My bet is that this is one of those, wait a period of time until everyone has moved on and then continue posting like nothing has happened kind of deals.
Nope. I was just doing some digging. You'll see what I mean.
No, I don't think you are made of stone. I think you clearly get something out of being here, because here you are. Maybe you'd get more out of it if you weren't clearly disliked by many other users, I don't know. But there's no rules I could enforce that would make people like you.
I am not asking you to play thought police. People can hold whatever opinions of me they like. What I'm asking you to do is enforce your own rules to stop people from acting like braying jackasses. Is that really so unreasonable?
Maybe this place is awful. Maybe that's my fault. But you keep threatening to leave over it and then not leaving, so... what inference am I supposed to draw from that?
That I'm trying to make you see your method of running this place is at odds with your stated goal for it. I know for a fact that I'm not the only one who thinks this place is in desperate need of a crackdown on bad behavior.
I'm sure you know that these forums spent some time as a separate entity called Frequently Questioned Answers. In 2015, there was an attempt to reunite the two sites. But it failed, and a big part of that failure was the fact that a lot of FSTDT users
hated the forums.
Links for evidence:
https://www.fstdt.com/.RJ5https://www.fstdt.com/F_J5And some choice quotes:
This is the part where Ravynous puts forth fake forgiveness because the last 6 forumites want to reunite the main site with the forums in a last ditch attempt to put life back into a putrefied corpse, without realizing that they're the reason why it's rotting in the first place.
It'll either break the echo chamber or be the last gasp, I suppose.
Please do not reunite the site with that seething nest of vipers that became the forums. Once upon a time it was a good thing. Now? The forums are why FSTDT went on the decline.
FQA has become a place that actively shunts discussion and, due to the existence of people like Ironbite, actively come across as toxic. It's why several members of the older guard are leaving and have left.
Or is it not telling that even after all of this time, they still find a need to have a forum chewtoy or rag on Distind the moment that he becomes even slightly relevant? The only reason any niceties are being presented towards him now is due to the fact that the slimmest chance exists for FQA and FSTDT to be reunited. Even only a few days before, they had been posting in a thread about how horrible he was when he left and linking to quotes about it.
It all frankly reeks of insincerity and I'm honestly sure that I'm not the only one who believes that I would rather see FQA fade into internet obscurity than see its current existence and practices justified by reuniting the two pages.
Either way, I'd really prefer we allow that toxic hive to live or die on its own.
Let them die, or live, on their own. If FSTDT is to have a forum let it be a brand new one. FQA is beyond this place.
(Note: I cut some things I considered irrelevant from some of those quotes. The full ones are available through the links I provided.)
There are plenty more if you want to look. Even Art Vandelay got in on the act:
I know I'm one of those FQA people, but for what it's worth, I agree with a hell of a lot of what both anons + Wrightway are saying. Sure, a little drama is to be expected in any group of people, but the sheer amount, scope and persistence of it, especially within a community that's founded on the principle of laughing at other people's stupidity, is utterly mind-blowing. It would make even the most vapid high school clique cringe. It's fucking ridiculous.
Honestly, the vast majority of the forum are grown-ass adults and yet all of the bullshit you guys mentioned occurs and continues for years after any normal person would've moved the fuck on with their lives. Hell, we couldn't even have a simple "like/dislike" system without a bunch of passive-agreesive, cowardly, puerile man-children using it to perpetuate some grudge over some meaningless bullshit. Jesus, whatever happened to just being up front about those sorts of issues? Hell, it's what the Flame and Burn subforum is for, but I guess some of us are too much of a cowardly manchild to either just say it or let it go.
In light of that, I really shouldn't be surprised that someone is still harassing Wrightway, years after she left. Oh, and anonymously, of course. No way would they dare to use even their forum username. Still disgusted, don't get me wrong, but not particularly surprised at this point. Utterly pathetic.
Don't get me wrong, I otherwise do enjoy the community. There are still good people around who make for fun and interesting discussion and who, if they have a problem with someone, will just say to their faces and (here's my favourite part) let it go when it's all said and done. I've just for the life of me never understood how such a mind-blowingly dedicated yet cowardly element of drama whoring managed to take root and somehow co-exist with the rest of the activity on the forum. A forum of grown-ass men and women who pride themselves on their intelligence, no less. If nothing else, I think we can all agree that it's a huge shame that it's torn the community apart like this.
Wouldn't be surprised if these complaints he made were a contributing factor in his decision to leave.
Now, of course, the forums were eventually rejoined to the main site. But has that stopped them from dying? Just look at this place. It's on life support. Old users have left in droves, and you're not getting nearly enough new users to make up for it.
My point is simple: if you're really interested in "fostering the existence of a community", I really think you should make an effort to change things for the better. That means enforcing the "don't be a dick" rule so people know there will be consequences for not playing nice.
Of course, I can't read your mind, so maybe you have your reasons for this. If you're willing to explain, then I'm willing to listen.