It is rather sad...

[L.K.Eder]

He was a fictional character. I am a real person. I asked you a real person question.

please, ask it again, i re-read your stuff in this thread, i found some grammatical errors, but no question for me:

Why do so many of you relish is being vile towards yourself and others?

Yes, I probably do have grammatical errors in my posts. I did ask a question of you. That is not the subject of the thread though. It is irrelevant to the question asked to you.

I am a fool, if I do my best to treat others as I wish to be treated, even if they are nasty towards me? That is the question I asked of you. You did not answer.

you are not a fool if you do your best regardless of how others treat you, you are on the way to sainthood if you are serious.

on a messageboard however, to try to appeal to the ethical part of humans is quixotic, and i think you know that. so i take your thread as public masturbation, not that there is anything wrong with that.

 

[BasicGreatGuy]

Yes, as humans are social animals, and as this is a micro-society, we will attempt to enforce proper behavior of those in that society through social means - showing proper behavior in return for its being given and ridicule/dismiss/shun/etc. those out of societal norms - sociopaths, in its most base definition. Societal enforcement of law is the much more effective than any authoritarian enforcement, only when speech is completely free, that is. It's quite fitting in the libertarian ideals, as a matter of fact.

Unless one is dealing with a sociopath, I believe the overall demeanor of the societal microcosm can have an effect on the individuals within. Like you, I believe this message board (such as it is) is its own microcosm that is symbolic of general point I was making about society as a whole.

To see if there is some common ground on this, do you believe that for continued effective functioning of a society, that punishment of those operating outside the societal norms is a requirement?

I would say it depends on the offense made, as to what type of punishment if any, is taken.

 

[Si modo]

Unless one is dealing with a sociopath, I believe the overall demeanor of the societal microcosm can have an effect on the individuals within. Like you, I believe this message board (such as it is) is its own microcosm that is symbolic of general point I was making about society as a whole.

To see if there is some common ground on this, do you believe that for continued effective functioning of a society, that punishment of those operating outside the societal norms is a requirement?

I would say it depends on the offense made, as to what type of punishment if any, is taken.

The offense is operating outside of societal norms. For this place and based on your OP, any trolling, irrelevant, and assclown behavior would be the offense.

 

[Lumpy 1]

I didn't personally accuse you of being guilty of what I spoke of. It seems you have an attack of the guilts. I have not been rude to you. I simply called your reply what it was, in a honest and civil manner. The truth stings like a sharp bitter wind sometimes.

I think it's good that people have a place to blow off some steam and can hide in the virtual world without repercussions. Sometimes... it down right pisses me off when I run across the bluntly ignorant. I've reconciled that maybe if they blow it out in the virtual, they just might not in the real.

I always try to be respectful and humorous but seem to enjoy getting the heat up a little..I believe you just have to accept what is and deal with it... or just move on..

I understand having a place to 'unwind' as it were Lumpy. I understand we all have our 'bad' moments, where we say things we later regret and try to rectify. I am speaking in reference to people who show the utmost disrespect to self and others by the way they interact with others on here.

The core point is, we are more than mere nicknames on a message board. We are real individuals with real emotions, passions, troubles, and everything in between.

I don't think there should be one set of rules when we are on the internet, and one when we are off the internet. I think we should do our best to be respectful whether we are on the internet or off the internet. And if we run across people who want to act in a hateful manner no matter what, it is best (in my opinion) to either point out a wrong and move forward, or ignore them all together.

I think the gross incivility is affecting more than our internet affiliations. I think the incivility is reaching across into many interpersonal relationships.

I don't think civility and decorum is passe.

I don't want to disagree and I do appreciate your response.

In essence... all I can question is your last statement. I believe civility and decorum is indeed passe for a fair percentage of people here and in daily life and all you can do is apply the method, in dealing with it ...you spoke of earlier.

 

[BasicGreatGuy]

please, ask it again, i re-read your stuff in this thread, i found some grammatical errors, but no question for me:

Yes, I probably do have grammatical errors in my posts. I did ask a question of you. That is not the subject of the thread though. It is irrelevant to the question asked to you.

I am a fool, if I do my best to treat others as I wish to be treated, even if they are nasty towards me? That is the question I asked of you. You did not answer.

you are not a fool if you do your best regardless of how others treat you, you are on the way to sainthood if you are serious.

on a messageboard however, to try to appeal to the ethical part of humans is quixotic, and i think you know that. so i take your thread as public masturbation, not that there is anything wrong with that.

In my opinion, words are eternal. We can do our best to be mindful of the words we use towards others, or we can use them as hateful weapons not concerning ourselves with proper context.

Each one of us have words, that when said by us or to us, have an impact on our life, that may or may not be the same with someone else.

Over the years, I have observed that many people (appear) to throw around various words and phrases in conversation, without really giving thought as to proper meaning and context. At times, I have been guilty of such. It doesn't make it right, but it has happened before. If the words or phrases have a positive connotation, they are often warmly received. When the hateful and vulgar rhetoric is employed, I wonder if the speaker is mindful of the impact the words or phrases have not only on others, but more importantly, their own person. After a while, many people become accustomed to wrongful behavior and eventually embrace it as 'normal.'

Outside of the internet, I have seen the same type of scenario(s) occur from time to time. It doesn't happen overnight. It is a slow process.

 

[Si modo]

I think it's good that people have a place to blow off some steam and can hide in the virtual world without repercussions. Sometimes... it down right pisses me off when I run across the bluntly ignorant. I've reconciled that maybe if they blow it out in the virtual, they just might not in the real.

I always try to be respectful and humorous but seem to enjoy getting the heat up a little..I believe you just have to accept what is and deal with it... or just move on..

I understand having a place to 'unwind' as it were Lumpy. I understand we all have our 'bad' moments, where we say things we later regret and try to rectify. I am speaking in reference to people who show the utmost disrespect to self and others by the way they interact with others on here.

The core point is, we are more than mere nicknames on a message board. We are real individuals with real emotions, passions, troubles, and everything in between.

I don't think there should be one set of rules when we are on the internet, and one when we are off the internet. I think we should do our best to be respectful whether we are on the internet or off the internet. And if we run across people who want to act in a hateful manner no matter what, it is best (in my opinion) to either point out a wrong and move forward, or ignore them all together.

I think the gross incivility is affecting more than our internet affiliations. I think the incivility is reaching across into many interpersonal relationships.

I don't think civility and decorum is passe.

I don't want to disagree and I do appreciate your response.

In essence... all I can question is your last statement. I believe civility and decorum is indeed passe for a fair percentage of people here and in daily life and all you can do is apply the method, in dealing with it ...you spoke of earlier.

Here, we are all stuck in a room with each other, so to speak. If we wish to remain in this room to engage the engageable, we must find some way to deal with those who we find vile, stupid, idiotic, etc. Thus we have some choices to make - log off, hope we are heard above the din of idiocy, attempt some societal enforcement, or attempt some societal enforcement while engaging the engageable.

In real life, my method of societal enforcement is dismissal and shunning, or if the assclowns are clearly the ruling class of the venue, I will just leave the venue. Rarely will I attempt to get 'in the face' of another as the dismissal and shunning is quite effective. But, on those rare occasions, I have no qualms saying to the face of another anything different than I have said here.

Luckily, in my personal real life society, assclowns are not a significant minority.

 

[L.K.Eder]

Yes, I probably do have grammatical errors in my posts. I did ask a question of you. That is not the subject of the thread though. It is irrelevant to the question asked to you.

I am a fool, if I do my best to treat others as I wish to be treated, even if they are nasty towards me? That is the question I asked of you. You did not answer.

you are not a fool if you do your best regardless of how others treat you, you are on the way to sainthood if you are serious.

on a messageboard however, to try to appeal to the ethical part of humans is quixotic, and i think you know that. so i take your thread as public masturbation, not that there is anything wrong with that.

In my opinion, words are eternal. We can do our best to be mindful of the words we use towards others, or we can use them as hateful weapons not concerning ourselves with proper context.

Each one of us have words, that when said by us or to us, have an impact on our life, that may or may not be the same with someone else.

Over the years, I have observed that many people (appear) to throw around various words and phrases in conversation, without really giving thought as to proper meaning and context. At times, I have been guilty of such. It doesn't make it right, but it has happened before. If the words or phrases have a positive connotation, they are often warmly received. When the hateful and vulgar rhetoric is employed, I wonder if the speaker is mindful of the impact the words or phrases have not only on others, but more importantly, their own person. After a while, many people become accustomed to wrongful behavior and eventually embrace it as 'normal.'

Outside of the internet, I have seen the same type of scenario(s) occur from time to time. It doesn't happen overnight. It is a slow process.

i understand what you are saying.

probably more than you can imagine.

as english is not my mother tongue, i can actually decide to learn certain stuff. i know what i am throwing around. it is deliberate. it is specific to a topic. it is fluid. it is reactive and proactive. i know what i am doing, even on an internet message board.

 

[BasicGreatGuy]

To see if there is some common ground on this, do you believe that for continued effective functioning of a society, that punishment of those operating outside the societal norms is a requirement?

I would say it depends on the offense made, as to what type of punishment if any, is taken.

The offense is operating outside of societal norms. For this place and based on your OP, any trolling, irrelevant, and assclown behavior would be the offense.

As to punishment, (if any) that depends on those within said society. There are many things that are said by various people on the forum, that I think is out of line. At the same time, I appreciate the openness of the forum. I realize I am a nonpaying member who has no real control over how people interact with one another. If I believed a members actions were truly egregious, I would report them to the moderators to handle as they see fit. If not, I would give thought as to whether I thought the poster in question would be receptive to what I had to say, and proceed accordingly.

 

[Si modo]

I would say it depends on the offense made, as to what type of punishment if any, is taken.

The offense is operating outside of societal norms. For this place and based on your OP, any trolling, irrelevant, and assclown behavior would be the offense.

As to punishment, (if any) that depends on those within said society. There are many things that are said by various people on the forum, that I think is out of line. At the same time, I appreciate the openness of the forum. I realize I am a nonpaying member who has no real control over how people interact with one another. If I believed a members actions were truly egregious, I would report them to the moderators to handle as they see fit. If not, I would give thought as to whether I thought the poster in question would be receptive to what I had to say, and proceed accordingly.

But I am still wondering whether you believe that for continued effective functioning of a society, that punishment of those operating outside the societal norms is a requirement?

 

[BasicGreatGuy]

I understand having a place to 'unwind' as it were Lumpy. I understand we all have our 'bad' moments, where we say things we later regret and try to rectify. I am speaking in reference to people who show the utmost disrespect to self and others by the way they interact with others on here.

The core point is, we are more than mere nicknames on a message board. We are real individuals with real emotions, passions, troubles, and everything in between.

I don't think there should be one set of rules when we are on the internet, and one when we are off the internet. I think we should do our best to be respectful whether we are on the internet or off the internet. And if we run across people who want to act in a hateful manner no matter what, it is best (in my opinion) to either point out a wrong and move forward, or ignore them all together.

I think the gross incivility is affecting more than our internet affiliations. I think the incivility is reaching across into many interpersonal relationships.

I don't think civility and decorum is passe.

I don't want to disagree and I do appreciate your response.

In essence... all I can question is your last statement. I believe civility and decorum is indeed passe for a fair percentage of people here and in daily life and all you can do is apply the method, in dealing with it ...you spoke of earlier.

Here, we are all stuck in a room with each other, so to speak. If we wish to remain in this room to engage the engageable, we must find some way to deal with those who we find vile, stupid, idiotic, etc. Thus we have some choices to make - log off, hope we are heard above the din of idiocy, attempt some societal enforcement, or attempt some societal enforcement while engaging the engageable.

In real life, my method of societal enforcement is dismissal and shunning, or if the assclowns are clearly the ruling class of the venue, I will just leave the venue. Rarely will I attempt to get 'in the face' of another as the dismissal and shunning is quite effective. But, on those rare occasions, I have no qualms saying to the face of another anything different than I have said here.

Luckily, in my personal real life society, assclowns are not a significant minority.

I practice many of the same things you mentioned. And off the internet, is no exception.

I am not expecting that everyone on a message board be civil to one another at all times. I realize that is impossible. At times, I fail. I just find it strange, that so many people see a disconnect with their government employees, interpersonal relationships of others, as well as their work place, while failing to see the disconnect in their own life, in whatever manner and extent. In a lot of instances, I believe many people create the very behavior and dsyfunction they claim to disavow in the first place. It is a puzzling piece of the human puzzle.

 

[Si modo]

I don't want to disagree and I do appreciate your response.

In essence... all I can question is your last statement. I believe civility and decorum is indeed passe for a fair percentage of people here and in daily life and all you can do is apply the method, in dealing with it ...you spoke of earlier.

Here, we are all stuck in a room with each other, so to speak. If we wish to remain in this room to engage the engageable, we must find some way to deal with those who we find vile, stupid, idiotic, etc. Thus we have some choices to make - log off, hope we are heard above the din of idiocy, attempt some societal enforcement, or attempt some societal enforcement while engaging the engageable.

In real life, my method of societal enforcement is dismissal and shunning, or if the assclowns are clearly the ruling class of the venue, I will just leave the venue. Rarely will I attempt to get 'in the face' of another as the dismissal and shunning is quite effective. But, on those rare occasions, I have no qualms saying to the face of another anything different than I have said here.

Luckily, in my personal real life society, assclowns are not a significant minority.

I practice many of the same things you mentioned. And off the internet, is no exception.

I am not expecting that everyone on a message board be civil to one another at all times. I realize that is impossible. At times, I fail. I just find it strange, that so many people see a disconnect with their government employees, interpersonal relationships of others, as well as their work place, while failing to see the disconnect in their own life, in whatever manner and extent. In a lot of instances, I believe many people create the very behavior and dsyfunction they claim to disavow in the first place. It is a puzzling piece of the human puzzle.

Not all members of society are fully mentally functional, both intellectually and socially. Damn Bell curves. But, through societal enforcement of expectations for that micro-society, the mean of that curve can be shifted to the right. At least, that is my belief.

 

[BasicGreatGuy]

The offense is operating outside of societal norms. For this place and based on your OP, any trolling, irrelevant, and assclown behavior would be the offense.

As to punishment, (if any) that depends on those within said society. There are many things that are said by various people on the forum, that I think is out of line. At the same time, I appreciate the openness of the forum. I realize I am a nonpaying member who has no real control over how people interact with one another. If I believed a members actions were truly egregious, I would report them to the moderators to handle as they see fit. If not, I would give thought as to whether I thought the poster in question would be receptive to what I had to say, and proceed accordingly.

But I am still wondering whether you believe that for continued effective functioning of a society, that punishment of those operating outside the societal norms is a requirement?

I am no fan of anarchy. The law for jaywalking is different than it is for murder etc. I don't think punishment is always necessary, whether it be government, or here on the board. If i were a police officer, and I pulled you over for going 10 miles over the speed-limit, I would be in the right to give you a ticket. At the same time, if after speaking with you I believed that our talk was sufficient and left you with a verbal warning to be more cautious, I would be in the right as well.

If the board singles out an offensive jerk on the board, said jerk can either change his or her conduct, or face the consequences of his or her action(s). Sometimes the consequences involve fellow members casting an honest light on the offensive action. At other times, a moderator steps in and either gives a verbal warning, or issues a ticket.

I believe in balance. Too many laws is just as bad as anarchy, in my opinion.

 

[BasicGreatGuy]

Here, we are all stuck in a room with each other, so to speak. If we wish to remain in this room to engage the engageable, we must find some way to deal with those who we find vile, stupid, idiotic, etc. Thus we have some choices to make - log off, hope we are heard above the din of idiocy, attempt some societal enforcement, or attempt some societal enforcement while engaging the engageable.

In real life, my method of societal enforcement is dismissal and shunning, or if the assclowns are clearly the ruling class of the venue, I will just leave the venue. Rarely will I attempt to get 'in the face' of another as the dismissal and shunning is quite effective. But, on those rare occasions, I have no qualms saying to the face of another anything different than I have said here.

Luckily, in my personal real life society, assclowns are not a significant minority.

I practice many of the same things you mentioned. And off the internet, is no exception.

I am not expecting that everyone on a message board be civil to one another at all times. I realize that is impossible. At times, I fail. I just find it strange, that so many people see a disconnect with their government employees, interpersonal relationships of others, as well as their work place, while failing to see the disconnect in their own life, in whatever manner and extent. In a lot of instances, I believe many people create the very behavior and dsyfunction they claim to disavow in the first place. It is a puzzling piece of the human puzzle.

Not all members of society are fully mentally functional, both intellectually and socially. Damn Bell curves.

That is true Si. I never did like bell bottoms.

Edited to add: I agree with your addendum (as a whole).

 

[Lumpy 1]

I understand having a place to 'unwind' as it were Lumpy. I understand we all have our 'bad' moments, where we say things we later regret and try to rectify. I am speaking in reference to people who show the utmost disrespect to self and others by the way they interact with others on here.

The core point is, we are more than mere nicknames on a message board. We are real individuals with real emotions, passions, troubles, and everything in between.

I don't think there should be one set of rules when we are on the internet, and one when we are off the internet. I think we should do our best to be respectful whether we are on the internet or off the internet. And if we run across people who want to act in a hateful manner no matter what, it is best (in my opinion) to either point out a wrong and move forward, or ignore them all together.

I think the gross incivility is affecting more than our internet affiliations. I think the incivility is reaching across into many interpersonal relationships.

I don't think civility and decorum is passe.

I don't want to disagree and I do appreciate your response.

In essence... all I can question is your last statement. I believe civility and decorum is indeed passe for a fair percentage of people here and in daily life and all you can do is apply the method, in dealing with it ...you spoke of earlier.

Here, we are all stuck in a room with each other, so to speak. If we wish to remain in this room to engage the engageable, we must find some way to deal with those who we find vile, stupid, idiotic, etc. Thus we have some choices to make - log off, hope we are heard above the din of idiocy, attempt some societal enforcement, or attempt some societal enforcement while engaging the engageable.

In real life, my method of societal enforcement is dismissal and shunning, or if the assclowns are clearly the ruling class of the venue, I will just leave the venue. Rarely will I attempt to get 'in the face' of another as the dismissal and shunning is quite effective. But, on those rare occasions, I have no qualms saying to the face of another anything different than I have said here.

Luckily, in my personal real life society, assclowns are not a significant minority.

For me .. If I don't confront the "assclowns" I have regrets ..so generally I do. If it's a matter of personal safety for my family, friends or me, at times, for that matter (repercussions from confronting) I let it pass and live with the regrets...

On line.. I try humor , if that doesn't work, I try pissing them off for fun.. I know it's bad..

 

[Si modo]

As to punishment, (if any) that depends on those within said society. There are many things that are said by various people on the forum, that I think is out of line. At the same time, I appreciate the openness of the forum. I realize I am a nonpaying member who has no real control over how people interact with one another. If I believed a members actions were truly egregious, I would report them to the moderators to handle as they see fit. If not, I would give thought as to whether I thought the poster in question would be receptive to what I had to say, and proceed accordingly.

But I am still wondering whether you believe that for continued effective functioning of a society, that punishment of those operating outside the societal norms is a requirement?

I am no fan of anarchy. The law for jaywalking is different than it is for murder etc. I don't think punishment is always necessary, whether it be government, or here on the board. If i were a police officer, and I pulled you over for going 10 miles over the speed-limit, I would be in the right to give you a ticket. At the same time, if after speaking with you I believed that our talk was sufficient and left you with a verbal warning to be more cautious, I would be in the right as well.

If the board singles out an offensive jerk on the board, said jerk can either change his or her conduct, or face the consequences of his or her action(s). Sometimes the consequences involve fellow members casting an honest light on the offensive action. At other times, a moderator steps in and either gives a verbal warning, or issues a ticket.

I believe in balance. Too many laws is just as bad as anarchy, in my opinion.

But you are expecting the offender (specific to USMB societal offenses) to be susceptible to an honest light. When that offender is clearly immune (for reasons I cannot even fathom) to reason, yet that sort of immune offender is a pretty significant minority, other means of making said consequences significant to the offender must be employed, if one cares about the well-being and effectiveness of the micro-society. Also, as trolling assclownery is not part of the official rules here, there is no reasonable expectation of any authority taking any action.

 

[Si modo]

I don't want to disagree and I do appreciate your response.

In essence... all I can question is your last statement. I believe civility and decorum is indeed passe for a fair percentage of people here and in daily life and all you can do is apply the method, in dealing with it ...you spoke of earlier.

Here, we are all stuck in a room with each other, so to speak. If we wish to remain in this room to engage the engageable, we must find some way to deal with those who we find vile, stupid, idiotic, etc. Thus we have some choices to make - log off, hope we are heard above the din of idiocy, attempt some societal enforcement, or attempt some societal enforcement while engaging the engageable.

In real life, my method of societal enforcement is dismissal and shunning, or if the assclowns are clearly the ruling class of the venue, I will just leave the venue. Rarely will I attempt to get 'in the face' of another as the dismissal and shunning is quite effective. But, on those rare occasions, I have no qualms saying to the face of another anything different than I have said here.

Luckily, in my personal real life society, assclowns are not a significant minority.

For me .. If I don't confront the "assclowns" I have regrets ..so generally I do. If it's a matter of personal safety for my family, friends or me, at times, for that matter (repercussions from confronting) I let it pass and live with the regrets...

On line.. I try humor , if that doesn't work, I try pissing them off for fun.. I know it's bad..

I can understand that. I do not have any significant others whose safety might be compromised because of their close connection to me. I am an independent agent, so to speak, in that respect - equal to all other individuals. Thus, my approach would naturally be less prudent than yours. Good point.

 

[BasicGreatGuy]

But I am still wondering whether you believe that for continued effective functioning of a society, that punishment of those operating outside the societal norms is a requirement?

I am no fan of anarchy. The law for jaywalking is different than it is for murder etc. I don't think punishment is always necessary, whether it be government, or here on the board. If i were a police officer, and I pulled you over for going 10 miles over the speed-limit, I would be in the right to give you a ticket. At the same time, if after speaking with you I believed that our talk was sufficient and left you with a verbal warning to be more cautious, I would be in the right as well.

If the board singles out an offensive jerk on the board, said jerk can either change his or her conduct, or face the consequences of his or her action(s). Sometimes the consequences involve fellow members casting an honest light on the offensive action. At other times, a moderator steps in and either gives a verbal warning, or issues a ticket.

I believe in balance. Too many laws is just as bad as anarchy, in my opinion.

But you are expecting the offender (specific to USMB societal offenses) to be susceptible to an honest light. When that offender is clearly immune (for reasons I cannot even fathom) to reason, yet that sort of immune offender is a pretty significant minority, other means of making said consequences significant to the offender must be employed, if one cares about the well-being and effectiveness of the micro-society. Also, as trolling assclownery is not part of the official rules here, there is no reasonable expectation of any authority taking any action.

I am hoping (idealistically at times) that said type minority, whether online or not, will take heed of their own volition. And like you aptly stated, many will not see the light or will disagree with my or the microcosm's interpretation of said light. That is when they become ACORN members. I digress.

 

[Si modo]

I am no fan of anarchy. The law for jaywalking is different than it is for murder etc. I don't think punishment is always necessary, whether it be government, or here on the board. If i were a police officer, and I pulled you over for going 10 miles over the speed-limit, I would be in the right to give you a ticket. At the same time, if after speaking with you I believed that our talk was sufficient and left you with a verbal warning to be more cautious, I would be in the right as well.

If the board singles out an offensive jerk on the board, said jerk can either change his or her conduct, or face the consequences of his or her action(s). Sometimes the consequences involve fellow members casting an honest light on the offensive action. At other times, a moderator steps in and either gives a verbal warning, or issues a ticket.

I believe in balance. Too many laws is just as bad as anarchy, in my opinion.

But you are expecting the offender (specific to USMB societal offenses) to be susceptible to an honest light. When that offender is clearly immune (for reasons I cannot even fathom) to reason, yet that sort of immune offender is a pretty significant minority, other means of making said consequences significant to the offender must be employed, if one cares about the well-being and effectiveness of the micro-society. Also, as trolling assclownery is not part of the official rules here, there is no reasonable expectation of any authority taking any action.

I am hoping (idealistically at times) that said type minority, whether online or not, will take heed of their own volition. And like you aptly stated, many will not see the light or will disagree with my or the microcosm's interpretation of said light. That is when they become ACORN members. I digress.

 

[L.K.Eder]

But I am still wondering whether you believe that for continued effective functioning of a society, that punishment of those operating outside the societal norms is a requirement?

I am no fan of anarchy. The law for jaywalking is different than it is for murder etc. I don't think punishment is always necessary, whether it be government, or here on the board. If i were a police officer, and I pulled you over for going 10 miles over the speed-limit, I would be in the right to give you a ticket. At the same time, if after speaking with you I believed that our talk was sufficient and left you with a verbal warning to be more cautious, I would be in the right as well.

If the board singles out an offensive jerk on the board, said jerk can either change his or her conduct, or face the consequences of his or her action(s). Sometimes the consequences involve fellow members casting an honest light on the offensive action. At other times, a moderator steps in and either gives a verbal warning, or issues a ticket.

I believe in balance. Too many laws is just as bad as anarchy, in my opinion.

But you are expecting the offender (specific to USMB societal offenses) to be susceptible to an honest light. When that offender is clearly immune (for reasons I cannot even fathom) to reason, yet that sort of immune offender is a pretty significant minority, other means of making said consequences significant to the offender must be employed, if one cares about the well-being and effectiveness of the micro-society. Also, as trolling assclownery is not part of the official rules here, there is no reasonable expectation of any authority taking any action.

basicgreatguy, don't listen to the ssssssssssssssssnake. see all the parenthesis, see the alterior motive. yes alterior not ulterior.

 

[Lumpy 1]

Here, we are all stuck in a room with each other, so to speak. If we wish to remain in this room to engage the engageable, we must find some way to deal with those who we find vile, stupid, idiotic, etc. Thus we have some choices to make - log off, hope we are heard above the din of idiocy, attempt some societal enforcement, or attempt some societal enforcement while engaging the engageable.

In real life, my method of societal enforcement is dismissal and shunning, or if the assclowns are clearly the ruling class of the venue, I will just leave the venue. Rarely will I attempt to get 'in the face' of another as the dismissal and shunning is quite effective. But, on those rare occasions, I have no qualms saying to the face of another anything different than I have said here.

Luckily, in my personal real life society, assclowns are not a significant minority.

For me .. If I don't confront the "assclowns" I have regrets ..so generally I do. If it's a matter of personal safety for my family, friends or me, at times, for that matter (repercussions from confronting) I let it pass and live with the regrets...

On line.. I try humor , if that doesn't work, I try pissing them off for fun.. I know it's bad..

I can understand that. I do not have any significant others whose safety might be compromised because of their close connection to me. I am an independent agent, so to speak, in that respect - equal to all other individuals. Thus, my approach would naturally be less prudent than yours. Good point.

At this point should we go all to the club room.. sit down in front of the fireplace.. light up our pipes.. have a glass of port.. and say,"quite, bully bully, and here here" for a while..... obviously... I get the less puffy chair..