Second-Hand Embarassment aka Crawling Under My Desk

reply to post by Malynn


Nah... bored ATSers are bored. We can only handle so much seriousness and then its ZOING.. off the rails.

Jokes aside, and back to the OP... your observations are in line with mine. Shoulda heard them on the radio show being extremely rude to a guest last year!

reply to post by Advantage


lol and *shudders* I'll be sure to avoid that...

I left ATS for a period of time, because I could not take the rudeness. It seems basic human kindness is in short supply these days. Sad. Lots of so called adults acting like the same bullies they were in the schoolyard, and people think it is possible for the human race to change, really??? Not if you read much on here........

reply to post by Iamschist


Yeah ATS is a double-edged sword that way. Interesting information but removes a lot of your faith in humanity.

DocHolidaze
reply to post by Malynn

 

I have yet to take a look at any of the AMAs, but I get what your saying. What I do know is people get paid to be D*ckhols on the internet. And that statement is especially true here.

edit on 25-9-2013 by DocHolidaze because: (no reason given)

Wait people get paid for that???!!! Since when??!!!

This whole time I could have been getting paid? Im a di@khole allready.

I have to admit this is the first AMA that I have been disappointed in a handful of people within our membership over. I have been trying to allow the "tough questions and avoid being overbearing but from this moment forward I will give those who can't read, won't read, or just seek to act the fool no quarter in an AMA thread.

Anyone who feels the need to disrespect us and by disrespecting our invited guests will also feel the emptiness of the internet without an ATS membership.

That said, I don't want to dissuade people from asking tough, but logical questions.

Springer...

reply to post by Springer


I don't think you have been overbearing at all. And in these circumstances (invited guests) I think it's totally reasonable to enforce a higher standard. It's really good that David was so professional and accomodating. If I was him I don't think I could have responded in such an even-keeled manner to some of the offensive things people said, and the belligerant tones they used.

Thanks again for giving us this great opportunity. The bad things aside this last one was the most interesting so far in my opinion.

reply to post by Malynn


Have to say I agree with you. For the most part people here seem to be quite pleasant, but the ego and arrogance of some people on this site make me cringe and to be honest at times reading what people write make me embarrassed to be human! There are a few folk on this site I really admire and for the most part it has nothing to do with intelligence or scientific input its mostly how they conduct themselves.

Rant away, I agree with ya.

reply to post by Charlyboy


I don't know if "quite pleasant" would be the adjectives I would use, but yeah For the most part people are decent and mature. And all the prior AMA's to this one it seemed like people were trying to put our best feet forward. But I don't know. Bring up bigfoot and unexplained phenomena and some people lose their minds.

reply to post by Malynn


Meh, I hear what your saying but you get this exact behavior around water coolers or when going to bars. Adults quite often act like the duche bag children they try to prevent their children from becoming. Of course many on here are children also.

I am sure many of these guys have been heckled before and anyone who works as a researcher in paranormal is essentially guaranteed to experience this. This doesn't excuse the scum and or children but it does put it in context. Misery loves company.

reply to post by Rosinitiate


Not exactly. I mean, yeah people are rude in real life. But I guarantee you that if in a bar you used a tone like some people were using with Mr. Paulides in that thread they would get beat down.

Malynn
reply to post by Rosinitiate

 

But I guarantee you that if in a bar you used a tone like some people were using with Mr. Paulides in that thread they would get beat down.

Well sure, and although I don't frequent drinking establishments anymore, when I did there were plenty of brawls.

So who's point did I just make? Mine or yours lol.

reply to post by Springer


Thank you, as he was an invited guest I feel he was totally disrespected by certain members and although I'm certain he has a thick skin I was really ashamed at their behavior. I also see that not everyone agrees with that.

The AMA is different then the rest of the board, if the invited guest wants to participate in the rest of the forums than by all means they're going to be subjected to everyone's full personality ranges and rightly so, but I personally feel that the AMA should be kept to a certain level of standards IMHO.

reply to post by Malynn



I think it goes beyond being rude. It seems some people on ATS make being rude, obnoxious, and hostile a game. Their primary goal is to shut down the thread. I would not be surprised if they give themselves or the others in their group, their own devised brownie points, for how quickly they can kill a thread.

The moment you see certain people show up in a thread, you can bet your last dollar you are going to see the thread go south. They are very clever about flying under the mod radar. I have even seen them bait a poster until the poster makes the fatal mistake of saying one thing that they can use as a violation; then they call to the mods, get the poster banned or get their posts removed, while the ones that started the deterioration of the thread sits back laughing and puts another notch on their belt.

The professional thread killers are not an asset to ATS, and have driven more than one member away. Even I have to admit that I have been driven from threads that I felt were very interesting, but after having to waddle through post after post of vicious, lame attacks, on contributing posters, I just stop following the thread. I hate letting them win because I know that it is their ultimate goal; to kill the thread outright, and if that fails, damage it enough to let it die a slow death.

This is not a new game they are playing. I have watched the ranks of the thread killers increase on ATS over time. Many members have pointed out on numerous occasions, the downward slide in ATS, to the point that ATS can no longer claim the high ground for providing an intelligent, informative, medium for the exchange of ideas. Once we were the place were the grown-ups came to share ideas, while the kids were playing in the sandbox. I don’t feel that way anymore. Us old farts at least had AATS but there was so little participation in that forum that to place a thread there, was like talking to yourself.

I used to be proud of being a member here and would encourage others to join in on a conversation I thought was particularly informative or interesting. I haven’t done that for a long time. I, like the OP, am afraid to invite anyone to ATS. I also, would feel embarrassment at some the behavior displayed, too often, by some of the members here. You have to navigate carefully through the boards, hoping to be able to stop long enough somewhere you can enjoy a brief conversation before the “Master” debaters show up with their line by line commentaries, that they think are witty and insightful. In truth, they usually totally miss the point that is being made by the poster and never come across, as I am sure they think, as intelligent and informed.

reply to post by NightSkyeB4Dawn

 

The professional thread killers are not an asset to ATS, and have driven more than one member away. Even I have to admit that I have been driven from threads that I felt were very interesting, but after having to waddle through post after post of vicious, lame attacks, on contributing posters, I just stop following the thread. I hate letting them win because I know that it is their ultimate goal; to kill the thread outright, and if that fails, damage it enough to let it die a slow death.

Firstly, I'll man up and say, I was childish in the last AMA thread and shouldn't have posted back while being in hatez mode at work. I have apologised to Springer for it but perhaps that's what's happening with some of the posts...being the Internet, people have the ability to post at all times they're connected and some of those times they might be having a # of a day.

Back to your point though. Is there a feature here for individual users to block a users' comments from an individual thread or all threads (if they're a continual thread killer)? This might be a cool feature. The reason I say blocking in just one thread as an option is because maybe they're having a # of a day and really shouldn't have commented or the topic being discussed makes them turn into the Incredible Hulk!

The two things that really get my goat are:
1. People who try to debunk an OP with no actual understanding of the topics or arguments raised in the OP and
2. Spelling mistakes in any post. I'm no English scholar; I failed English in High School (was more of a Science/Maths kid) but have slowly picked up my game over time and also make constant use of a dictionary (be it a browser ad-on or Googling the word in question). I guess I feel if I am making the effort (and it isn't a big effort IMHO) then why aren't others capable of putting in the same minimal effort.

*sigh*

Thanks OP for helping me get that one off my chest.

reply to post by Malynn

I couldn't agree more I for apologized for the rude comments that were showing up , although not my job but like you I was embarrassed. This man has a grueling schedule and for him to take time to answer our questions, was a opportunity for the ones that were interested in learning more on the fascinating subjects he researches.

What I don't get is were where the mods?

By the way he will answer your e-mails as well,

VoidHawk

Malynn
Most serious researchers don't have time to hang out on ATS all day getting acclimated with the place like us, the unwashed masses

You see what you did there^^^^
That was my whole point about having celebs on ats. You've put them up on a pedestal and lowered the rest of us to "the unwashed masses"

He's not a celebrity he is a serious researcher, giving families all over hope that their questions will be answered.

celebrity no....

reply to post by Malynn


That is the internet for ya, people are really tough and brave hiding behind an anonymous identity and behind a keyboard somewhere in internet-land. You also have lots of kids freshly brainwashed from socialist secular education who think they know it all.
I myself like to just state my case and leave it be without getting into an endless argument, where neither party even attempts to understand or open the mind to what is being said.

Same crap is happening all over again with the Alexander thread. Rotten attitude of a repeat offender from the Paulides thread.

Embarrassing.

reply to post by Restricted


Yes, I noticed that as well. However, they seem to be policing this one more carefully. I see a lot of removed posts for manners violations.

What's getting my goat this thread is the people who receive responses they aren't fond of who then want to argue with him about it. *facedesk over and over*

I want to be like, "Really? You want to argue pacifism with a guy who spent the majority of his life in the military? Dude, pointless. Also, this is so not the time or the place for that. TREAT IT LIKE A PRESS CONFERENCE PEOPLE!!! You shoot out a question, he answers, we all move on" Am I being unreasonable to feel that way?