2 years 8 months and 3000 posts, so what have I learned from ATS?

Yes thats right, nearly 3 years and 3000 posts into my ATS experience.
This was the 1st online community I ever joined and Ive loved every minute of it.
Ive laughed, Ive cried (not really), Ive wanted to throw my lappy into a wall in frustration, Ive wanted to reach through the interwebz and either hug or throttle some of the members here.

Ive learnt alot about the state of the world, things I wouldnt have known had I not been a part of this community, quite a few of you dislike me and my opinions but thats OK, life would be dull if we all thought the same. I enjoy challenging and having my ideas challenged as well.

Thank you to everyone who is a part of this site for giving me something to do when nothing else is going on Special shout out to all the mods for keeping this place in some semblance of order, yes even the ones who pick on me all the time.

So without further ado I would like to share the top 10 things (ala David Letterman style) I have learnt in my time here
10) Emoticons are important and #ty ones are very frustrating
9) Dont argue guns with Americans, best case scenario is a severe written bashing
8) People dont like to be called idiots
7) people who complain about being called idiots are very often guilty of doing the same
6) People hold onto beliefs more strongly when they are challenged and stronger still when evidence points to them being wrong
5) There are still people out there who believe we are the only life in the universe!!!!!!
4) If your country isnt at war you can make it disappear by reading American news
3) This site is most likely a data gathering tool of some agency but who cares, the more people who say things that the gov feels the need to follow the harder it will be for them to actually do so
2) Division, putting ourselves in groups whether they be religious, racial, political or even what flavour ice cream we prefer will be the end of us 1 way or another. Were all human and in this crazy ride together, we should all just try to get along
1) Someone somewhere (in alot of cases alot of people in alot of places) will believe anything.

Cheers guys, luv ya all

reply to post by IkNOwSTuff


You forgot one.

Grammar Nazis are everywhere. Vee are vatching you.

Were all human and in this crazy ride together, we should all just try to get along

reply to post by IkNOwSTuff


Nice post.

One of the main things I have learned is to not burn bridges. If you talk to anyone long enough you will find some huge thing you disagree about. If you let those little or big things lead to hurt feelings or outright disdain you will lose one more person to communicate with until you have none left. So instead, I have to live with the good and the bad. Something I have applied to non internet relations as well. I can be quite stubborn, but forgiving is good too.

Oh and as an American I want to correct one point. It's not Just guns. It's more the fact that you could possibly tell me ANYTHING at all about what I am doing. Haha, well half joking, but only half.



hmmmmm.. Emoticons.

What took you so long

reply to post by Dustytoad

One of the main things I have learned is to not burn bridges. If you talk to anyone long enough you will find some huge thing you disagree about. If you let those little or big things lead to hurt feelings or outright disdain you will lose one more person to communicate with until you have none left.

That is the exact reason I no longer even click on gun related threads LOL

Luckily some of the bridges have been rebuilt with some people but I still even now after a year of not participating in gun type threads get people who respond to my posts and tell me how invalid ANY point I make is due to my posts in those Sandy Hook days.

Ahhhh crazy times

# 10 should have been #1!!!!!!!
What happened to the magicians that were fixing them?????

Oh, and one of the best things I've learned being here?
Being a mom is very helpful.
If you can tune out your own wild children, you can tune out the wild children on this site.

Bloody BB code.

I think ATS has over the years have given me so much. I got more out of ATS then what my school ever given me that's for sure so that I thank you for.I have to check ats everyday It's like a drug Must learn new information, feed the mind

ATS = Sanity

OK Jedi Kitty, you forgot the most important observation.

BACON is the ATS mascot.

and to test that, just start a thread about how yukky it is.

Which it most certainly is NOT.

Bacon, just like beer, is proof God loves us and wants us to be happy.

[except the God that says you can't eat bacon].........I'll see myself out, thank-you.

reply to post by IkNOwSTuff

Congrats! But Ive only read a bit of your thread. Im almost at 3000 myself....and cant wait to see how this turns out! The suspense is killing me.
PS (I'd like to think seriously that your horizons, tolerance and knowledge base...have all been broadened.)
And the Trolls are much easier to spot under the bridges....

reply to post by Dustytoad
Emotions





Hmmmmm .. Emotions

They all look ALIKE

reply to post by IkNOwSTuff


S&F for #9. We'll never give up our guns.

reply to post by superman2012


That's it no soup for you!

Many a time in the past, I have surfed a subject just to bind it linked to ATS. Usually when that comes up in search I just skip on past because I know it will very likely contain no credible information. More often than not it will be filled with a lot of psuedo-information or psuedo-science. It's not that the information is not interesting, but that it's highly unreliable. We here at ATS have a host of empaths, prophets and oracles. There is but one character here that can be counted to be the voice of reason.... that would be Phage, a member everyone likes. If you can't get along with him, then your simply an antagonist. And we have our share of those, luckily the Mods keep them in refrain pretty well. Shills abound as well, and for the most part (after you have been here a while) are pretty transparent. Is ATS just a curiosity? No I think there are some uniquely gifted people here, and enough with extensive education and actual degrees to keep the BS under foot. Do I like it any less ? I would say.......... it has its place, it can also have truthful accurate information that needs to make it out to the public, and in that alone it has proved its worth. You gott'a remember just who the membership is and the variety and ages able to access register and then participate. That ought to give you pause when you count the verasety of the story and claim content at times, and the need for recognition (stars & flags).
It gives you ideas though, and makes you think a little harder.

Soooooo, whats your feelings on Sandy Hook?

Just kidding!

I were lurking for about 5 years, and 2 ½ years ago, I finally signed up as a member. I’ve learned more than I ever thought possible! From my estimates, we should have been killed off by aliens a million times over since I first accidently ran into the site 7 years ago! It was here where I first learned what SHTF and TPTB meant!

I've seen a lot of changes with the site. Good and bad. The emotion cons really need changing. Can any of you owners hear that? The emotion icons REALLY suck!

Congrats on how many posts you put in my friend!

Dustytoad
reply to post by IkNOwSTuff

 

Nice post.

One of the main things I have learned is to not burn bridges. If you talk to anyone long enough you will find some huge thing you disagree about. If you let those little or big things lead to hurt feelings or outright disdain you will lose one more person to communicate with until you have none left. So instead, I have to live with the good and the bad. Something I have applied to non internet relations as well. I can be quite stubborn, but forgiving is good too.

Oh and as an American I want to correct one point. It's not Just guns. It's more the fact that you could possibly tell me ANYTHING at all about what I am doing. Haha, well half joking, but only half.

hmmmmm.. Emoticons.

edit on 12/2/2013 by Dustytoad because: (no reason given)

Great response ! I like you already.

IkNOwSTuff
1) Someone somewhere (in alot of cases alot of people in alot of places) will believe anything.

While I liked all your points, this one, for me stand out as the most amazing thing I have seen to date.
At some point, you look around and wonder, is everyone here flippin nuts, or is it just me? Then you realize that normal is nothing more than a setting on the dryer and it all starts to make sense. (sort of)

God, Guns, and Glory! (I felt that was needed )

You left out two things.

1- if you make a miss statement or get a fact wrong, you will be bashed for the entire thread.

2- any thread that is more than one page long will not be read before some body makes the same point or remark that has already been made.

That's what I have learned in my short time here... Happy holidays