Your Thought/Replies Welcome!

[_Ceeboo]

So - Last night, over a PM exchange, I was talking with a longtime MDB friend of mine that I both respect and admire a great deal. in my opinion, this particular person consistently puts their depth of wisdom on display here. Generally speaking, I think that this is a fairly rare quality and I personally think it's extremely undervalued by many of us who participate in these discussion board communities - this community being no exception.

At any rate, in a private conversation, because I value this person's opinion as highly as I do, I asked what their thoughts were about what I called this boards fairly recent shift to being a very toxic environment - An environment that seems to be littered with spite and angry exchanges - one where mockery and insults are becoming the daily norm - one where complete intolerance towards one another is no longer the exception, but it is the rule. An environment that, in my opinion, is starting to become a very exhausting place to hang out in.


Well, because their reply to me was done in a private setting - I will not share any of it on the public board. It's a boundary that I am not willing to cross.

But, If I had asked you for your thoughts (same as above), how would you reply to me?

Any/all replies appreciated and welcome.

Peace,
Ceeboo

[_Doctor CamNC4Me]

I think it's people's nature to believe they're on the right side of any given issue, and if they find themselves on the other side then their default setting is:

- This place is an echo chamber.

- Those people are a hive mind.

- I'm a critical thinker; they're sheeple.

People who think they have the moral high ground can be bullies, short-sighted, and insufferable. They can also think they contribute much more than they have. They can introduce topics, contribute a minimum amount of effort, and then claim they were, like, totally engaged on the topic.

Whatever the case may be, if someone is moaning on and on about other people it's most likely a combination of whiny victimhood and antagonism from their end.

- Doc

[_Ceeboo]

I think it's people's nature to believe they're on the right side of any given issue, and if they find themselves on the other side then their default setting is:

- This place is an echo chamber.

- Those people are a hive mind.

- I'm a critical thinker; they're sheeple.

People who think they have the moral high ground can be bullies, short-sighted, and insufferable. They can also think they contribute much more than they have. They can introduce topics, contribute a minimum amount of effort, and then claim they were, like, totally engaged on the topic.

Whatever the case may be, if someone is moaning on and on about other people it's most likely a combination of whiny victimhood and antagonism from their end.

- Doc

Thanks for your thoughts Doc!

Some very good points that are certainly worthy of consideration (My personal consideration included)

Peace,
Ceeboo

[_subgenius]

Doc's post makes some valid and insightful posts. I am often reminded of the relatively simple rules of this board...especially when i let emotion replace them. It becomes a significantly different exercise when one makes the effort to address a post instead of a person. I think this is a significant aspect of the "no personal attack" rule that is so frequently non-moderated on this board. Yet, when I take the time to refrain from a knee-jerk personal attack, I find that the more passionate aspects of my though/comment/emotion have a distinctly different focus. In fact I would wager that such a strategy would eliminate a majority of flame postings by all posters on this board.

So, while I certainly appreciate and encourage the expression of a person's passion with regards to any particular topic or circumstance, I also believe that keeping an eye on the ball is most helpful for all participants.

[_Ceeboo]

Doc's post makes some valid and insightful posts. I am often reminded of the relatively simple rules of this board...especially when i let emotion replace them. It becomes a significantly different exercise when one makes the effort to address a post instead of a person. I think this is a significant aspect of the "no personal attack" rule that is so frequently non-moderated on this board. Yet, when I take the time to refrain from a knee-jerk personal attack, I find that the more passionate aspects of my though/comment/emotion have a distinctly different focus. In fact I would wager that such a strategy would eliminate a majority of flame postings by all posters on this board.

So, while I certainly appreciate and encourage the expression of a person's passion with regards to any particular topic or circumstance, I also believe that keeping an eye on the ball is most helpful for all participants.

Thank you too, sub!

You add more thoughts that are worthy of consideration/reflection.

(for what it's worth, so far I am extremely pleased with the direction that this thread had taken - I hope it continues on its current course)

Peace,
Ceeboo

[_Kevin Graham]

An environment that seems to be littered with spite and angry exchanges - one where mockery and insults are becoming the daily norm

You mean, like your comment just last night that was completely uncalled for in a thread that had absolutely nothing to do with you?

Kevin: "[Dan] and I are friends on Facebook."

Ceeboo: "There goes any chance that he had of winning an election. Nice job Kevin - I'm sure he really appreciates it!"

You're so quick to point out toxicity of other remarks but have no self awareness of your own, even as you're literally doing precisely what you're complaining about at the time. (You made this comment "late last night" probably right after your private exchange when you had this epiphany).

On a regular basis you'll ruin potentially informative threads with a bombardment of gifs for no apparent reason other than your own entertainment. And the derailment usually works, or at the very least will turn a 5 page thread into a 15 page thread muddled with quips, smiley faces and gifs. When I was looking over an older thread on assault weapons last night this is what jumped out at me about you. I just kept telling myself, Jesus H Christ, two years later and Ceeboo is still the same. But what annoys me about you isn't that you generally contribute nothing of substance to the discussions at hand, nor is it that you pretend to be contributing. It is that you occasionally drop these judgment threads on us as if none of it pertains to you.

Having said all that, the board is basically the same as it has always been. It is probably much better than it was when folks like Droopy and Ldsfaqs were regular participants. If useless trolls like Subgenius and our resident White Supremacist (Majax) were to depart, the forum's "toxicity" would be improved even more. But we all know you're not really making this thread about them. It is just another dig at me. For example:

Well, because their reply to me was done in a private setting - I will not share any of it on the public board. It's a boundary that I am not willing to cross.

Uh huh. And what was the purpose of this comment? No one has indicated that they care what your mystery "friend" said, let alone asked you to produce private messages from him/her, so why even make such a remark? Hmm, would it have anything to do with Jersey Girl's recent slam on me for sharing private messages yesterday? You know, the thread in which Jersey Girl attacked me and mocked Dan for wanting to be my Facebook friend, well before knowing any of the facts. Is this all just some crazy coincidence or is this your petulant, not so veiled way of saying, "Look at how much better I am than Kevin Graham!"

Yesterday I thought I'd share some cool information about a former forum participant everyone knew. It was an pretty innocuous thread, and the end result is that I get slammed from both sides by you and Jersey Girl. You want to know what's so toxic about the forum at times? Look in the mirror.

[Guest]

I'm not sure if it's becoming worse or if the polarization of so much of US society is being reflected. It comes and goes. Some folks are more into the grappling and arguing that sometimes ensues, others are repelled. Different styles of perception, communication, etc. to be expected.

It may surprise you, but I've actually learned to hold back a bit and there are posters that I ignore rather than reach my full sarcasm potential. Just because you can doesn't mean you should. But I always keep it in reserve for that special moment.

[_Some Schmo]

...about what I called this boards fairly recent shift to being a very toxic environment - An environment that seems to be littered with spite and angry exchanges - one where mockery and insults are becoming the daily norm - one where complete intolerance towards one another is no longer the exception, but it is the rule. An environment that, in my opinion, is starting to become a very exhausting place to hang out in.

Dude, where's the shift?

Message boards are exactly what you just described, and have been at least since I've been watching. It's not just this one, either.

I swear, you and I could be watching the same movie and you'd come away from it talking about what a great drama it was while I was saying it wasn't the best comedy I'd ever seen.

[_Xenophon]

I'm not sure if it's becoming worse or if the polarization of so much of US society is being reflected. It comes and goes. Some folks are more into the grappling and arguing that sometimes ensues, others are repelled. Different styles of perception, communication, etc. to be expected.

I think this is about how I see. I know I haven't been around forever but in reading a lot of the old threads there are some extended time periods of serious vitriol, especially between specific posters. It is probably indicative of a broader cultural divisiveness but I think it also springs from the pretty lax moderation rules around here (that I support).

From a personal strategy stand point, I just try to be the change I want to see on MDB, even if I still often fall short.

[_Ceeboo]

...about what I called this boards fairly recent shift to being a very toxic environment - An environment that seems to be littered with spite and angry exchanges - one where mockery and insults are becoming the daily norm - one where complete intolerance towards one another is no longer the exception, but it is the rule. An environment that, in my opinion, is starting to become a very exhausting place to hang out in.

Dude, where's the shift?

In my mind, it has shifted (a lot recently) but that is just in my mind. I started the thread - and asked for other perspectives because I am interested to learn what is in the minds of others.

Thank you for sharing your thoughts - I asked for them and I appreciate your willingness to share them.

Peace,
Ceeboo