Originally Posted by witchal
I've only posted on political threads a couple of times. I am however, one who not only enjoyed the reading but also admired the thought that members put into their posts no matter what side of the political spectrum they were coming from.
I did have a problem when the discussions turned personal and that is where and when I chose, as anyone could have, to stop reading that thread. I stopped reading, not because an accusation of racism or inequality or other was leveled, but because the members who's opinions I respected only empowered the idealist to continue their rants by replying to them. You guys took the bait and let the conversation be changed! Guess who won the debate.
Like the itch of a hemorrhoid, if you continue to scratch it, it'll always be there. If you grin, bare it and do your best to ignore it, chances are it'll just go away.
Very well-spoken. And a wonderful analogy with the hemorrhoid, hahaha. The two/three agitators posed no real threat to me, weren't going to change my mind or my life, and were not serious enough to warrant any personal grief. They were, simply put, a pain in the @ss.
The principles I stand on surpass any forum, and no amount of censorship will silence my stance on the things that matter. As Franc stated, will we now have a zero-tolerance rule for all things political? Even in a joke thread? 1984 was a novel, not a hand-book.
And James, we get the fact that it's a Crossfire board and the political musings grated you. But, honestly... how long will the interest of all be arrested by caliper paint color, bulb wattage ratings, and the latest CAI? I promise you, I will ignore 90% of those threads just like 90% of people on here SHOULD HAVE ignored the political threads that they slandered, but never participated in (???). Ballet isn't my thing either, but I'm not trying to outlaw it.
And yes, other car websites have political sections. MB-World has a HUGE member base, and they're all big boys and girls about it. It's not about joining a political forum, it's about discussing politics occasionally with friends that you met THROUGH the common interest -- the Crossfire. If we're going to be a strictly informative site, let's ban OT forums altogether... after all, it muddies the water and detracts from the purity of the site's purpose.
All of the info for our cars is old hat. Aside from our friendly forum vendors, the M112 is a dead platform embraced by no one. All suspension upgrades we have are from the R170. Cosmetic mods are "to each his own" and there is no real uncharted territory. The old fogies on here will yell at any newbie for not searching for related threads, relevant to their questions, first. So, if the newbies play nicely and simply do the research instead of create new threads, we have a stagnant forum. Otherwise, all we really have to look forward to is "Will these wheels work?" and "Is the eBay tune really worth the $65?"
Oh well.
Anyone done anything new and exciting to their cars? Wait.... nevermind.
It was a good run for a few years, gentlemen. Sucks it was spoiled by mud-slinging at the end. Boys will be boys.
Blessings,
--John