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14331. judithathome - 3/25/2005 8:39:02 PM I think linking your forum here and the Mote there is a great idea...
I admire so much how you've managed to have a fight free forum about religion and I have learned so much from it...you are to be commended for that place; it's great! 14332. Ms. No - 3/25/2005 10:18:33 PM I took a lot of pictures last weekend at the Silver Lake Leather Street Fair and have been getting the sweetest notes from all the folks I sent copies to.
Mr. LA Leather 2005 is even putting a couple in his scrapbook. Cool! 14333. arkymalarky - 3/25/2005 11:29:12 PM How nice! 14334. Ms. No - 3/25/2005 11:49:09 PM Woo-hoo! I'm off!
Have a great weekend everyone! 14335. Magoseph - 3/26/2005 9:55:26 PM Which alcohol drink are you?
14336. Magoseph - 3/26/2005 9:57:28 PM 
Wine
?? Which Alcoholic Drink Are You ??
brought to you by Quizilla14337. arkymalarky - 3/26/2005 11:09:56 PM I'm beer. But beer makes me burp. I guess it makes everybody burp, but I don't like feeling bloated. But being beer is good, as opposed to drinking it. 14338. arkymalarky - 3/26/2005 11:10:23 PM yikes!
14339. robertjayb - 3/26/2005 11:46:30 PM 
Correct.
But a Brandy Manhattan, not a cute thing with straws and fruit slices, just a couple of marischino cherries and an extra smidgen of cherry juice.
14340. robertjayb - 3/26/2005 11:53:06 PM Finger food...
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- Sales have dropped sharply at Wendy's fast food restaurants in the area of northern California where a woman claimed she found part of a finger in a bowl of chili, but analysts say the company's long-term prognosis should not be affected.
14341. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 3/27/2005 5:17:05 AM 
14342. thoughtful - 3/27/2005 4:10:20 PM That's adorable! ThanksWiz 14343. wonkers2 - 3/27/2005 5:03:26 PM Watch out! You'll be accused of kiddie porn! 14344. thoughtful - 3/28/2005 2:21:34 PM Sigh. I had my old pc from years ago and was cleaning up files. Came across a number of discussions I'd saved from the old fray/mote days including a very interesting discussion i had with pseue and pincher martin on the impact of soc sec privatization from 1998 and another on the impact of speculative money and china on the asian currency crisis. I had forgotten the level of discourse that used to be common here. Sad, really. 14345. judithathome - 3/28/2005 7:29:08 PM Well, I regret that every movie made today is geared toward 18 year old males with short attention spans but that isn't likely to change.
Sure, there were more elevated discussions when more people were here but it was their choice to leave. They know where this place is and could return if they so chose. 14346. thoughtful - 3/28/2005 8:28:41 PM I agree, but just like with the movies, the response is based on the confluence of demand. Unless we happen to get a bunch checking in at the same time who see and generate an elevated level of discourse, they won't be encouraged to stay. One good guy checking in, e.g., on the religion thread seeing the venom outflow there, or in the politics and seeing the equivalent of a blog of links to other sites, will easily get turned off and not return.
14347. arkymalarky - 3/28/2005 9:48:07 PM We had an amazing amount of vitriol in the Religion thread from the first I ever saw it. I used to stay away, even after having been here a number of years, and a lot of people felt the same about Politics and a few other threads. Eight years ago when I first looked in and then posted, I almost left before getting involved, because I had never anywhere witnessed the level of hostility and bickering I saw in here. The quality of discussion trumped it, but barely. It didn't for my dad and others who visited and found the quality of discourse wasn't worth wading through the feces-fling-fests. Dad, for one, lived an academic life and had a lot of quality discussions with colleagues that didn't require wading through or stepping around piles of crap. On that score, it's much better now than it ever was. Rarely do we have the level or duration of flame wars we did years ago.
I learned to ignore it just like I would ignore a babbling crazy aunt at the holiday dinner table, unless it was directed at me or was so disruptive as to shut down other discussion, but it always reduced my enjoyment of an otherwise excellent forum.
I also realize a lot of people may have gone to other forums, but most are just busier than they used to be, even those who've gone to other places, and forums in general have declined, from what I'm hearing and reading. People who did participate a lot and still have the time may be more inclined to do a blog. I have virtually no time to engage in lengthy discussions like I used to. I hope to get back to having more time this spring, but I'm probably an exception to the rule.
Another huge factor is that posting from work is done a lot less. I haven't posted from work since we developed the ability to put up pictures. I don't need any surprises on the job, though everyone irl knows I participate in a discussion forum. 14348. wonkers2 - 3/28/2005 10:15:40 PM A lot of employers frown on use of office computers for non-business purposes. In my previous job of dealing with unemployment compensation appeals I saw a fair number dismissals and protests by employers of unemployment compensation benefits in these cases. Many employers came down especially hard on dirty jokes and dirty pictures out of fear of sexual harrasment suits. The appeals board was split on the issue. My position was that the employer had to show that the dismissed employee was wasting a significant amount of time when he or she should have been working and that the rule was evenly applied to everyone. As far as I was concerned porn was not an issue unless displayed openly or sent to someone who didn't want it. I go back to the days when it was not uncommon for men on their breaks to discreetly peruse a Playboy kept in a desk drawer, to which nobody raised an eyebrow, let alone firing anyone. I find it hard to distinguish a Playboy magazine in a desk drawer from a similar picture on a computer. (My position was in the minority on this.) 14349. The Summer Woman - 3/29/2005 7:52:50 AM I just think that forums have a life cycle that they go through. In the beginning, if one is very, very, lucky, there is an accidental assemblage of people who stimulate one another's thoughts and ideas. If you are even luckier, they have a similar knowlege base to draw from, or at least an ability and willingness to learn from one another. the next stage, the variety of interactions starts to be limited, except when someone new shows up. In the final stage, people have become friends with shared history. This is not to say that interesting discussions don't still occur, but the novelty has warn off. Ha! Sounds like a marriage, doesn't it? Complete with circular arguments that never get resolved, so entrenched are the combatants in their respective corners.
And then, there is the fact that the "newness" of forums, and the internet, has worn off. And I would agree with Arky that many of the people who used to participate have entered into new situations in their lives: marriage, a job where surfing isn't permitted, new babies, etc.
It will be interesting to see whether at some future time, another stage develops - when lives change again and a forum becomes re-energized by people returning as their circumstances permit. Their is some evidence of this phenomenon already - when someone pops in after a long hiatus, it's like a celebration. 14350. The Summer Woman - 3/29/2005 7:54:55 AM Man, that post is full of spelling errors!
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