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Sorry to disagree with you, but not everyone who posts here is deserving of respect. For instance, posters who are disabused of false notions, but steadfastly continue to spew the same debunked lies don't deserve even a modicum of respect, and I flat out refuse to give them any. I actually think it can be dangerous to respect all opinions, or even to treat all opinions as if they were worthy of reasoned debate. Not all opinions are created equally but oppositely. Some of them are just crap.
Why? Because it's fun. There are some folks on here who are clearly in need of psych meds, a boot in the arse, or AA. Several posters win the trifecta.
The opinions of uninformed raving lunatics deserve to be aired; they do not merit serious consideration.
2+2=14. I demand you respect my unique and insightful approach to math, which I learned when I left mainstream media with their "textbooks" and "theories" to dive into the wonderful world of Internet blogs!!
I have to admit that I tend to forget that I'm not always talking to people around my own age on message boards like this.
I actually have friends on different sides of he political spectrum and, while sometimes the conversations get heated, we typically "agree to disagree" and go vote however we choose.
Although I might disagree vehemently, I would never lash out, taunt, or be as sarcastic to a person significantly younger or older than I am in person (and I probably wouldn't make some of the same off-color jokes).
I hope that doesn't sound age-ist in any way, but it boils down to the anonymity, people making assumptions about who they are talking to (or just having no idea), and being less inhibited than they would be in in-person conversations (which I guess that has its upside, too).
Sadly, our media and popular culture have also degenerated to base name calling and really lowering the bar of national political discourse.
Has anyone seen the movie "Network?" It's a classic: ("I'm mad as hell and I can't take it anymore!")
That movie was produced in 1976 and envisioned a downward spiral in the news media and the interests that control them. Sadly, I think we've surpassed that point.
I'm not sure it's just the United States media, either; this seems to be a global trend.
I'm digressing, but I think the tone the media set influences how we perceive and discuss politics.
Sometimes it's fun to light fuses just to see what blows up.
True. I admit I've done it a couple of times just to push buttons. I've also had it done to me on a gay issue. The poster admitted it later on. I laughed. He really had me wound up. It was good to find out that he was just having some "fun" at my expense, and it caused me to lighten up a bit. It was good.
True. I admit I've done it a couple of times just to push buttons. I've also had it done to me on a gay issue. The poster admitted it later on. I laughed. He really had me wound up. It was good to find out that he was just having some "fun" at my expense, and it caused me to lighten up a bit. It was good.
You have to admit that some are just begging for it and It's quite rewarding to be charitable from time to time. I have noticed though that those who beg the most seem to be on YOUR side of the political fence.
Some folks seem to take the opinions of total strangers who can't possibly have any effect whatsoever on their lives way too seriously. These are the one's who go off on enraged tangents and start calling names and slinging insults. For some reason that's a red button that I sometimes can't resist pushing.
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It was good to find out that he was just having some "fun" at my expense, and it caused me to lighten up a bit. It was good.
