Not so much now, but when I was a teenager, I self actualized every chance I got.
What is it about this board? Everything gets turned into lib bashing, con bashing, or sex!!!
I wish I knew.
You seem to think this is a place for reasoned discussion and debate on politics and the other pressing issues of the day, or perhaps a few other items of common interest. It's not. It's a pig pen where you can wrassle an idiot, and make fun of a crazy any time you want. If you want the other, you need to run just as fast and as far as you can from here. What you want has never been, and will never be here.
You seem to think this is a place for reasoned discussion and debate on politics and the other pressing issues of the day, or perhaps a few other items of common interest.
I think that of certain parts of USMB -- zone one and two subforums -- and not of others. For example:
- CDZ -- "The Clean Debate Zone is to be used for the clean debating of Government Policies, Candidates, Current News and Events." -- Of course, this is a written debate venue, so the process of public forum debate cannot be followed, but the theme and structure of it should apply, after all, this is a public forum.
- SDF -- "The Debate Now forum is to be used for all structured discussions/debates. The structure shall consist of a set of 'rules' set forth by the OP. Members may not deviate from the structure and shall respect all guidelines set forth in the opening post." -- Pretty straightforward...follow the defined structure for a thread or don't post in the thread.
- Politics and other Zone 2 subforums -- Based on the guidelines the USMB admin have provided, I'd liken Zone 2 subforums' (those that have no individual subforum-specific caveats) discursive dynamics to those one might encounter at a club, post-lecture/symposium reception or cocktail party. An individual sparks a conversation with another attendee and others contribute to the conversation by sharing factually or anecdotally on-topic thoughts, perhaps occasionally interjecting a jocularly germane and pity remark to amplify another's well founded (legitimate) comment(s), or having nothing of substance to say, listen but refrain from inserting themselves directly into the conversation.
There is, of course, a key difference between such social gatherings and a venue like USMB: the participants in those in-person settings are generally known, or known by reputation, to one another. Accordingly, when, say, an astrophysicist at Goddard is the guy remarking on a matter pertinent to his profession/training/research, there's good reason to believe him. On the other hand, if that same guy remarks upon health insurance, he and I both know he's just surmising, however, at that point, the Geico actuary who overheard the remark about health insurance may at that insert himself into the conversation because he's got something useful to contribute to it. He may do so by saying something like, "Hi. I couldn't help but hear your comment about 'health insurance.' From my work as an actuary, I've observed...." Neither I nor the astrophysicist, are going to refute the actuary, much less tell him he's "full of sh*t." What is more likely to happen is that we'd ask him questions that allow us to obtain a better understanding of the matter, or we'd take what he said and build on/extrapolate his ideas to something new, perhaps even something actionable.
Here that just doesn't and cannot happen. Unlike the members of a club or cocktail party, there is no vetting process, nor need there be. Unlike a conference, lecture or symposium reception, everyone present cannot be assumed to have a very deep background on the topic under discussion.
Even though there are no "certification" structures/processes in place on Internet forums, it's still possible for members to engage in equally substantive discussion/debates where their remarks can be taken as credible. How? By merely providing credible support for one's claims, premises, and so on.
But what has any of that to do with gauging whether one is "self-actualized" or whether others around one are? The answer is found not by looking at what be the criteria for and behaviors indicative of self-actualization, but rather at those pertaining to esteem.
Remember not only to say the right thing in the right place, but far more difficult still, to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment.
-- Benjamin Franklin
Well, one readily observes that much of what transpires here is just folks airing their opinions, and often doing so without portfolio, at least from where we readers of their remarks stand because we are all strangers here. What are we to think of unfounded, unsubstantiated opinions? Nothing beyond merely being aware that "such and such" a member holds a given opinion. Tossing one's opinion into a conversation here doesn't work the same as it does in-person, and it doesn't for the reasons I described above. Expressing one's opinion -- positive or negative -- of another member here has no real impact on that person because as a stranger to them and they to oneself, can neither harm nor help them, but it may seemingly benefit oneself. The dimension in which it does is esteem; however, it does so sophistically for one's actual esteem is grown by the merit of one's own ideas, not by one's diminution of others'.
A shipwright can as surely sink a ship as build one.
-- Something my dad said
As a self-actualized individual, one's presumably moved past the "esteem" level of Maslow's hierarchy; thus expressing one's ideas for the consumption of others isn't a need one must satisfy at all, much less, of all places, here or another Internet similar forum. Accordingly, being self-actualized, why bother airing one's unsubstantiated opinion for the sake of doing so? Is one, about one's views, seeking validation from others? If so, why from a bunch of strangers and in a venue where one's true identity and meritorious and original ideas cannot be duly claimed and recognized? If not, what's the point of airing it in a venue like this one?
Educate your children to self-control, to the habit of holding passion and prejudice and evil tendencies subject to an upright and reasoning will, and you have done much to abolish misery from their future and crimes from society.
-- Benjamin Franklin
