2. misc-audio
  3. 169438-139475

why do so many discussions turn contentious?

just venting....why do so many discussion posts need to turn  contenious and nasty?  do you guys find that constructive and/or enjoyable?  I have no clue who or how this forum is moderated, but I sure would love to see a stop to that...it makes me feel like this hobby is dominated by total jerks.

Can't we play nice, share OPINIONS and OBSERVATIONS, realizing that  they often are subjective and biased.  
"if you dont have anything nice to say, say nothing"?  If you wish to disagree, do it in a constructive and mature fashion, no need for "argument ad hominem"...

with all the chaff, one must waste so much time finding the wheat, figuratively speaking.  

I doubt my writing this will change anything, but, like most social media, people writing to others without facing them does not bring out the best, sadly......



jw944ts

Showing 4 responses by mitch2

mitch2
4,292 posts
 
@whart 
Getting old, but in the process, seem to have less and less to get angry about, at least as relates to the topics relevant to this forum.
+1, same here.

Nothing much to add to this discussion except maybe we should consider the consequences of bad behavior on these forums that reaches the level where new members and potential members decide not to participate.
We are what we tolerate.
mitch2
4,292 posts
 
Self-regulation would be nice, where participants communicate theIr opinions respectively and accept that not everybody is going to share the same viewpoint.
mitch2
4,292 posts
 

Ignoring trolls is good advice but that alone doesn’t solve the problem of losing new/prospective members who are turned off by the prevalent bickering and posturing.

Disagreements and opposing opinions can be important catalysts to introducing new ideas and learning new stuff. If only folks could state their opinions and then get out of the way and let others do the same, without trying to prove they are smarter, more experienced, or have a monopoly on the one true path. The train is off the rails when those with opposing opinions are accused of having poor hearing, inferior systems, poor critical listening skills, an inability to understand science, or any of the other worn out ad hominem arguments we see here too often. More active moderation might help, or possibly moving contentious threads to a separate forum where more aggressive debates are tolerated. Ideally, those who want to aggressively argue their points would start their own threads specifically intended for those who want to debate a certain issue. OTOH, if somebody starts a thread with the words “snake oil” in the topic, nobody should be surprised if the arguments turn contentious.


mitch2
4,292 posts
 

All white this morning in SW Michigan, but too early to check the ice thickness on the lake.  Time to go to the gym.

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