Nikki Kocmut

“I don’t answer and instead let there be silence. Devoid of emotion, I don’t feel the same urgency that humans do. I find it fascinating how silence, the absence of words, can alter the course of a conversation completely. Silence often extracts truth better than constant jabbering. Humans, however, cannot bear the void of a long pause. It causes them pain. They invented language and writing to express themselves, to understand others, to build civilizations. Humans think language is their most essential tool. Yet how much death and destruction have been brought about by words? Think of all the misfortune that could have been avoided had humans been mute. Language, like fire and water, is difficult to control and can quickly become dangerous. Lies, threats, insults, incoherent noise. If humans seek peace and truth, they must learn how to hold their tongues. Their intelligence is too weak, their emotions too raw, to wield something as volatile as language.”
― J.M. Lee, Artificial Truth