Rakqoi

I understand how useful it is to quickly paste selected text, and have used it frequently, but I finally had enough of it after the thousandth time accidentally pasting private information or random garbage into a new tab search, discord chats, or the middle of my code without realizing it…

I think their proposal to make it a toggle that is off by default is the best solution. A lot more people are adopting Linux now and this will be one less point of friction for the new user experience coming from Windows, thus making it more likely they’ll stick with the OS, and old users who are setting up a fresh install will just switch it back to the previous behavior as they configure their system, and never think about it again.

So anyway, not long ago I went searching for a way to disable it system-wide (since KDE on X11 doesn’t offer any toggle for it, at least for me) and the best solution I found is this little program that clears the middle-click selection clipboard any time you middle click so you never paste anything. Works like a charm for me.
https://github.com/milaq/XMousePasteBlock

I’m not saying people aren’t responsible for their choices and opinions, I think everyone is responsible for their own actions regardless of what led them to that point. But what I meant to convey with my comment is that people can have harmful ideas without that being indicative of poor cognitive ability, and that people shouldn’t be insulted based on something that isn’t a choice, such as intelligence.

Most of my extended family is like the person you describe, which is a big reason why I find it unproductive to insult their intelligence; I know them, and many of them are intelligent people who have been manipulated into misdirecting their anxieties over hardships at unfamiliar people, instead of at the systems which cause those hardships. But that doesn’t make them stupid, it makes them brainwashed.

and also, I completely understand how exasperating people like that can be and we only have so much mental energy to go around, so I totally get wanting them to fuck off. It’s not our responsibility to convince people to have compassion nor to teach critical thinking skills. fuck nazis, fuck fascists.

I think the problem many people have (myself included) is not just about being against prejudice toward those with cognitive impairments (though that’s part of it), but also against insults based on intelligence in general. People don’t get to choose how intelligent they are, it’s largely down to genetics and the environment one grows up in and is not a choice (nor is it a single spectrum… intelligence can manifest in a myriad of ways, and people can have high cognitive ability in one area while struggling with another). Personally I believe that insulting people for something they had no control over is unjust.

when someone says something really dumb, and you try to come up with an insult to his intelligence

but what if you are trying to insult a person’s cognitive ability?

The thing they said may seem foolish or obviously incorrect to you, with your experience and understanding of the topic. But to them, it may have made sense, or been an attempt at humor, or was something they said in passing without devoting much thought to it. I don’t really think that coming up with a way to insult them for sharing their thought is productive or compassionate, and won’t lead to understanding the person or their perspective any better.

If it’s someone you consider a friend, that’s a good way to build resentment both ways and put distance between you. If it’s someone you don’t like, or are arguing with, all it does it rile up people’s emotions and makes people get defensive and lock down on their stance, instead of approaching the discussion with an open mind and looking for common goals.

Whenever I have an urge to call something stupid or dumb, I stop and think about what it is that I really object to, and then comment on that aspect directly and explain why I take issue with it. I find that this makes me far more aware of my own opinions and clarifies my perspective, and helps me understand why things are how they are.

In regard to a discussion with someone who refuses to see data and evidence (and is acting in harmful ways, or supports those who do)… the reason why they are like that is very complex, and often they have been manipulated into their way of thinking, and are deeply submerged in the culture that encourages it. If their lack of critical thinking skills, or generally poor cognitive ability contributed to them falling into that, then it’s not entirely their fault for being how they are, and I don’t think insulting their intelligence is productive, and it misses all the context surrounding why they’re like that and will never lead to positive change.