Community and Thankfulness

[Fenris-77]

Yeah, mods are super important to curating community.

Ain't this the truth. You can be on a forum for years and then all of sudden mod shenanigans crop up and you're perosna non grata. The mods here do great work.

 

[el-remmen]

Matt Colville's long video

And thank you for reminding me to go back and finish watching this (which I am doing currently). I am grateful when posters can hear and take the advice he's giving, including myself.

 

[Jahydin]

Dropping in to once gain give thanks.

I've been visiting Reddit and Steam pages to get guidance on a game I was playing (Silksong, it's hard!) and just baffled at how awful everyone is to each other. For every one decent poster, there's like a hundred jerks! I wish I was exaggerating...

Then I got to thinking, it seems fandoms that create (playing instruments, art, game design, cooking, etc.) are less toxic then the ones that just consume (video games, music, movies, etc.). I think those are the communities I'm going to seek out from now on.

Anyways, thanks to everyone here for being decent people that care about this hobby and each other.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Then I got to thinking, it seems fandoms that create (playing instruments, art, game design, cooking, etc.) are less toxic then the ones that just consume (video games, music, movies, etc.). I think those are the communities I'm going to seek out from now on.

There’s definitely toxicity in creative communities, but I haven’t a clue as to whether or not your hypothesis is true.

But either way, best of luck!

 

[Jahydin]

There’s definitely toxicity in creative communities, but I haven’t a clue as to whether or not your hypothesis is true.

But either way, best of luck!

Agreed, but it seems to be "well meaning" at least? Also, the ratio of jerks/friendlies is better!

For instance, if the strings on my Fender are clanking and I post about it on a guitar forum, I'm mostly going to get some solid advice from people. At worst, I might get the, "Eew, you have a Fender, that's your problem." from someone who probably genuinely doesn't like Fender. Hearing them out though, they might still have something useful to say. Much better than the, "You suck, why don't you just quit? or "Maybe.. get better?" spammed ad nauseam.

Oh, and the lesser quirks of any community that always cracks me up:

• Hating on the popular idea/technique/product/brand that works just fine. How else are you going to stand out from the crowd!?
• Getting way "into the weeds" in their hobby. "New to coffee brewing? I recommend this $30,000 espresso machine... "

 

[GothmogIV]

In general, I think the anonymity of these spaces allows--maybe even encourages, somehow--people to be deeply uncivil to one and other. It's like people give in to their ids (to use the old Freudian term) and vent their darkest social impulses into the ether. So much of it reads like actual hatred...and over what? So dumb.

 

[payn]

In general, I think the anonymity of these spaces allows--maybe even encourages, somehow--people to be deeply uncivil to one and other. It's like people give in to their ids (to use the old Freudian term) and vent their darkest social impulses into the ether. So much of it reads like actual hatred...and over what? So dumb.

Its interesting because I think criticism have morphed into a deeply cynical and negative culture. I dont recall a time folks were ever not critical, but it seems like they take things to extreme distances. So, you dont like the controls of the latest video game? Its fine to say so. Instead you have folks drafting up a grand conspiracy of corporate suits who dont get what people like forcing them to have miserable experiences so they can make more money and that their lives should be threatened because of it. Ummm, what??? Lets turn the dial way down on that please. Though, folks have become accustomed to it because its so prevalent, its become the norm. They say misery loves company, and the internet provides the best way to find company.

 

[Morrus]

In general, I think the anonymity of these spaces allows--maybe even encourages, somehow--people to be deeply uncivil to one and other. It's like people give in to their ids (to use the old Freudian term) and vent their darkest social impulses into the ether. So much of it reads like actual hatred...and over what? So dumb.

Ha! Talking of that we seem to have a new podcast fan. “foo3234” here seems like a nice person.

 

[el-remmen]

I pity the foo.

 

[GMMichael]

In general, I think the anonymity of these spaces allows--maybe even encourages, somehow--people to be deeply uncivil to one and other. It's like people give in to their ids (to use the old Freudian term) and vent their darkest social impulses into the ether. So much of it reads like actual hatred...and over what? So dumb.

I don't endorse being a jerk, but venting is a thing. I suspect a big reason for pro-sports obsessions is that it's acceptable to shout at full volume that someone else "SUCKS!" Me, I prefer picking up a digital rifle and shooting someone's avatar in the head.

The breakdown might be in some people's failure to recognize which venues are appropriate for venting. And the lack of immediate consequences, which reminds me of this song: