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Message: <blockquote data-quote="pickin_grinnin" data-source="post: 6869274" data-attributes="member: 6697674">Precisely.Hyperbole, overgeneralizations, etc. are very counterproductive when you are trying to raise awareness of an issue and make a general call to action.  When the overgeneralization is specifically directed towards the people who you want to buy into your idea, you are likely to lose a lot of potential allies who may otherwise agree with the gist of the post/article/speech/whatever.For example, second wave feminism failed to gain as much support among men and women as it could have because so many of the spokespeople made sweeping generalizations about men and relied on hyperbole to get attention.  Being angry at mistreatment is perfectly reasonable, as is expressing that anger.  Making sweeping generalizations about gender doesn't help any cause, though, and is somewhat hypocritical when your complaint revolves around being mistreated because of your gender.Having a valid complaint about sexism does not give you a free pass to be sexist in turn.  Pointing out sexism in a post about sexism is not redirecting the issue.  Let's turn this around.  If a man were to write an article about his bad experiences in child custody cases and points out how widespread such things are, there's nothing wrong with that.  If he couches his article in sweeping generalizations about women, though, he's opening himself (quite rightly) to having people point out how he is being sexist.  That wouldn't constitute a misdirection from the issue, either.Are there some gamers who behave inappropriately and even criminally?  Of course there are.  That doesn't mean that most do that, though, or that most stand idly by when they witness it.  It is a different thing to demonstrate that most female gamers have experienced it and to demonstrate that a majority of male users do it, or avoid stepping in when it happens.  Most of us have experienced bullies of one strip or another throughout or lives, but that doesn't mean that most people are bullies, or that most people tolerate bullying.  Some female gamers experience harassment from male gamers.  That's a problem.  As with all social issues, it's important to keep pointing it out.  That's a good thing.  Descending into hyperbole and gross overgeneralizations damages the message, though.  There is nothing wrong with people within the group that the overgeneralization is directed towards pointing out the problems with it, regardless of their gender or ethnicity.</blockquote>

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