My time in exile

[tehfire]

There has always been a certain amount of pride in being a member of the SPCR community. The reviews are well-written, complete, scientific, and precise. The forums too have always been a place of very high quality, far apart from the "brand x pwns brand y to the moon" talk that suffocates other forums. I think it is this high standard that we have set for ourselves that sometimes causes all of us, myself included, to develop an intolerance to dissenting opinions.

As Aristotle said all those years ago (litote), we are all rational creatures (he said "animals", but that's just splitting hairs). We all deliberate and make our choices, and for good reason we believe that we are justified in believing what we do. In a place so filled with opinions (such as forums), dissention is bound to happen, and it is kind of the point. Sometimes this dissension is formal and isn't taken personally, but sometimes out of carelessness or genuine ignorance (I use the word ignorance without its negative connotation) we offend others.

This is where I stand today. Too many times in the past and yet again tonight, I find myself regretting previous posts - posts made with the most heinous intent. I am a proud person and I do not deny its ills, but I do find myself lying in bed regretting actions done in order to save face. Pushing others around to make room for oneself is completely understandable, but it is not justifiable, and so I apologize for my actions and hope that I haven't offended anyone beyond repair.

My writing always has a disposition to become detached, so I just want to say I am sorry to anybody that I have offended either intentionally or unintentionally. It wasn't just not right, it was wrong of me. I am sorry.

As penance for my violating the spirit of our most cherished forums, I will deny the thing that has given me so much pleasure for years now; For one month I will abstain from reading or posting on our forums. Let this be a lesson I soon do not forget.

Sorry to all and see you December 9th.

[nick705]

Out of morbid curiosity, I've just had a quick scan through your recent posts, and I think you're being way too hard on yourself. There was the one instance where you got a bit... err... "snippy," but in all fairness it seems you were provoked by gratuitous rudeness from someone else. I guess the SPCR ideal would have been to rise gracefully above it, but we're only human after all.

I honestly don't think it's anything worth agonising over, let alone a self-imposed exile... if I lost sleep every time I made an arse of myself on a web forum, I'd be a nervous wreck by now...

[NeilBlanchard]

Greetings,

I think that this is the thread in question?

viewtopic.php?p=377392#377392

I think that some folks were slightly offended by some of what was written, and I think that we all understand where we overstepped common courtesy.

[aristide1]

....
As Aristotle said all those years ago (litote), we are all rational creatures (he said "animals", but that's just splitting hairs).

I wonder if he would feel that way today if he were here.

....
This is where I stand today. Too many times in the past and yet again tonight, I find myself regretting previous posts - posts made with the most heinous intent. I am a proud person and I do not deny its ills, but I do find myself lying in bed regretting actions done in order to save face....

[$.02]
Whoa! Slow down. First, you have the ability to edit a post later, you can tone it down or tone it up. Second, I would ask for an example of what you consider to be regretful, as I would agree with a prior poster you may be little too hard on yourself. And don't forget if it gets out of hand the moderators can always lock up the thread.

There has always been an inherit problems with written posts. They are totally void of any inflection, which plays a huge part in communication. So no matter what way you meant it, the way the reader interprets your mood is totally in their head, unless you use emoticons, and that's the reason they were invented, isn't it? And even they aren't perfect, but they can make a post that seems very nasty be rather sarcastis or funny. There are also [sarcasm] [rant] things you can do to help the lackof inflection as well.

And sometimes yes, I want the anger to present. There are times that diplomacy is useful, but there are also times that diplomacy only slows down or obliterates what you're trying to say.

[/$.02]

[djkest]

Lets see, a quick search of your posts reveals some funny ones, some useful ones, and maybe 1 that was out of line.

Don't be so hard on yourself!

[seemingly.random]

There has always been a certain amount of pride ... Sorry to all and see you December 9th.

Very elegant and looking forward to your return.

[aristide1]

Greetings,

I think that this is the thread in question?

viewtopic.php?p=377392#377392

I think that some folks were slightly offended by some of what was written, and I think that we all understand where we overstepped common courtesy.

It would seem that way to me as well, but still nothing to be upset about. And again, why not just update it and add an apology?

[spookmineer]

Your honousty about it is refreshing to say the least. I don't think I've ever seen a formal apology like this.

I've started to frantically type lengthy replies with "dark content" more times then I'd like to admit, but fortunately lengthy posts makes you count to ten about a dozen times. Rereading and editing even adds more time.
After typing for about 15 minutes, in most cases I decide to not even add the reply and delete the whole thing. Maybe it's therapeutical, after writing I got it out of my system and don't even really need someone else to read it.

FWIW, I recognise what you're saying and the difference is only one mouse click.
And this is a unique forum, like you say in your first paragraph. Most certainly because of the people who visit here, and because of posts like yours.

Exiling yourself is a bit extreme... You masochist

[nightmorph]

--

[alleycat]

And sometimes yes, I want the anger to present. There are times that diplomacy is useful, but there are also times that diplomacy only slows down or obliterates what you're trying to say.

I agree, it's not always possible or desirable to be completely courteous. Although I understand the teaching of "turning the other cheek", not being a Christian, I don't feel compelled to always do this. I freely admit that I become nasty when attacked, and have little time for what I perceive to be rudeness, illogic, untruths, or just plain stupidity, even if it is not directed at me personally. I believe that it is important to bring such acts to light and to defend others where necessary also.

There will always be tensions of varying degrees in life - it's the nature of the universe. Although I don't think it is a good idea to deliberately disrupt harmony, I also don't believe that injustice should always be tolerated in order to maintain it. The way I see things, it is more important to know how to resolve conflict rather than merely avoid it. We're all imperfect, and we need to recognize this, learn from our mistakes and move on.

tehfire, if I judged myself by the standards that you do, I would have banned myself from this forum long ago.

[peteamer]

tehfire, if I judged myself by the standards that you do, I would have banned myself from this forum long ago.

+1