Saturday, October 15, 2005

Weak Reason

TODAY'S QUOTE:
He who establishes his argument by noise and command, shows that his reason is weak. Michel de Montaigne

Being the loudest voice heard does not make your opinion any more sound than it would be at a softer level or a gentler tone. Brashness and volume do not add truth to a falsehood or make a fact more factual. But it is too often used as a tool, even though it breaks more things than it ever fixes.
I lived with a man who roared and although I heard the noise, I cannot say that I always absorbed the words. Panic to please and stem the flow was automatic in all within earshot, but real connecting and communication was impossible. His reason was weak, but he was weak for a reason.
Understanding that only excused so much then it became his responsibility to alter, if he saw fit, not for our sake as much as for his own. It was a horrible burden to carry all that pain, with only the release of anger to satisfy the ache for a moment, at a time. I do not remember the words he said in anger as well as I do the ones he whispered.
Face noise creates instant chaos. The air vibrates and everything it touches shakes and shudders. Lowering the volume, even just a bit, gets your point across in a way that will insure that the message will be remembered. Firm words carry a weight all their own, needing no amplification to make them weigh more heavily upon the listener. If all you care about is volume, instead of focusing upon content, then it becomes a weak reason to speak at all.

THINK ABOUT IT
LET IT GROW
THEN DECIDE