Post your mind 22

@Cpat92 Said

Have you ever wanted to forget someone then they plague your mind more?

@Deal_With_It Said

I cannot understand the reason for 'thong' underwear. I mean really?!

@Erimitus Said

Yes

@Cpat92 Said

How do you deal with it?

@chaski Said

OMG! I just realized that you and I are two of the oldest members...maybe the oldest members...or oldest active members!!

You joined June 2006 and I joined Oct 2006...

I feel weird now.

@Leon Said

Sounds like you had a lot of fun. I never really could get the attraction of RP, but I do agree there was a lot more going on then for just about anyone to get into, no matter what the interest was.

Sorry you get depressed about it now. Did I read that correctly? Are there other sites that have more RP activity, maybe sites that are dedicated to that very thing? Or is it just not the same?

@Leon Said
I heard there were some horrible periods too that make what is happening now pale in terms of the level of animosity. Even though I didn’t come on until early 2011, even I heard about why the entire state of Florida was permabanned from this site.

At at least Bernie is getting a second chance. Biden may be in the lead, but he’s maxed out with the non-progressives while the progressives are split too thin atm, so........ oh geez, talking politics again sorry

@Leon Said
That was right about when this site started isn’t it? I joined about the time Ko had his fallout, catching the tail end of his daily banter on here. Dave the moved on to Eagle and me and we certainly had our share of hilarity over the next few years. So if I miss anything, it’s that. But really, I’m okay with the way it is now on here. The main reason being is I’m no longer single, and no longer fatherless. So I just don’t have time for what this place used to be like. I do get that times change, people change. Besides, the ones I met on here that are most important to me are still in touch. Heck, I married one of them. Eagle, being one of the others, is of course still on here (and hopefully will continue to be!) and Dave is still on my wife’s Facebook (I don’t have FB).

@Deal_With_It Said

I cannot understand the reason for 'thong' underwear. I mean really?!

@Leon Said

Okay, I’ll address this with three points.

The first is the most important: Not only has this forum always clearly had a liberal slant, this forum’s most active members at the present have a liberal, or at least anti-Trump, slant. This will translate into an appearance of an mob-cleansed echo chamber with only a few active members overall, but it is far from anything intentional like that. It’s just the makeup and there is nothing that can be done about that. The unfortunate thing is that when someone from the right tries to make a case, that person will be surrounded by the presence of these others, and, as a result, eventually feel as if he is being personally attacked. How can he not? I would. In actuality though, he is not being attacked, but just finding that everyone here is disagreeing with him. Nothing more.

The second is this: Although I think the current active members here are pretty good at refraining from doing so, unlike the past on here, sometimes discussions that are political in nature and Christian in nature (which, whether one wants to admit it or not, is highly political as well in today’s climate due to involvement in social issues), will get a little heated, and, therefore, personal at times (although, again, it isn’t very heavy here, from what I’ve seen, compared to the past or compared to other forums). This is to be expected. It gets this way because unlike, say, a debate about the quality of ending of Game of Thrones, politics deals with people and policies that directly affect our everyday lives. ToS even recognized and addressed this by saying, “Rules regarding namecalling and personal attacks may be enforced less strictly in the Politics forum and its subforums. Political discussions obviously get heated, if you can't handle that, stay out.” I don’t know what can be done about this other than banning all political discussion because it is its nature.

The third is this: I will be the first to admit myself, that as much as I really do try and keep all discussions civil and to the topic rather than at the person, I have lashed out at a poster on here on occasion - but even at those times, I strictly attack that person’s forum actions and not him personally. But the fact of the matter is, I will not apologize for it, and do feel it is deserved. When people take large amounts of time and effort to present passioned opinion pieces on an issue or politician and then get trolled with YouTubes of Mary Poppins songs or “no u” retorts, clearly with the intent of getting the other person angrier, rather than addressing the topic or not engaging at all, then OF COURSE it is to be expected that passions will fly a bit more in response. Then, if that is not enough, to hide behind locked journal entries complaining about being “attacked”, and getting mods on his side, to me, seems rather akin to a child throwing taunts at a classmate who is doing his/her best at ignoring those taunts and then running to hide behind an adult when that classmate finally lashes back. While I do my best to ignore this person, I am only human and will lash back eventually when trolled in this manner, and will certainly not fail to stand up for myself when it gets to this (which I feel I need to do here). ToS 3.21 and 3.32. (Note that I do not behave in this way towards anyone else who is from the other side, and, in fact, really do enjoy the dialogue with the likes of Bob and others.)

Combine the three points above, and I think this is pretty much the picture of what is going on. If it is in the opinion of the moderators or even the majority of others that I am in the wrong here, and that I am more at fault for all of it than I feel I am, that is fine, I will stop posting. I will not apologize for it though, because I don’t feel that I need to.

@DiscordTiger Said

I’m just not mentally healthy enough to deal with other people’s feelings, especially on explaining political matters. I’ve been attacked and people have tried to imply I was less of a person, so I just dgaf anymore because that’s how I’m coping.

It’s a rough political climate when your constantly attacked for who you are. And yes, I’ve resorted in attacking in defense. A lot of “conservative” ideas imply I’m less than as a human or citizen. I know it’s not every person that agrees, but when they self-identify with a group that attacks me I don’t know how else to approach a conversation without asserting my dignity and humanity are off the table as being things that are
ok to legislate against.

So yeah that makes me pretty anti conservatism- when that good ol days were actually pretty s***y if you have my demographics.

I really like you eagle. I don’t ever want to make you feel bad. I don’t want to make any of my conservative friends feel bad. I like them as people

I just don’t know how else to advocate for myself and the actual damage being done by conservative policy to me and my loved ones. They can choose to vote differently, I can’t choose to change my melanin, sex chromosomes, or any of the other genetic things that make me me.

I just want to leave the internet because it depresses me more, in a sense of the handmaid’s tale was not supposed to be a manual. I’m simply exhausted.

@psycoskunk Said

Uhhh... for 'The Thong Song,' of course.

@Eaglebauer Said

It's not necessarily the amount or ratio of political discussion to other threads...it's how those threads are couched.

The terms "Christian" and "Conservative" are bandied by a lot of people as if they're derogatory terms. I don't really call myself either of those things but conversations here have become incredibly polarized and almost bigoted against those who do call themselves those things. People in general who voice opinions on the right are often belittled for it and I'm not okay with that, regardless of whether I agree with those people or not.

I'm not speaking of one person or group in particular, I just get the overall notion that if you're not liberal, a democrat, or want to s*** all over Christianity you're going to be intimidated to not speak up at all and I can't agree with a climate that is largely trending in that direction. Even if I disagree with someone who is speaking from a conservative, republican, or Christian opinion, which observably has happened on this very site...I've argued extensively in threads from a liberal view and a conservative one.

But lately...when I've had views that are more to the right...I've felt pretty dissuaded from having anything to do with conversations that those views are related to. Recently, you asked me to nix a comment you made about abortion and pro lifers because you didn't have the time or energy to get into a long discussion about it. Which I get...there was nothing wrong with that and I didn't have a problem with it. I got it. No issue there and I didn't think less of you for it. But largely, I get the impression that people on the conservative side end up feeling that way about most if not all discussions here. So they make small, flippant comments and get called idiotic for it. And all the discussions turn into "Hooray for the left" rallies where everyone involved just agrees with each other and calls anyone who disagrees stupid in some way or another.

It's boring as hell.

One could argue that maybe there aren't a lot of people to the right of the aisle around here that offer a substantial or high quality amount of conversation but...honestly, why would there be? Why would an intelligent, articulate person with conservative opinions look through the threads here and bother to make an account and participate after seeing the way those opinions are treated?

I guess a lot of it has to do with the fact that TFS is a lot smaller a community than it once was and there isn't as diverse a crowd or as many in a discussion at any given time.

I don't know what the answer is but I don't see it changing for the better and that makes me sad.

Really sad.

@Deal_With_It Said

I'm just a coward.