My dad and I had a fairly long discussion again last night. I enjoy these discussions because they make me think and, so far from indoctrinating me into my dad's point of view, actually help me to elucidate points in my own philosophy. One of the things we briefly touched upon was the importance of helping others by telling them what you think. I made the point, although I had never really thought about it in such terms in the past, that in order to effectively communicate a message to another person, you must consider how exactly the message will come across to them, both as to wording and manner and as to how they perceive you as an individual. This is the reason why it is sometimes not worth the trouble to say certain things to people--because the chance is slim or none that they will actually listen to what you have to say and internalize it. Subconsciously, and maybe even consciously, people judge you by your age, character, position in life, appearance, and various other qualities about which you have little or no control. With a little common sense, you can divine whether a person is likely to listen to your message just from stepping into their shoes and imagining how they see you. Once you decide that there is a chance that speaking to someone will effect change in that person, then you must carefully consider how you word your message. It is only common sense that a rudely-worded or seemingly offensive speech will not at all help to effect change, because any sensible consideration the person might have of it would be overruled by their hurt feelings. Indeed, feelings must be considered at all times in discourse with others. I know I am all too apt to be insensitive to others' feelings, but the more I think about it, the more I realize that the most effective evangelists must play on emotion as well as on intellectual stimulation. We should preach always and use words only if necessary, but nowadays words are necessary. More than that, it is necessary that the words we use not get caught in the melting pot of all the discordant voices in our society. One of my dad's recurrent themes in our talk was that "the loudest voices [those with the most money and power] get heard." I believe that with skill and care, my voice will at least develop into something worth listening to.