Member pledge to tone down the rhetoric

That really makes no sense to me. The "bar," is merely a thread in the Off-Topic Forum.

No one is compelled to read the thread, or precluded from it. There are any number of other threads in that forum, as well.

Sorry, if I am missing something.

 

Look at the "who posted" links in that forum - that will tell you most of what you ever need to know

 

I just noticed your join date, I'm sure you have your reasons for concern. Hell, I'm a noob , and probably should not have chimed in. I've started a couple threads there, maybe not anything you would be interested in, but you're always welcomed.

Otherwise, no offense intended.

Take care

 

No part of Political Forum is 'private property', and certainly not the Off Topic section - anyone can post in there, and many people from all kinds of political backgrounds often do (and that incudes the 'bar' threads). It is up to each individual to decide whether they want to get involved in the non-political chat, of course, but it is there for everyone (from any country or political viewpoint) to enjoy equally if they choose to. If people decide that they don't want to, for whatever reason, that's up to them.

 

As i have said - being allowed to post in there and feeling welcome there are two different things. There is enough friction between myself and the main cadre posting there without stirring it. I prefer just to stay out of that forum and use another bulletin board for casual chat. Something quite a few of us "liberals" do

 

Mak just found out how good my brownies are. Come and try them. Yummy stuff.
We are still looking for the spider under her seat, and Cenydd's kitten though, while Liberal Minority and I are watching the 'rear'.
Come and look, be silly with us.
We often assume what we wish, and think that its 'others' who can't set differences aside.

 

Well, I am discussing your last statement above.

As of right now, we have a plagerizer among us who is still allowed to post here. I have reported countless trolling, off topic, flaming comments from pretty much the same group of people, and yet they are still here posting.

All I want to say is, if all a poster can do is troll, flame, go off-topic, or complain about a source for 10 pages, then maybe it's time the mods came together and started getting a little more stern with such posters by banning them for longer periods of time? The reason your spending an hour on trolls, is a direct result of the leninacy you guys are giving them.

It is my opinion, that the rules against these types of posters are to loosely regulated and so we have more trolling then ever. Which leads to uncivil discussions multiplying and resulting in theards like this. That is my observation at least. The rhetoric can't be toned down until we finally deal with the people causing the uncivility. You can't expect people to sit silently by as others hijack their threads and argue asinine off topic crap or do nothing but complain about sourcing. People who complain about sourcing are honestly just lazy. Google is available to anyone with an Internet connection. If you don't like a source someone provided, go Google your own dang source.

My two cents at any rate. The rhetoric will only get worse, unless the leadership starts getting serious about returning PF back to a more civilized atmosphere with more quality posters and less drive by trolling.

 

Man, the grapes are sour on this thread. Conservatives don't have any special privileges on this forum... not a single thing those on the left can't do, too. It's so typical of liberals to want everything to work according to THEIR expectations. Guess it gives them something else to complain about.

TheHat made a very good point. If some of the trolls on this site were dealt with, things would no doubt be a lot more civil. I understand why it's a problem... the ones who've been here the longest have figured out how to skirt the rules. Maybe it's time to revisit the definition of trolling.

Just look what happened to this thread. A call to tone down the rhetoric is met with attacks. Face it, they just can't help themselves.

 

You are, of course, correct. The above post certainly is not skirting the rules nor can it be perceived as falling under the definition of trolling.

For one. I certainly hope that the moderators continue doing the fantastic job they have been doing, one that they receive little thanks and no compensation for doing.

 

Blowerbird???? Is that a typo or some sort of slight?

 

http://www.politicalforum.com/current-events/215781-i-lost-my-job-but-found-occupation.html

Here is a prime example of which I spoke on the previous page.

We have members actively supporting and propagandizing illegal activity as a thread topic. This has been going on fo months and nothing has changed it for the better.

This is why radical rhetoric and rebuttals will continue.

 

I believe I am pretty much on the same page as Web here. Rhetoric is an admirable tool, from ancients to present, and history has noted it as such.

•"Rhetoric may be defined as the faculty of observing in any given case the available means of persuasion."
(Aristotle, Rhetoric)

•"Rhetoric is the art of speaking well."
(Quintilian)

•"Elegance depends partly on the use of words established in suitable authors, partly on their right application, partly on their right combination in phrases."
(Erasmus)

•"Histories make men wise; poets, witty; the mathematics, subtle; natural philosophy, deep; moral, grave; logic and rhetoric, able to contend."
(Francis Bacon)

•"[Rhetoric] is that art or talent by which discourse is adapted to its end. The four ends of discourse are to enlighten the understanding, please the imagination, move the passion, and influence the will."
(George Campbell)

•"'Rhetoric' . . . refers but to 'the use of language in such a way as to produce a desired impression upon the hearer or reader.'"
(Kenneth Burke, Counter-Statement, 1952)

Now the TOS agreement of not attacking individuals is something I obviously completely agree with, but that is not rhetoric, just to be clear.

 

The forum has become down right unreadable most of the time, unfortunately. It's 90% political partisanship and useless rhetoric.

 

Case in point

Sad part - there is not even an acknowledgement that maybe the problem is everyone and not just "some"

No, i will not post in the off topic forum because there are those there who would not and could not resist making comments like those above.

 

OMG, you mean POLITICS? How awful!! LOL, it's the name of the game, speedingtime. Otherwise, they'd call it the Sunshine Forum.

 

Well, we'll try to struggle on without you, Bowerbird. I only have one thread in off-topics. Guess that's one too many, eh?

 

I have tried in the past and found the best way to deal with issue is to have as little to do with the "cadre" as possible. It is bad enough to have threads that are simply post after post of people sneering at others, whether it be a political figure or the other side of the political spectrum but to mix with people such as these socially? No, I have no desire to, and the board is, well less fractious because I have decided to avoid confrontation

 

My rhetoric is not extreme, and I've repped liberals now and then.

 

It shouldn't have to be that way though.

politics [pol-i-tiks]  
Example Sentences Origin
pol·i·tics   [pol-i-tiks] Show IPA
noun (used with a singular or plural verb)
1.
the science or art of political government.
2.
the practice or profession of conducting political affairs.
3.
political affairs: The advocated reforms have become embroiled in politics.
4.
political methods or maneuvers: We could not approve of his politics in winning passage of the bill.
5.
political principles or opinions: We avoided discussion of religion and politics. His politics are his own affair.

I'm not saying that I'm completely innocent-- It just gets tiring sometimes reading about "*********s" or "*******s", and then realizing that this is standard political discourse in the US. Or maybe it's just the sheer amount of people on this forum that leads to polarization of political opinions. All it takes is for one person to completely derail a thread, after all.

 

I also have repped liberals, numerous times.

 

Ditto. I rep a post that I agree with or that is well written. I don't care what the political orientation is of the person making a post that I think is worth a rep. I have been given reps by people who have a different orientation than I do, so I think most people are basically fair.

 

I'll rectify my earlier post(s)-- a lot of the posts here are fine, it's just that the obnoxious ones tend to get shouted the loudest.

 

The Long knives will emerge over the next 10 months (Hopefully the Mod/Admins fangs will emerge also as they pick a side now & then )