The "I Didn't Comment in Another Thread" Thread

[CleverNickName]

Everyone thinks their thoughts, feelings, views, and preferences as the good, right, just, and smart things. It’s just human nature. The whole “you didn’t preface your comment with ‘in my opinion,’ therefore you must think your opinion is fact” thing is a really bizarre form of tone policing.

Oh it's more than that. I've seen threads that start with the phrase "Okay so everyone knows that this is a problem" in the first post, and anyone who disagrees gets shut down with the "your experience doesn't negate my experience" line. I'm sure you've seen the threads I'm referring to.

There's nothing to be done about it, because like you said, it's human nature. People need to feel understood, especially when discussing their grievances, and nobody wants to feel like they're the only one having a problem. But sometimes it's...a bit rich.

 

[Mad_Jack]

Of course it's "in my opinion." Who else's opinion would I be stating?

Well, if you're like a few people I know, the opinion of whoever made the last comment you read. Because they're incapable of holding multiple thoughts in their heads at one time, and they automatically parrot back the last thing they heard... (because if it's in their head it must be their thoughts, right? )

My mom's longtime best friend was like that - she'd spout whatever ignorant nonsense she had just heard from someone with no idea what they were talking about like it was the Gospel Truth, and then, after you corrected her, she'd be like, "Yup. You're absolutely right - that what I always said..."

 

[prabe]

Oh it's more than that. I've seen threads that start with the phrase "Okay so everyone knows that this is a problem" in the first post, and anyone who disagrees gets shut down with the "your experience doesn't negate my experience" line. I'm sure you've seen the threads I'm referring to.

There's nothing to be done about it, because like you said, it's human nature. People need to feel understood, especially when discussing their grievances, and nobody wants to feel like they're the only one having a problem. But sometimes it's...a bit rich.

I don't wildly disagree with you, but if the premise of the OP is that something is a problem ... maybe saying "I don't think it's a problem" isn't going to be seen as constructive--and may in fact be the opposite of helpful, given that different tables can have very different experiences. So these days I don't mostly post when I strongly disagree with the premise.

 

[overgeeked]

Yeah, that's a comment I've made before. Of course it's "in my opinion." Who else's opinion would I be stating?

Exactly.

But, then again, on rare occasions people state their opinion as inviolable fact.

The exception that proves the rule.

Oh it's more than that. I've seen threads that start with the phrase "Okay so everyone knows that this is a problem" in the first post, and anyone who disagrees gets shut down with the "your experience doesn't negate my experience" line. I'm sure you've seen the threads I'm referring to.

Yes, I have. What I see more of is people posting their personal experiences and asking for help only to be dismissed with a "that's a you problem" comment instead of being given anything that's actually helpful. I'm sure you've seen the comments I'm referring to.

There's nothing to be done about it, because like you said, it's human nature. People need to feel understood, especially when discussing their grievances, and nobody wants to feel like they're the only one having a problem. But sometimes it's...a bit rich.

So we should have some empathy and compassion for our fellow sufferers and understand where they're coming from, right?

 

[AnotherGuy]

I find, usually, there are some great ideas to be mined from the enworld collective when someone raises an issue they have at their table. It's free DMsGuild/Level Up/Unearthed Arcana type content. It's a win-win situation.

 

[trappedslider]

Exactly. All games are toolkits. Make the game yours. Use what you like, modify it as needed to suit your table, and ignore the rest. I will never understand the ”the RAW, the whole RAW, and nothing but the RAW” mindset.

a little over a decade ago, there was a splat book for d20modern/future which included a new way to break a skill and i wrote up a whole 3 to 4 paragraphs on RAW vs RAI (Rules As Intended) even included the math behind the break of the skill

 

[Thomas Shey]

Yeah, that's a comment I've made before. Of course it's "in my opinion." Who else's opinion would I be stating?

Enough people present things as generalities if not universalities that I'm not sure that's always a fair assumption.

But, then again, on rare occasions people state their opinion as inviolable fact.

I don't see it as all that rare.

 

[Thomas Shey]

Oh it's more than that. I've seen threads that start with the phrase "Okay so everyone knows that this is a problem" in the first post, and anyone who disagrees gets shut down with the "your experience doesn't negate my experience" line. I'm sure you've seen the threads I'm referring to.

There's nothing to be done about it, because like you said, it's human nature. People need to feel understood, especially when discussing their grievances, and nobody wants to feel like they're the only one having a problem. But sometimes it's...a bit rich.

You can always run into the problem of people who've seen something come up often enough in enough different games they think its a general problem. This isn't helped by the fact there's often no good way to tell who the outlier is--them, or the people who haven't had the problem.

 

[Thomas Shey]

I don't wildly disagree with you, but if the premise of the OP is that something is a problem ... maybe saying "I don't think it's a problem" isn't going to be seen as constructive--and may in fact be the opposite of helpful, given that different tables can have very different experiences. So these days I don't mostly post when I strongly disagree with the premise.

I feel kind of conflicted about this. On one hand, yeah, it can be tantamount to threadcrapping, but on the other, sometimes the premise seems faulty from the get-go, and is that not worth saying? I don't know.

 

[CleverNickName]

So we should have some empathy and compassion for our fellow sufferers and understand where they're coming from, right?

Usually I just point out the hyperbole in a meta-thread ("our fellow sufferers"? Like, is anyone suffering over game rules?), chuckle to myself while write something funny (how long have I been suffering alongside them? Seems like something I would have noticed), then drop it or change the subject (something something pineapple something).