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The tone has changed and not for the better, but it's easy enough to skip threads that don't interest you. Forums with rules and nazis to enforce rules tend to quash the "good eggs" just as easily as the bad ones.

I've been a forum member for over a decade and I don't think the tone has changed much. There was just as much squawking and disagreement when I first joined as there is now (perhaps even more name calling back then ... I remember GoofyUT and Snoredog getting into some real cursing and name calling arguments).

The only difference I see now is the increased infiltration of political correctness and requests for safe spaces. The "OT:" in the thread titles is actually a more recent accommodation that I have noticed because that was not often used in the forum 10 years ago.

desiderata wrote:OT: Hide posts that veer off-topic from subject line?

Well, you poor little snowflake. Just subscribe to the posts you like and unsubscribe when they become disagreeable to your sensitivities.

The other option is to get your therapy optimized and leave. It's a big beautiful world out there with lots of things to see and do.

CowFish wrote:

desiderata wrote:OT: Hide posts that veer off-topic from subject line?

Well, you poor little snowflake. Just subscribe to the posts you like and unsubscribe when they become disagreeable to your sensitivities.

The other option is to get your therapy optimized and leave. It's a big beautiful world out there with lots of things to see and do.

YOU, Cow are the poor little snowflake... what a miserable life you must lead. A decent person says she is unhappy with the bickering which disrupts otherwise useful threads, and YOU, Cow decide she needs to optimize her therapy. HOW ABOUT OPTIMIZING YOURS!

Uh oh! Time to get to a safe space ...

My computer has those safe guards already, my mouse has a scroll wheel, and if that fails my eyes or closeable, if all else fails my computer has a off button. However for these to be effective, you must learn self control.

In Life things aren't always not what you want, nor should it be. Why sould you have the right to control what others can do or say. Not many are killed from looking at a screen on a computer, at least not many, some should be maybe.

Start your own forum, control it as you want, if you can't stand your on posts, ban yourself. Either grow a thicker skin or play in the shallow end of the pool.

Americans need to grow some, it looks like a lot of them have fallen off, or maybe they never dropped. Jim

DreamStalker wrote:I've been a forum member for over a decade and I don't think the tone has changed much. There was just as much squawking and disagreement when I first joined as there is now (perhaps even more name calling back then ... I remember GoofyUT and Snoredog getting into some real cursing and name calling arguments).

The only difference I see now is the increased infiltration of political correctness and requests for safe spaces. The "OT:" in the thread titles is actually a more recent accommodation that I have noticed because that was not often used in the forum 10 years ago.

I've been here a bit over ten years as well, and I totally agree with DreamStalker that it was just as bad back then but just with mostly different people.

I lost my sensitivity to the actual name-calling, rudeness, and such a long time ago (didn't say I thought it was helpful, just said I lost my sensitivity to it). My issue is those--let's see, how can I say this nicely?--whose main "contribution" is disruption of an otherwise helpful thread (or one that had the potential to be helpful), people who can't comment or disagree without being rude and name-calling which then starts bickering posts with others back and forth that end up helping no one. Don't understand it and never will when the whole point here I thought was learning and helping. But then again, maybe I'm just ignorant of the meanings of "learning" and "helpful."

Veering off topic from the subject line in a helpful way I think can be good, though.

Many times after topics get longer than a page the answers have already been given, not all of us think the same about everything, bickering starts, sometimes it's carried over from other posts, same fights different location. This is the nature of the beast, glean what you need ignore the what doesn't help you, if you can't do that you don't belong on the internet. It's a network of many minds and opinions, some are wrong. In the end it's up to each of us to choose our own path, not to kick others hunting for their path! Jim

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Oh, well, at least I netted something more to hide. Gotta call that a win, eh?

a few more added to your foe list

desiderata wrote:I was going to start a post because I've wondered why there are so many lurkers, but then I realized that would be almost redundant.

Is it any of your business if people want to lurk?

You sound like a controlling personality. I would like to be on your Foe list.

Lurkers do NOT post so how could they be a problem for anyone?

They certainly do NOT derail a thread and I thought that was the topic here?

Are we going off topic now?

I guess when I'm not posting...I'm a lurker?

Guest wrote:Are we going off topic now?

So she's derailing this thread?? Well, it's OK when SHE does it.