Why do some member insist on being so rude?

reply to post by Haydn_17


I know exactly what you mean and it can be annoying if you come up against such people without the tools to swap them aside.

There are many ways to take their attacks, either as something that gives them power - because by pushing your buttons they are making you dance. Of course you can choose to see their rude behaviour as “them” losing something by degrading themselves so publically and showing everyone publically how much they lack respect for another’s opinion they lose something.

People who resort to such acts always lose something and it tends to be a social standing that is subtle and slow but an inevitable process, a process they do not see because they are hardwired to accept such behaviour, locked into a primitive mode of behaviour because that is their social frame of reference.

You should probably feel sorry for a person who attacks an opposing point of view rather than choosing to debate against that point of view.
Either you really cranked their buttons or you are closer to the truth than you think, but the point is that you are always in control unless you decide not to be.

Never stop doing what you are doing mate, trolls should not be given that power.

reply to post by SmokeJaguar67


Wish I had said that..

I also wish I could give you a star...Well done..

reply to post by Mr Mask


You have such a way with words.

I would say that you do come across as being rude. Many of the people on this site seem to conduct themselves with respect and decency.

To approach a post in anger is a bad idea to begin with.

It seems to me that you approach this site in this way. That you are actually looking to find something that annoys you so that you can troll. If I could be bothered I expect I could find many examples.

reply to post by Haydn_17


It distresses me to hear that you think this board is worse than most.

Not everyone here is a jackass.

Chin up and know most of us feel as you do.



[edit on 15-11-2009 by loam]

Have to admit I have had my feelings hurt on this site. I am like what the hell... but its human nature and its safe to blast someone thousands of miles away anonymously from your home.

There are many rude people here and it comes from the top down. I made the mistake of questioning why a certain moderator warned me two times on a post that was over 3 months old. I never received a answer from any moderator or the owner of this site. That is rude also. To me that just shows they condone rude people so expect to see more and more of it.
And before I get blasted for complaining I did so as a polite question asking what where the standards for a warning here, for example how far back in your post history they can go and why you can get warned two times for one post. If I did something out of line I expect to get warned, if some moderator does not agree with my post I should not get two warnings for the same post. Simple as that. Either way they lost any respect I had for them and their professionalism.
So from now on I do not care a lick for their "rules", But I find somethings here interesting. That I can not blame the owner or moderators for.

Originally posted by Dragonsbreaths
...they condone rude people so expect to see more and more of it...

That isn't really true.

Imagine yourself in their role... EVERYONE who gets warned argues the point. Eventually, over the years, I imagine you'd get tired of the same song and dance.

Silence means likely not providing an opportunity for pointless escalation.

[edit on 15-11-2009 by loam]

Perhaps the notification that a thread is in `Skunk Works` should be more prominent .

Also the accompanying line is often missed .

"Readers and users should be aware that extreme theories without corroboration are embraced in this forum"

Champions of the Deny Ignorance ethos, grind against threads emanating from this particular forum in my experience .

The burden of proof is weighted differently throughout the site .
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The humble `thumbs up` to finish ...... the sugared pill .

Compared to any other public forum of this size, the rudeness/trolling/hatred on ATS is some of the lowest I've ever witnessed. Not to be a jerk, or anything, but I think you just need to get some thicker skin. Some people just suck, regardless of where you go. :/

... Probably before your time, but a social commentator / comedian

used the "I get no RESPECT" as his shtick...
and cruised through a career in stage performances, night clubs, comedy club stints, even full lenght movies....

the man's stage name was "Roddney Dangerfield",
look him up on a search engine...and buck-up for the bumps in Life''s ride


i figure i'm a friend, until you decide not

Originally posted by Hereno
Compared to any other public forum of this size, the rudeness/trolling/hatred on ATS is some of the lowest I've ever witnessed. Not to be a jerk, or anything, but I think you just need to get some thicker skin. Some people just suck, regardless of where you go. :/

My thoughts exactly...how many forums do you have to participate in to see that the ATS forum is one of the better moderated forums of this size? I'm guessing the OP is not in a lot of other large forums?

Unfortunately, in other forums that aren't as well moderated as ATS, the anonymity of the internet enables some people to be more rude to others than they would be in person, and some of that attitude gets carried over to ATS until they get some warnings.

If your ideas are controversial, expect them to be attacked, this isn't rudeness, it's fair game to attack ideas on a discussion forum.

If you personally are attacked, then that's a different story, then click the alert button and the moderators will take care of that, as it would be a violation of the T&C.



[edit on 15-11-2009 by Arbitrageur]

I'll agree that the mods have a tough job and a lot of ground to cover but I don't agree that the TOC are being applied and situations handled.

I wish it were so but the fact is that posters are able to get away with horrible violations just encourages the trend.

Here's an example-

A new member came into a discussion using all caps, no periods, no breaks - just long, endless streams of capital letters, usually bypassing the censor to rail on various posters (myself being one of them in the interest of full disclosure).

They were eventually moderated, probably over a dozen times. I get it, new member, doesn't know the rules, etc.

Then, the poster just started attacking other posters full time, every post was a personal attack, (attack the ball, not the player ). A mod said they were right on the line of a violation and that they were warned via U2U to discuss the issue and not other posters.

For the next 18 hours the posts continued, every single one remaining exactly the same as they had been warned about. The discussion was completely derailed with three to four posts per page being made by this person, every post directed as a personal attack.

I'll admit I'm no moderator but that kind of seems like a TOC violation to me.

Then, thanks to a couple of timely posts we find out a longer standing member is directing the new member via U2U to make these attacks and telling him or her what to say.

I'm no saint and I've had a few incidents of my own (after being sorely provoked but still, I don't want to be a hypocrite). I think giving people a couple of dozen reminder warnings which are completely ignored is kind of like the parent at the store who keeps softly telling the unruly child "please stop, please stop".

It doesn't work. People on ATS engage in troll behavior because they can.

Maybe some time outs would be helpful?

[edit on 16-11-2009 by ecoparity]

Originally posted by ecoparity
A mod said they were right on the line of a violation and that they were warned via U2U to discuss the issue and not other posters.

I'm sure if something is a borderline violation like that, some mods might take more strict action than others because, well, they are individuals like you and me and may have different interpretations of exactly where "the line" has been crossed.

But in any case of a clear personal attack, I have to say that the cases I have seen, have always been dealt with appropriately. If it's not a personal attack but some other T&C violation, then yes the enforcement is variable. Just look at how many one line posts there are that say "second line" on a 2nd line as if that is supposed to make it comply with the T&C. The one that annoys me is when someone posts a video with absolutely no description of what's in it or why it's relevant to the thread, but they seem to let those slide even if you alert the mods.

But since this thread is about rudeness, I have to say that rude personal attacks do seem to be dealt with well. By the way if you think a mod isn't handling a situation well you can ask another mod to look at it.

I agree, the less severe T&C violations often go uncorrected.

[edit on 16-11-2009 by Arbitrageur]

Rudeness/name-calling etc is generally one of the following:

1. A sign of someone that doesn't truly believe their argument
2. Internet bravado, because it's easy to be "big" when your sitting on your butt at a desk
3. A weak mind

I'd like to add this www.abovetopsecret.com...

Springer's digital ego thread.


Check yourself b4 you post.

I think we could be missing out on a lot of interesting threads because some people are intimidated by the amount of rude people that reply. Sometimes people who have experiences they don't understand and they are looking to others to help make sense of something. They are not posting with the intention of being ridiculed. I see that happen a lot of this forum, unfortunately.

[edit on 16-11-2009 by Schleprock]

I think much of it just due to the nature of the net. People will say things they would not say in person just because they can do so and remain anymous.

That being said, I don't know if any of you ever read "Pearls Before Swine" but these came out a couple of months ago and offer a lighthearted look at it. Because sometimes humor helps.

Pearls Before Swine - Internet Happy Place 1

Pearls Before Swine - Internet Happy Place 2

Pearls Before Swine - Why the Net Exists

You are commended for sharing your inquiring and questioning mind.
Others with your youth and genuine interests outside the norm are a welcome future in the quest for knowledge.
For an individual to "strike out" whether it be with verbal insult or demeaning taunt, only shows, THE LIMITED within that individual.
You will do yourself well to create a little bottomless trash container in your head where you can send "those types" of responses and replies THRU ALL of your life contacts, not just net forum based.
Hopefully you have a long productive and happy life, do not empower those attempting to twart that within you, which obviously they have lost or never attained, by engaging them on that lower level.
There are 3 types of people.
Builders
Sustainers
Destroyers
or as a dead wise man once told me, You cant polish a turd!

Originally posted by loam

Originally posted by Dragonsbreaths
...they condone rude people so expect to see more and more of it...

That isn't really true.

Imagine yourself in their role... EVERYONE who gets warned argues the point. Eventually, over the years, I imagine you'd get tired of the same song and dance.

Silence means likely not providing an opportunity for pointless escalation.

[edit on 15-11-2009 by loam]

Yes but how many are warned two times for one old so called offense? If you read the rules it says you can be warned, where does it say a vindictive moderator can not keep warning you for the same thing over and over to get you banned? That is why I questioned it. Either use the same rules for everyone or no one.
And yes I have moderated on different boards over the years and run a couple. I also ran a popular chat room for 2 years. I know how hard it is. And how much harder it is when some mods go on a power trip because someone does not agree with them. Any good owner would at least look into a complaint made against a mod to find out if it was true or not. If he ignores it that tells me where he is at. That's all I am saying. This is his board and if he wants to let it get out of control then that's his business, not mine. However I will not take abuse from anyone, if it happens again I will be gone because as I say to me this is just a amusement to pass the time.

I, too, have at times been rude, but, it usually happens when i see the 200th post on obama's birth certificate...or STS-75 tether posts, or the other posts that run along this theme..." why does god hate sinners" or "why do atheists hate christians" or "why do liberals hate conservatives"...i have to fight the urge every time i get on ATS, to go and blast these guys. or...the posts were someone makes some outragous statement, and it only takes you a couple of minutes on google to see that they are outright lying.