Forum Rant

yeah yeah, just remember no one's forcing you to read this. and if you get offended remember i'm not naming names so maybe that shoe fits.


what is the deal with the forums lately? when i started way back when (september) the forums were a pretty reasonable place. there was usually like one or two threads in the general forum where people got bitchy and they'd slide off the bottom and into oblivion. then somewhere things went completely to shit.

the election happened and we got people screaming for civil war, secession, emigration, segregation by red state/blue state and other retarded bullshit. side A yelling that side B are a bunch of bigots, racists, and homophobic gun-freaks and side B replying that side A are just godless pagan tree hugging commie faggots. wtf? yeah it was a stunning election but duh, it was democracy in fucking action. "gee the system worked, let's all get pissed off about it." and even better "our side lost so let's move to another country (which will be paradise of course) so our cause will be even fucking weaker next time, yeah!" very smart. nobody came out looking good in that one.

then the goddamn sl economy became an issue. everybody screaming at each other because they make money playing sl or because they don't make money playing sl or because they don't make enough money playing sl. like making any money at all playing a video game isn't cool. and on top of it people got into insult matches over their pet theory of the economy. it's nice to know we have so many economists and experts in virtual world finance here in sl. as opposed to a bunch of uninformed dipshits who can't balance their checkbooks but think they're always entitled to make X amount selling pretend money cause that's what they made last month.

now it's the fucking player government threads. it's like it's literally impossible to have real rational debate or even a polite discussion past one dang page. could you please at least act like you're over 18? pretend. it's easy.

now i've been gone for a couple weeks working and only checking the forums a couple times. i come back and most of the general forum is people bitching and flaming and throwing the most retarded insults around. do the forums work in cycles like sunspots and i just happened to join at a happy point? i dunno what the deal is but it's at the point i don't even want to look at the forums cause it will be nothing but childish shouting matches solving nothing. i just pray to the gods it's only the forums and the whole sl world isn't becoming like this. just alot of hyper sensitive, selfish, self centered, judgemental crybabies intellectually masturbating cause they like to see their name on a web page. and for whoever's going to run to quote that line and say it applies to me: "zing". you like totally burned me.

grow up, sl forums. grow the fuck up. stop saying things on the forums that would get your teeth kicked in if you said them to someone's face. it's a bad habit. when you wake up in the morning, look in the mirror and say "the world doesn't revolve around me, i am but 1/6,000,000,000th of the world and that doesn't even count animals." before you post something think about whether anyone really really honest and for true cares, and what your mother would say. 90% of the time the answers are going to be "no" and "get the belt".

seriously if i had seen the forums looking like this when i was on my free trial i wouldn't still be here. yeah i know, big loss.

a last thing.... i'm on one other forum that has about 50,000 members and costs $9.95 to join. hmm that sounds familiar. anyway, it's attached to a completely idiotic lowbrow humor site and yet it still manages to be a million times more civil and informative than the sl forums. know why? cause when people are assholes they fucking ban them. they've banned almost 2,500 people for disrupting the forums. i know you can get banned inside sl but on the forums the worst that ever happens is some Linden pokes their head in around page 9 and says "no no children, i'm closing this thread so you'll have to post the exact same shit in a new one."

ps: remember how i said you didn't have to read this? yeah.

I think you need a hug. *hugs Zuzi and licks her kneecap*

Awww Zuzi. Take your meds! Shit!

I'm kidding... you're right, the forums have become *the* place to rail on your fellow SL-ers, but it's been that way for a while. We're a passionate bunch!

Oh, and California should still secede from the union. We're good that way.

When the "big one" hits the rest of the US will fall into the ocean and we will be all that's left, we won't need to secede.

I agree 110% with most of what you said, Zuzi.

It would be totally great if people left politics and other RL issues back in RL and simply enjoy SL, but there are always a few that seem to enjoy posting highly controversial and inciendary remarks, and most times, I am sure to their delight, others including myself, get dragged into some heavy s**t.

The sad part is that there cannot be civility where there is extremism and fanaticism, and in the forums we have quite a few extremists and fanatics that simply will not let certain issues rest.

Unfortunately, dropping out of the forums to avoid all of this bull, is difficult. Too much valuable technical info and announcements.

I think the only way to fix this is to as individuals, ignore the wacko threads. Not easy, but can be done.

- T -

thanks for the hug and kneecap licking Trinity. are you really short or really flexible?

Both, Zuzi! RAWR

When you started way back in september there was bitchiness then too....when I started way back in whenevr I started it was there then too.

I've never been bitchy in SL or on the forums. I have enough to bitch about in RL but...if anyone wants a tongue lashing, IM me inworld. It'll cost ya though.

Zuzi - the answer you seek is : 90% of people are tards.....

Sometimes I read the forums and think to myself 'WTF?' -- but after that I usually just start laughing, because honestly in the grand scheme of the world, how important is most of this shit anyways?

I guess you just gotta think 'Does this *really* effect me or my game?' -- and if the answer is 'no' then just laugh about it and drop it like a overweight suitcase...

90% of drama really is 'opt in'... and I only got the time and energy to get pissed about about a small amount of things -- so it's all about conservation of energy


Siggy.

Tougue lashing - thats a really good visual....

Maybe I should make a virtual tongue bath.

Siggy.

i think it would help if there was a "no rules" forum. if you want to be an ass go in there and be the best ass you can be. it might filter some of that out of the rest of the forums and it would be easier to avoid.

I'll be the tester!

Off topic is a sort of no rules forum.

Though some of us do get a bit edgy at times things usually work out. This isn't a run of the mill forum. I would say 98 percent of the heavy posters are highly intelligent people of passionate dispositions who are trying to figure it all out (whether that is player government or real world politics). In doing so toes may get stepped on and feelings may be temporarily hurt. On most occasions though by the end of the thread some consensus is reached even if it is just agreeing to disagree.

Though name calling is an abhorable offense few reduce themselves to that level and those who do are called on it, ignored or dealt with accordingly by moderators. It is my opinion that this is one of the most civil groups of honest people that I have met. Sure not everyone candy coats or pumps the sunshine pump but then it would be a Barney land where everyone agrees and we all love each other all the time. We are human, humans have conflicts, humans resolve conflicts in different manners.

So I suppose this all relies on your definition of civility. Is it to agree at any cost, splenda coat your opinions so not to offend anyone and to never have a heated discussion or is it to be honest in your feelings, show emotions when necessary, act like a human and not a stepford and then come up with a resolution. I choose the latter...but I like my humans with a side of emotion.

i loathe posting definitions so you can look up "civil" or "polite" for yourself but if it comes down to dependence on definition, neither of those you mentioned apply. civility has nothing to do with agreement. the alternative to flame wars and forum nastiness is not everyone nodding in unison like robots.

i guess i blame the internet. yeah the 90% rule and all that but i don't think anyone's going to contradict me if i say it's a hell of alot easier to have a civil debate offline than online. once you hit the internet and you're just a funny name with no face and no accountability everyone acts like they're 10 years old.

as long as we're talking rules how about the golden rule? that's what it comes down to. being called "nice" these days usually is taken about the same as being called "compulsive baboon masturbator" but it's alot more important to be nice than to win a forum argument. "oh yay, a few semi anonymous people on a video game forum will remember my stunning intellectual victory for the next 15 minutes. that was well worth being a complete shitheel for."

call me a pessimist but i'ma go out on a limb and say "no internet forum argument will ever have a significant lasting effect on any meaningful issue". including this one. not that i think i'm making a meaningful argument but that's just to defuse anyone waiting to jump out and yell "ah HA! hoisted on your own petard, whatever the fuck a petard is!"

hmmm...well I do know the denotation of civility but there are varying connotations of the word as well. Lordy though for one not into the whole flaming bit you certainly do flame users of forums with unabashed abomination. Look, I am not saying that we are all nice all the time. But for the most part we try as humans to convey our thoughts. Maybe I have a different circle of friends than you because when we are all sitting around with time on our hands and something to discuss it gets heated. We are, however, all adult enough to know that when the discussion is over, well, it is over. There are no grudges or ill feelings.

Rude is a subjective term, to some folks it is rude to disagree, to others it is rude to be dishonest and to most it is rude to call names. I think you and I can agree on the last one. But to come in horns blazing calling the forums a wasteland of psuedo intellectual manure is, by gosh, rude. There have been many, many relevant and informative discussions some have posted with vinegar others with truth and emotion. That, my comrade, is humanity. As uncivilized as it seems it is civilization. Discrediting the many by the posts of the few with such harshness and generalization defeats the purpose of your post. You rant on the rants of others, pointing fingers and calling thier thoughts retarded.

Ahh well, your rant is yours, feel as you wish. I choose to see the brighter side of this type of discourse.

get real. i disagreed and that's pretty much it.

bleh. that's prolly the problem. text doesn't have a facial expression or a voice tone so people lay whatever emotional content on it that they want. tell ya what, go back and read whatever you thought was a flame only this time imagine me smiling and happy. see if it still sounds like a flame. if it still feels like a flame i'll add to my sig.

also reread the part where i said if this applies, apply it. i'm talking about the forums in general but i never said it's nothing but shit. it's easy to think people are making blanket statements when they're not. i dunno if people assume that on purpose cause they suck and that's a cheap and easy way to discredit someone or if it's just a natural mistake to make. whichever. anyways, sorry you thought i was flaming. i hope you never run into any real flames.

call me a pessimist but i'ma go out on a limb and say "no internet forum argument will ever have a significant lasting effect on any meaningful issue". including this one. not that i think i'm making a meaningful argument but that's just to defuse anyone waiting to jump out and yell "ah HA! hoisted on your own petard, whatever the fuck a petard is!"

And on this note not to be a jerk but folks also said the same about the telephone and the television. This medium is still young, people are still figuring out it's place in society. Give it time and the outcome may impress you.

Well thanks Zuzi, for posting that... you said everything I wanted to say, only in a way I wouldn't say it! YAY.

Hey, there are plenty of places for negativity on the Internet. (Ogrish, Rotten dot com, etc.)

Some complain about too many clubs in SL.

Well . . . too much negativity here!

Think of it like this (I'm semi-jesting):

If negativity=club and SL Forums = NorthEast Sims forests , then IT ALL MAKES SENSE.

I'm all for a diversified spectrum of emotions, and I know that in life there is a lot of pain and suffering. I've gone through my fair share, and I'm sure a lot -- if not all of us -- have jagged scars (be they physical or emotional and soforth) to remember the sad times in our life by.

Sure, when I'm angry, I'll say "I'm angry", but I prolly won't say "I'm angry you stupid fucking dumbass". Addressing issues by elaborating on ideas, to me, takes FAR greater priority over hurting someone else's feelings via a personal attack. Even for those with thick skins, I'm sensitive to the humanity in each and every one of us.

I came to SL in large part of have fun. I look at it as balancing out the with a so I get a:

:|

Er, that "shoe" didn't fit.

But you can draw your own conclusions. To me, this is just a rehash of technosnobs '01 -- more precisely put, my previous experiences with flamey forums. It's an old game to me by now and I don't play it anymore... sick and tired of all the hate.

Torly i only ever understand about 1% of what you say but anyone who can say: + = :| is alright in my book. me like smiley math.

Isis, is that quote the part you found flamey or something unrelated?

Thought I would highlight the flames for you, though I likely missed a few. Maybe I took them out of context because I couldn't see the tongue in your cheek. But you know what, when I read words out of a book I can usually tell the authors intent. Is it humorous, inflammatory, informative, is the author angry, musing or gleeful. Words speak volumes about a person. In some ways I suppose I was trying to insite you to possibly show your facts as I can only find a couple of threads where people were unable to resolve the matter with cool heads.

Ohh and would you talk like that to your mother?

And just a wee ps Though I know, since you told me, that I don't have to read your public forum rant, I for one don't remember calling anyone anything harsher than banal, but I do stand by my fellow posters right to thier own opinions and emotions. As I do your right. But when you use the words retard, shit, fucking ect you are lowering yourself to the position of those you refute.

yeah we're getting into "yes it is/no it isn't" territory here and since your objections are with how i'm saying things instead of the issue (not that there's much of one) this is the last i'm going to say about it. if you still object feel free to IM me or whatever you want but our semantics lessons are getting off topic.

1. potayto, potahto, whatever but those aren't flames. i'm not insulting someone in specific, i'm addressing a general issue in a hyperbolic manner.
2. i'm not a professional author so don't expect professional writing or even coherency from me.
3. i don't have to provide facts because this is a rant, although i think i provided quite a few.
4. it's not about what you've called people. like i said it was a shoe-fits rant. if it fits you then feel free to take it to heart. if it doesn't fit you than i probably wasn't talking about you anyway.
5. i stand by the "retard" and the "shit" and such. calling for civil war cause our guy lost in a legal fair election is retarded bullshit, plain and simple. there are worse things in the world than "banal" and we got words for them. mine aren't all that highbrow but if you want you can call that "fatuous nonsense" or "ill advised rabble rousing". again, potayto/potahto.
6. yeah i would talk like that around my mother. i wouldn't talk like that to her cause i don't have the authority and she didn't do things that deserved a slap of reality like that anyway. nice work dragging mothers into this too.

that last part was a joke. see?

IM me if you still have a problem with how i'm expressing myself but if you want to post about the tone of the sl forums feel free.

I like your moxie Zuzi. We may disagree but you stand by your words regardless and there is something to be said for that. I hope that in all the semantic gobbledygook you can see my point as clearly as I see yours. To paraphrase my sig I really don't care if I make someone mad, instead I do my best to stick to the facts as far as I know them which is all that can be expected. And being human I am sometimes wrong and I sometimes snuggle too much with my own feelings which in turn may muddy facts, as do many in these here forums. Take them for what they are, gleen from them what you will and dispute anything that does not adhere to your rationale untill your rationale changes. But aside from that be yourself full on, uncensored and without regret. If a person is an ass they will be deemed such by the majority but do not assume the majority to be asses, you only alienate yourself.

The forums have always been bitchy. It's a small world. As the world gets larger I think the signal-to-noise in the forums has improved a lot.

Remember:
- very harsh arguments over 1.3
- arguments over how much things should cost
- arguments over tax
- arguments over prim-banking
... and tons of he said / she saids

Thank you Azelda. But the bitchiness in each senario brought about change in opinion or in the manner in which SL is run. The biggest forum offenders are those who post to threads only to tell those in the thread not to bitch about the topic in the thread. If one chooses not to be a part of the discussion because they do not feel thier voices will be heard or they think the discussion is crude or uncivilized then, by all means, do not join in. If one believes that they have a more worthy discussion topic then there is a create thread button...use it.