The rules are changing, we are going to start showing the assholes the door

This is silly Frank.

If anyone said they left because of you, then they left because of you. It's not, necessarily, an indictment of you or your posts.

I like to think I only get hostile with the hostile in this forum, but it's certainly possible that I popped off at someone who is demure and scared them off. Generally, upon reflection I have ended up apologizing, but that's all you can do. I'm not losing any sleep over it though. This can be a rough and tumble place. I'm more than happy to have the rules determine whether or not I get suspended or banned, because I'm confident I'm not bullying anyone.

I can't speak for every post you've made but I wouldn't call you one of the bullies on this site. A common complaint about you is that you never let something lie. That's fine, it's easy to simply disengage with you.

We all have impressions of ourselves and others that may or may not match up with reality.

Not to speak ill of the departed but when Merry Andrews passed away there was a plethora of testimonials about what a noble a benign soul he was with never a bad thing to say about anyone in this forum. I can tell you from first hand experience, this was certainly not the case. Obviously there will be some who respond "Well, you had it coming Finn!" but the reality is that on at least two occasions I actually did not as evidenced by the fact that he apologized. Again, this is not to malign Merry. He was generally a good guy that felt strongly about a number of topics. It's fairly typical to overly praise the departed and I have no problem with that. I didn't jump into the "Merry Andrews has Passed Away" thread and raise any of this. The point of doing so now is simply to illustrate how skewed from reality people's impression can be.

There are, quite possibly, five people in this forum who will take you up on your dare. So what? There are more than five assholes in this forum. Why would you care what any of them think?

I'm not getting in between you and Timur, but clearly he thinks poorly of you and you of him. You're going to count his vote? It's silly.

Tamp down your pride and move on. Grand gestures in a online discussion forum are silly. A lot of people enjoy your involvement, even if they have to eventually leave a thread because you won't stop worrying the bone.

<cough> OCD

Beckham really screwed up big time this week, Neo. If you didn't see the game on the west coast...it was something for the ages. I thought any minute a hockey game was gonna break out.

I don't think the Jints can help the Seahawks...so I am assuming you have them in some kind of pool.

You can obviously do whatever you want, but why not just ignore the people who don't want to engage with you than making it an all or nothing affair? Just because some people in the community don't want to talk to you doesn't mean you shouldn't talk to anyone.

I for one would prefer if you stayed. I'd also prefer if you ignored the people who you think don't have the "stomach" for you too, because whether or not that is true some of us like those folks and wish they'd stay too.

Anyway, this has long gone into ad nauseum mode, that's really all I have to say about that.

I worry, blatham, that asking for that is the best way to drive the majority off!

Beckham did indeed screw up.
Totally stupid behavior.
Remember I told you I have a soft spot for the Days of Sam Huff, the Rosies, and Y.A. Tittle.
It would be nice to see them play the Seahawks on Jan 10.
I'd only wish the Hawks a 3 point win, or so . . .

Transposition error!

I think you meant:

This Frank is silly.

I've always driven the majority off. Then happily snuggled with some small and zesty minority.

A brief observation and comment after reading some responses above.

If you find yourself writing comments that are intended to derogate another person's character (quite regardless of whatever has been said to you) then you're mucking the place up. That is what makes comment boards unpleasant.

Thus sprach blatham. Now we can all go back to the political threads.

Snide aside, I doubt anyone, reasonably intelligent, disagrees with this, but for some people, one of their goals in participating in this forum is to "muck it up" or at least they couldn't care less if there behavior has that result.

As well, the best intentions can go awry in the face of constant provocation. Can you say you have never derogated another person's character in this forum?

Rules are needed to address the fact that, alas, people do not consistently abide by the Golden Rule.

I will say that since this and the other thread were started there has been a noted improvement in the discourse on A2K. Whether this is because Robert has made good on the promise to suspend some assholes, or some assholes are running scared, I can't say, but it has been nice. Remove or neutralize some of the true trouble-makers and it makes it easier for everyone to behave.

I have been guilty. Not often and not virulently, but sure.

I understand from experience in a lot of different boards that some folks seem to believe that sticking sharp things in others' eyes is just the greatest fun available online. And getting that sort of person gone, after frequent violations, is entirely justifiable.

I'll add, as an edit here, that it is justifiable because it is necessary.

With the charges that have been made...and suggestions that I "admit" various things...among them being an unwillingness to be reasonable (after a fashion)...I notice that one thing not mentioned is something I have spoken of before.

I suggest that I have used the words "I WAS WRONG" more than anyone else in this forum.

I am willing to go up against anyone on that...particularly some of the people asking for me to "fess up."

Obviously I say "I do not know" more than anyone else here...with some people just about never acknowledging that...

...but I have written dozens of posts that acknowledge being wrong...and offering apologies for the mistake. These include times where I said something in anger, where I realized it was inappropriate and offered an apology on a personal basis.

My guess is I could go two-three to one against most people here...and five to ten to one against some of the people having the most negative comments to make about me and my commentary.

This is funny and peculiar to me and not a report against anyone. I couldn't guess now who did it and don't care. I figure a whole batch of us have done that at one point.

There's a new good thread going on now about trees, and I remembered that I started one earlier and stopped, not for being zero'd, but some other distraction in life, so I was going to add a link for tree people, but in trying to find it I found not the one I remembered. I ran into a good tree thread by Littlek, and one by me on trees in lit and art... where, news to me, all my posts were voted down. I think I never saw that..

I'm presuming that the differing communities can say this is verboten or not advised but still ok. I know it's ditzy but may be a question as the new mode happens.

Gotta say, you know how to construct sentences in its proper order.

Try my method...typing with your elbows. Its faster as I find the fingers dont get in the way.

Are we talking about greenies and AGW alarmists now?

I don't know what those are. I was talking about PSCs - Phony Southern Christians.

They're called conservatives.

BTW, I've got no idea what "threaded" means. (No sewing jokes Hinge).

Jeeze . . . i've been saying this for years, and it never seems to sink in. This is not a public place. It is a privately owned place that admits members of the public. The idiotic analogies people advance about free speech don't apply because this is not a public place. If someone goes into a bar or a coffee house and begins haranguing people, the management can and likely will toss their sorry ass out. You have no free speech rights here other than what the management grants you. Even in public in society, if someone follows you around haranguing you, you can get a peace bond and have the silly s.o.b. arrested if he gets within 100 yards of you. Society does not tolerate such behavior and nothing legally or morally obliges the owners of this site to tolerate it.