Thoughts in remembrance of the 6 million (est.) murdered in the Holocaust

[mouser]

I don't browse by section... but by unread topics since last visit.  I'm not sure how many people do the same, but this wouldn't help in that case.

-Ath (April 20, 2012, 01:08 PM)

as Ath says -- you can very easily ignore an entire section in your profile -> ignore boards
so this *would* be a solution for people who only read by checking the Unread posts section -- since ignoring a section will stop it from appearing in your unread list.

[TaoPhoenix]

Would they still appear in the "new posts" at the bottom of the page?

[Ath]

Quote from: Ath

-mouser (April 20, 2012, 01:20 PM)

Hm, wraith808 said that quote, I only +1'd it  

[IainB]

I am requesting that you move further discussion regarding censorship (or whatever you want to call it) in this thread into the discussion I have set up: The case for and against Censorship on the forum, as it otherwise risks derailing/hijacking the subject of the original post of this thread.

If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn't have supposed that posting a remembrance to the 6 million murdered in the Holocaust could have provoked such an outpouring of...something (I can't quite describe it) like what is seen in some of the ensuing comments.
This post is "political"? "Religious"? "Borderline appropriate for DC and is only becoming more so"?
The thread is "disruptive"?

I tried to take on board, and I did respond (as best I could) to, the comments regarding the inclusiveness of this post about the annual Holocaust Remembrance Day, so that we could perhaps (and not unreasonably) include all the other horrors committed by Man on their fellow men, and I asked for a suggested subject title-change, but that seemed to be ignored in the ensuing off-topic "discussion".

If I had wanted people to defecate all over my post in the Living Room, I think I would probably have thought myself better-off writing on the subject of (say) "toilets", but this beggars belief. I have never seen anything quite like it before.
Anyway, let's hope the discussion The case for and against Censorship on the forum can help to release the pressure-valve.
There is clearly an unfinished debate about forum censorship, cutting across various threads in the forum, from a while back and more recently.
Let's have it in a rational, frank and open manner, only please not in this thread.

[mouser]

If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn't have supposed that posting a remembrance to the 6 million murdered in the Holocaust could have provoked such an outpouring of...something (I can't quite describe it) like what is seen in some of the ensuing comments.
This post is "political"? "Religious"? "Borderline appropriate for DC and is only becoming more so"?
The thread is "disruptive"?

I may have been inarticulate in my comments.. Allow me to clarify before i myself move to the other thread.  There are lots of times when someone will post something political that I agree with, while still having the feeling that it's somewhat off topic for the mission of the site.  Now my feeling is that we can handle lots of "off topic" discussions here, but not an infinite amount.  And that's where I view my responsibility sometimes, to nudge us occasionally back on course so that we still have a kind of core focus.

I wasn't trying to pass judgement on this post or the importance of the issue -- i just reacted to a gut feeling that it was about to devolve into an argument over which genocides were the most horrible and why, and my anti-political endless tit-for-tat talking past one another radar went off.

It's all about moderation from my standpoint.. And so sometimes it may look like i'm picking on one person or one post -- when the reality is that it's not a very scientific thing -- occasionally it just seems to me that a thread is going to take a turn from off topic to off-off-topic, and i feel the urge to say something sooner rather than later if i feel like we've add a large volume of recent threads on stuff that is on the margins of computer/software related matter.

Again for me it's all about moderation -- I just ask people to be cognizant of keeping the flavor of the forum reasonably balanced between talk of computer/software/technology stuff, and other matters -- and cognizant of the balance in their own posts.

[IainB]

I suggested above that the Holocaust taught us something:

That is, the Holocaust was a historical landmark and a trigger that released the idea of an indelible and greater humanitarianising and civilizing force into a world which previously had nothing quite like that before. So the 6 million deaths might not have been entirely in vain. The Holocaust taught us something which has arguably enabled humanity to take a further social evolutionary step - not that all societies/nations necessarily want to take that step, unfortunately.

-IainB (April 19, 2012, 05:35 AM)

I was quite surprised by serendipity today to read this post about how some universities/colleges can enable students to take advantage of the lessons learned: Remembering the Holocaust Through Learning

Through the Holocaust museum and non-profit organizations, Americans and others around the world can give funds and spread education about genocide prevention and conflict resolution. There are also a few ways in which someone can get a formal education in Jewish Studies, Hebrew, Holocaust and Genocide Studies, and Conflict Resolution.

Remembering the Holocaust Through Learning
Extract regarding the syllabus and qualifications available:

Master of Arts in Jewish Studies, Hebrew College:
Through Boston-area-based Hebrew College, students can earn several online degrees based on the study of Jewish texts, history, language, and tradition. The Master of Arts in Jewish Studies allows students to enrich their personal knowledge of Judaism and tailor their education to their desired career paths in Jewish communal organizations, rabbinic or cantorial studies, or Jewish academic scholarship.

Graduate Certificate in Holocaust and Genocide Studies, Gratz College:
This 18-hour fully online certificate is designed for those who would like to expand their knowledge of the Holocaust, or those who would like to be able to teach its historical significance better or create an interfaith dialogue. Two courses, The Holocaust and European Mass Murder, and Comparative Genocide, are required. Elective courses include: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam; Teaching the Holocaust; History of Antisemitism; Children of the Nazi Era; The Warsaw Ghetto; and The Problem of Evil.

Master of Arts in Holocaust and Genocide Studies, Richard Stockton College of New Jersey:
In New Jersey, the Holocaust and its historical significance are required subjects in schools. This degree program is geared not only at teachers, museum curators, and clergy, but also at those who would appreciate a better understanding of the Holocaust and its historical significance as well as an understanding of current conflicts. The interdisciplinary program includes coursework in general European history, genocide education, contemporary genocides, Nazi art and propaganda, and non-Jewish victims of the Nazis.

Graduate Certificate in Conflict and Peace Studies, University of North Carolina at Greensboro:
This 18-credit-hour program is designed to provide students with the tools to communicate effectively and design conflict resolution systems for a variety of situations. Students will study topics including fundamentals of conflict and peace studies, organizational conflict, and cultural dimensions of conflict resolution.

Master of Arts in Negotiation, Conflict Resolution, and Peacebuilding, California State University, Dominguez Hills:
The 36-semester-hour program is designed to prepare students for a career in mediation, public policy, social work, teaching, inter-cultural and community conflicts, among others. Courses cover topics including: ethics of negotiation, conflict resolution, and peacebuilding; theories of conflict; intercultural conflict resolution; and conflict and the media.

There seems to be a singular and remarkable thing about this - i.e., the emphasis on peaceful approaches - including, for example, the study of genocide, conflict resolution, organisational conflict, peacebuilding (all for use in the future).