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> Terry is tremendously talented... these accomplishments, however, don't in any way excuse his egregious behavior. He's a complicated figure. A bit of a stre
by omeid2 8y ago
> Terry is tremendously talented... these accomplishments, however, don't in any way excuse his egregious behavior. He's a complicated figure.
A bit of a stretch, but your comment is on par with saying: Stephen Hawking was a tremendously smart person... his accomplishments, however, don't in anyway excuse his lack of physical productivity.
The point I am trying to illustrate is that the behavior most people, perhaps rightfully so, find egregious, is the best effort possible for people with schizophrenia. Having expectation for any kind of excuse, beyond the neurological condition, I believe is being a little short with compassion.
- dagenix 8y agoThe Stephen Hawking comparison is way off. His condition effected just himself. Terry Davis said some pretty terrible things aimed at actual people. He tried to hurt real people - Hawking didn't. That is a factual statement. Im sure he did the best he could. Mental illness is a terrible thing. as a society, we do a terrible job in dealing with it. But, we can't just pretend like racist comments werent made. They were. They are part of his legacy. TempleOs is part of his legacy too. It's his project - no one else's. It will always be tied to him. To pretend like he didn't behave the way that he did would be the same as pretending he didn't suffer from his illness. It's an impressive legacy. It's a tragic one. It's an appalling one. But, it's who he is. Whitewashing his mental problems, would just perpetuate the problems of how we handle such an illness.
- xref 8y ago> It's an impressive legacy. It's a tragic one. It's an appalling one. But, it's who he is. Whitewashing his mental problems, would just perpetuate the problems of how we handle such an illness. I think that is the finest summation I've read in any thread about Terry, thank you
- omeid2 8y ago> It's an appalling one. But, it's who he is. Terry's behavior is an unfortunate condition of his mental illness. It is not kind or even considerate to call someone appalling for their mental illness, it is rather, exactly the kind of behavior I would consider appalling from people who are in good headspace.
- dagenix 8y agoHis behavior was appalling. The reasons behind it were tragic. How can we pretend that either of those things aren't true?
- omeid2 8y agoOkay, it is almost unquestionably certain that as a kid you had to wear nappies and so when you were young, you did the uncomfortable regularly, yet we don't consider it as your legacy or worst yet call it "appalling, and that is what you are", for the very simple reason that you were mentally incapable of comprehending your actions and it's consequences. It is true that you had to wear nappies but also mind-numbingly stupid to consider it as your legacy or insist that "it is appalling and it is true".
- mercer 8y agoWhile I understand your point, I do agree with dagenix as well. Not because I think Terry's condition is 'no excuse', but rather because I don't think we can cleanly make a distinction between someone like Terry and the rest of us. Sure, he more obviously acted in ways that seemed an 'involuntary' result of his condition, but quite frankly much of the horrible shit I see people do or hear people say can be considered 'mental health issues' to various degrees. It's a murky area. Terry's condition makes it both easier to judge him and excuse his behavior, depending on your perspective. I think getting away from those two extremes is probably the better way to go: be able to openly consider a person's behavior appalling and find understanding this shouldn't be considered an 'appalling person' as a result.