomins don't fear being intellectually dominated as strongly as being physically dominated.  This makes sense, because physical domination is often interpreted as a threat(or potential threat) of phyical harm and even perhaps death.  While Intellectual domination generally at worse entails shame and humiliation.   Although it seems to me that a growing number of hyoomins are starting to get increasingly fearful of losing an argument and having to rethink their positions.  Many hoomins are quick to run and "agree to disagree".  I wonder if thier beliefs are so delecate that they can't stand more than a few glacing blows before the shield collapses and the order to reteat is sounded.

[Klythe]

One is NEVER to Intimidate the Public in order to Gain "Obedience"

    I think you are taking my meaning of intimidation more narrowly than I intended.   Simply put intimidation is anything that weakens the will(makes them less bold and more timid) of those who would misbehave.       Intimidation is the only way to get obedience from those who would not otherwise obey without resorting to bribery.

    Anyone with an official badge (or uniform, staff shirt, etc) will have a certain low level of intimidation, no matter how scrawny or inattentive their presence.  Whether they are dazing off into space, friendly and attentive or glaring angrily affects how much intimidation they provide.   Out-of-character, there is a need to provide the minimum force needed to control the situation.  While it may be arguable if this is true for Klingons or not, it should be true for Klingon fans in public.  For most people, mere presence of an authority who will notice their violation is enough to intimidate them.  Only in rare circumstances does this need to be escalated.  And that is where people get in trouble, regardless as to whether they are Klingons or not.

   Intimidation is an art.  You must carefully craft the 'threat', and how you chose to express that threat.  Choosing a threat that is appropriate to dissuade your opponent and that is credible is essential.  The level of specificity and the actual presentation of the threat are also important to the credible threat.  Almost always this presentation only need be to let the would-be-violator see that you are watching them, they can infer your capability for opposing actions.  If they can then you have serious problems and the situation needs to be escalated to the proper event/hotel security, or law enforcement.

    For me, I could never really get away with threatening physical violence, not seriously.  I could only hurt someone who was hurting me, and often not even then as I'm not the most athletically built.  When playing, it is often helpful if your threats aren't credible, so that you don't actually intimidate the person, only their character.   (e.g. One of my characters is a Whitefang Wolf, that costume has a hollow slush latex muzzle.  Threatening to bite someone is a good IC threat, but a lousy OOC one, which is great for playing). 

     

[Abbot Nej vIt]

Actually it is a Reasonable Place to Start Such a Discussion... (Though the Comments I Make are Potentially out of Context)... It is its own Point as well...

[qoSagh]

Arguments are definitely an artform, but I seem to remember Monty Python doing a sketch about an argument clinic that showed the absurdity of a pointless argument.

I think however that verbal intimidation works better as a non-Klingon than as a Klingon. The kind of intimidation we see at conventions (by security or fans) is more about the total package than the verbal skills. If confronted by a Klingon in a well done costume with well done make up, that is the first punch as it were. All uniforms wether police, military or Klingon are designed for this effect. Then the voice comes into it as the second step. I remember hearing once that a good actor could enthrall his audience while reading the phone book, simply because of a commanding voice. This is why I think that verbal intimidation works better out of Klingon character, because one doesn't have that ridge bonus to strike the first blow.

Internet debates have even removed voice from the equation, with thoughts and words being the only weapon, but I have often wondered if poor spelling and grammar are the on-line equivalent of a poorly made uniform and make up? First impressions are hard to overcome, and one must present themselves well at the start of the encounter.

This combination of visual and verbal factors is always why in my days of running fan tables, I used to try and set the table up nicely. It showed a certain self respect and a respect for the prospective members. This is the same when dealing with the public one on one, if you look sloppy you will be perceived as such. Since most if not all costumers take pride in their appearance, they have already done that firststep. However since Klingons are included in the norm at a trek convention one could argue that we are not all that intimidating in appearance at all.

[Abbot Nej vIt]

It is Still Interesting to Me, that at Some Point We Get to the Fact that Some Folks Have "Presence" while Others Have to Work a lot Harder at it...

Fact is we are Not All Created Equal... And A Big Personality can Sometimes Shine Beyond a Poorly Made Uniform... And That Commanding Voice You Spoke of Can often Disarm Tense situations with Little Effort... While Those Who are Not Gifted with That Charisma are Going to Have to Work Harder for the Same Level of Social Control/Obedience...

Such things are Very Difficult to Quantify, Define or Teach... But Not Impossible to Learn...

I Like Your Point about Poor Spelling and Grammer Being sort of Like Bad Costumes, in that they Might well be Distracting to Those Who Do not already Know the Individual... It Is Something that I Am Having to Question about my own On-line Presence of Late... The Spelling I Find to be a Legitimate Concern, While the Grammer and General "Appearance" of a Persons Sentences may be Eccentric but Essential to a Particular Persons Written "Style" or Personality...

Some of Histories Most Creative People (Especially Writers), have Tended to Have "Their Own" Way of Doing things... I Think The Same "Can" Be True of the Presence of a person Filling a Security Roll at a Con... And it may be that Different people may "Need" to Use Different Tools to be Effective...