Has the forum gone too far?

[Merik]

For several days now I have been trying to avoid this website, and in particular the General Discussion forum, for a reason I am about to explain. Dont get me wrong, what Hood has done is spectacular as far as the actual website goes but the forum is another matter.

Anyway for these several days I have been doing a lot of thinking. With the surge of heavy combat and casualties in Iraq over the past few weeks or so, there seems to be a growing number of people outside the United States(and in some instances actual US citizens) in this forum not only criticizing but down playing anything that we as a Nation do in the world today. To put it blantatly there is a lot of **** talk flying around here, especially in the General discussion forum.

Around the first of the week it just got to the point where I could no longer even click on my bookmark for this site being afraid that I would see or read something that would just make me snap and type something I would regret. Now, some of the things that are being said are anti-Iraq war, anti-Bush, or even anti-US all together. Respectivly those are your rights as a person to make comments about the way we do things. But in light of that, after reading several posts that were completely and utterly disrespectful to the men and women of our Nation's armed forces over in Iraq, that is not your right to do. I do not care what kind of "Free Speach" laws there are, and I do not care if you are German, French, British, Spanish, or even American. You do not put down the people that wear the uniforms. I believe that that qualifies for any country's armed services.

Things have really turned sour around here, and I understand that the moderators and Hood himself are doing everything they can to keep things civilized as much as they can, and they are doing a great job compared to what it used to be like. Im not trying to step on anyone's toes around here and Im not trying to score brownie points either. I have just got to the point to where I am afraid of clicking on a topic and seeing things that should not be said. It literally breaks my heart whenever I hear or read member's comments about the soldiers dying in Iraq that are negative. I did not join the Army National Guard to protect a people that make inflammatory comments about the troops risking thier lives for a mission. Im not going to turn this political because that "mission" can be described as many things. But the fact of the matter is is that I joined to serve my country, state, and my people. I joined to continue to do what my father, both of my grandfather's, and more ancestors futher down the line did. And that was to defend this country against all enemies, foreign and domestic.

There may be some of you that will laugh once you have read that I joined the National Guard. You may think that I am a joke because I was too scared to join the real Army. Well, when I joined I joined to do all of the above that I just wrote, and to be deployed to Iraq later this year. I hope that in the time that I am gone I will not leave a forum that will disrespect the service I am providing because I am over there. I look at things in a new light when it comes to matters regarding my fellow soldiers and even the hate towards my country. I just wish that people can see why we are fighting the battles we are in the world for thier true purpose.

Also, I hope that no one will be confused as to what I wrote because Im not sure what I really put down. I just wrote what I felt and I feel better to get that off my chest.

[Fintin]

i am scared of the GD....people yell alot in here.....::ducks and runs::

[American Patriot]

would just make me snap and type something I would regret.

Damn I guess I am stronger than you. :lol: I love reading stupid anti-American ****, it makes me laugh. :lol:

[Romulus]

There may be some of you that will laugh once you have read that I joined the National Guard.

Nothing to laugh about. Service is service period. Merik, there are always going to be people who troll forums posting snide remarks about anything just to piss people off. I just read the drivel and move on.

[SEALInTheMaking]

Amen Merik, best of luck to you in Iraq.

[Pooga]

Yeah, come on people. The site is called militaryphotos.net, not bashacountry.net. Yes, I know that was lame, but so is bashing countries over the Internet.

So, if you are one of these people who bash countries over the internet (the US seems to be taking most of the bashes) you can choose to do one or more of the following:

1) Get a life (coupons available at your local 7-11).
2) Run around with your pants on your head screaming, "BLOODY MURDER!"
3) If you find you cannot control your country-bashing, stick toiletpaper onto random places in your body and paint your doorways red, to ward off evil country-bashing demons. You must use at least one whole roll, preferably Charmin™.

The moral of the story is, if you think you are a mature intellectual, then you should be able to restrain yourself from making immature posts. Post something interesting and enlightening, not something blatantly retarded and maddening. Sorry for all the retarded people out there.

Please, this is a very interesting site. Don't ruin it with your ego.


PS—Think about it: You are sitting at your computer, eating warm yummy pizza and cool refreshing Coke, putting greasy fingerprints over the keyboard and slandering people who don't know if they're going to be among the living in the next five minutes. OVER THE INTERNET, better yet. Doesn't that make you feel like a complete nerd?

[Korth]

. Now, some of the things that are being said are anti-Iraq war, anti-Bush, or even anti-US all together. Respectivly those are your rights as a person to make comments about the way we do things.

If they support the terrorists then I don't care about their "rights". They become targets.

[Johnnyringo]

I sometimes wonder why people blow this anti-American sentiment out of proportion. Yes, the majority of the users on MP are Americans... a "few" users are Europeans, South Americans, Russians, Chinese.... But a shot against so-called American "Imperialism" and military actions around the world are to be expected. I don't think it's dispoportionate? sp? to the rampant pro-U.S. talk that dominates this forum.

So I guess I'm saying "Get a f*cking grip"... there will always be people that try to rattle your cage and want to change your opinions. If we all thought along the same lines we wouldn't need a "Democratic freely elected government that is currently the worlds LONE superpower". Get a grip, take a deeep breath, and post sensibly. God knows I have a hard time doing that!

[Celareon]

You do not put down the people that wear the uniforms. I believe that that qualifies for any country's armed services.

Don't go too far.

Depends on the soldiers, the country and their behavior and adherence to internationally recognized rules of war.

Then i'll make my decision.

[Fintin]

i think we have aways to go still....we need lots of improvement....

[alphabet]

It's the internet, do you actually care what people say ? Words are words, my friend; ignore them.

[Maine Finn]

There may be some of you that will laugh once you have read that I joined the National Guard.
I laugh at the people who bash the service, but are too scared to enlist themselves. Me? I have a meeting with an MNG Sergeant next week to discuss my enlisting. It's more than just "something to do over the summer". It's an obligation that I feel I owe this country, because of what it is allowing me to do. I can go to school for whatever degree I want, when I want, and I can do with that degree whatever I choose. In fact, I am looking into an EMT cert to supplement my current major, in addition to joining the Guard.

I want to be a Game Warden. I want to ride with a local rescue. I want to serve. And I will.

I laugh at the people who mock and degrade those who serve and give their lives, because I know that they are the people who are ashamed of their own unwillingness or inability to serve themselves.


Damn I guess I am stronger than you. :lol: I love reading stupid anti-American ****, it makes me laugh. :lol:

I believe that you have utterly missed the point of what Merik is saying. It isn't about being "stronger" or "tougher" than anybody else. It's about not having to put up with this crap from people who have nothing better to do than troll this and other Forums. You can enjoy it all you like, if that's your thing, but at the very least, have the deceny and foresight to ignore those trolling posts when you see them, because reacting to them only feeds the fire.


If they support the terrorists then I don't care about their "rights". They become targets.

I believe that you too have missed Merik's point. The beauty and pitfall of these Forums is that everyone is entitled to their own opinions and beliefs. Basic respect for other people in that regard is necessary to keep this Forum alive. Granted, there is a rapidly dwindling sense of that respect around here, and it's because we allow ourselves to sink to the level of these trollers by reacting to their posts and threads and giving them reasons to stay here and infest the Forum like a disease. It has been said time and again by Hood, the mods, and other members that the best way to rid ourselves of these people is to ignore them and make certain that the attention they so desperately crave is denied them.

That's not to say that it will be easy. By no means will it be so. I myself have been drawn into flame wars because I have felt so insulted by what was posted that I had to respond.

Willpower and self-restraint. It's not a lot to ask that all of us exercise those two things, either to ignore trollers outright, or to be as terse as possible if we must respond to them.

Just my two bits on that.

~Emily

[Trigger]

Word Johnnyringo.

...but it is fun to retaliate too. :D

[Fintin]

word....i guess your still sober...but dont mess with a sober finn...they know their stuff

[Maine Finn]

word....i guess your still sober...but dont mess with a sober finn...they know their stuff

Yes, we do. And when you get us angry, all Hell breaks loose. My post, strangely and scarily enough, is not an angry post. It's hard to get me angry on this Forum, it really is.

But I think that what I said and what Merik said holds true, for the most part.

[Fintin]

word....i guess your still sober...but dont mess with a sober finn...they know their stuff

Yes, we do. And when you get us angry, all Hell breaks loose. My post, strangely and scarily enough, is not an angry post. It's hard to get me angry on this Forum, it really is.

But I think that what I said and what Merik said holds true, for the most part.

but your still sober right now...HAHA

[Pooga]

Is it legal to post pictures in a General Discussion topic?

[Fintin]

yes but someone cuts your arm off with a chain saw

[Soulhunter]

Marik: aren't you a bit too sensitive to be a soldier (or member of the national guard or whatever) if you can't even handle this critique here?

Imagine yourself in front of Iraqis demonstrating against and shouting offenses to the US forces? Would you snap then an just shoot because they don't respect men in uniforms?

[Ngati Tumatauenga]

Imagine yourself in front of Iraqis demonstrating against and shouting offenses to the US forces? Would you snap then an just shoot because they don't respect men in uniforms?

Wow, that's really perceptive of you. :roll:

[Trident-za]

I've noticed that the anti-US stuff has increased quite a bit since Falluja went beserk AND that the ability to rationally discuss/argue with these posts goes out the window too. Too many recent posts involve emotional responses rather than logical ones, and the ability to distinguish between "anti-US" and "disagreement over tactics" appears to have vanished. Understandable - it is an emotive issue, but it does kind of make it less pleasant to post here.

Johnnyringo... good post. Merik, good luck man.

[Midtown]

yes but someone cuts your arm off with a chain saw

I am the resident dismemberment artist.

[Mr Gently Benevolent]

Well said Johnnyringo. The divisions between us are not that great so when things get hot in here I know that it will settle down eventually and we will get back to the usual happy banter. :)

[Haiw]

I've noticed that the anti-US stuff has increased quite a bit since Falluja went beserk AND that the ability to rationally discuss/argue with these posts goes out the window too. Too many recent posts involve emotional responses rather than logical ones, and the ability to distinguish between "anti-US" and "disagreement over tactics" appears to have vanished. Understandable - it is an emotive issue, but it does kind of make it less pleasant to post here.

Johnnyringo... good post. Merik, good luck man.
Yeah...funny you mention that since I noticed as well. It's almost like...it gets hot in Iraq, it gets hot in here. So things better quiet down there for the sake of the forum. :P

[gilgoul]

Yeah, come on people. The site is called militaryphotos.net, not bashacountry.net. Yes, I know that was lame, but so is bashing countries over the Internet.

So, if you are one of these people who bash countries over the internet (the US seems to be taking most of the bashes) you can choose to do one or more of the following:

1) Get a life (coupons available at your local 7-11).
2) Run around with your pants on your head screaming, "BLOODY MURDER!"
3) If you find you cannot control your country-bashing, stick toiletpaper onto random places in your body and paint your doorways red, to ward off evil country-bashing demons. You must use at least one whole roll, preferably Charmin™.

The moral of the story is, if you think you are a mature intellectual, then you should be able to restrain yourself from making immature posts. Post something interesting and enlightening, not something blatantly retarded and maddening. Sorry for all the retarded people out there.

Please, this is a very interesting site. Don't ruin it with your ego.


PS—Think about it: You are sitting at your computer, eating warm yummy pizza and cool refreshing Coke, putting greasy fingerprints over the keyboard and slandering people who don't know if they're going to be among the living in the next five minutes. OVER THE INTERNET, better yet. Doesn't that make you feel like a complete nerd?


KOL HA KAVOD< I HAD MY BEST LAUGH IN A WHILE :hug:

[Maine Finn]

Marik: aren't you a bit too sensitive to be a soldier (or member of the national guard or whatever) if you can't even handle this critique here?

Imagine yourself in front of Iraqis demonstrating against and shouting offenses to the US forces? Would you snap then an just shoot because they don't respect men in uniforms?

In case you weren't aware, a lot of us are more sensitive here - on this Forum - than we are in real life. In person, you can insult me all day long and I wouldn't care a bit. But here, I'm fairly quick to react to insults and flames, because here, I don't have to be the thick-skinned student that I normally am.

This may not be Merik's reasoning, but it's mine. There's a difference between being too sensitive and yet still reacting reasonably in posts and being too sensitive and completely losing one's head because of what someone else posted.

By the way, thanks for hijacking this thread, lads. You're helping - as, probably, am I - to dilute the original meaning and purpose of this thread. Good job.

~Emily

[Haiw]

I suppose it would be wrong of me to bring up flowers? ;)

[khukuri]

I dont hear ya complaining when somebody say lets kill all iraki moslems ****ers or something like that.

[HELEX]

And I dont hear critics when somebody calls the Iraqi Insurgents, who just fight Occupation, Terrorists.

[shorty]

Well we call em terrorist because they ARE!!! Most of the fighters left in Iraq are FOREIGN and are therefore called terrorists. They came to the country from numerous other ones, i.e. Iran, Egypt, Libya....any and all terrorist breeding grounds.......And that my friend is why we call this scum terrorists!

[Mr Gently Benevolent]

Well we call em terrorist because they ARE!!! Most of the fighters left in Iraq are FOREIGN
Prove this one shorty. Most of the guys fighting against the coalition are native born Iraqi's, there are fighters from others states but by and large its Iraqi's that are trying to kill our troops.

[HELEX]

Well we call em terrorist because they ARE!!! Most of the fighters left in Iraq are FOREIGN and are therefore called terrorists. They came to the country from numerous other ones, i.e. Iran, Egypt, Libya....any and all terrorist breeding grounds.......And that my friend is why we call this scum terrorists!

Do you really believe that what you just wrote? :cantbeli:

Thats a serious Question!

How old are you?

You just said there nwere no terrorists in Iraq before invasion.... rofl

[ibstolidude]

I dont hear ya complaining when somebody say lets kill all iraki moslems f*** or something like that.
Do some research. I absolutley have deleted and edited posts of such nature & locked threads. You (like most internet users) can create your but do it from outside of this forum - but the facts still stand here -- many complaints about such threads have been met, users banned, posts edited, threads locked and deleted.
And as MODS have posted repeatedly - we don't read every single thread/post - if you have a complaint about one PM some one.

Hey were is Sixgun anyway?

[anonymous individual]

Merik, best of luck in Iraq. I hope you have a safe tour. Good speed, buddy.

[anonymous individual]

Sixgun is on gunsnet.net these days.

[Truthsayer]

I dont hear ya complaining when somebody say lets kill all iraki moslems f*** or something like that.
Do some research. I absolutley have deleted and edited posts of such nature & locked threads. You (like most internet users) can create your but do it from outside of this forum - but the facts still stand here -- many complaints about such threads have been met, users banned, posts edited, threads locked and deleted.
And as MODS have posted repeatedly - we don't read every single thread/post - if you have a complaint about one PM some one.

Hey were is Sixgun anyway?

Wouldn't it be a good thing to list wich users that are banned and why?

[shorty]

Do you really believe that what you just wrote? :cantbeli:

Thats a serious Question!

How old are you?

You just said there nwere no terrorists in Iraq before invasion.... rofl

HELEX if you would read my post thoroughly you would have saw that I said nothing about there being no terrorists in Iraq before invasion. The fact is, is that there has always been terrorists and terrorists cells in Iraq. Yes, I do believe what I just wrote. I don't wish to engage in a verbal fight with you over the internet. That is just a very childish thing to do. I just want to prove my point to the best of my abilities. Oh and I am 15 and I get most of my info from FIRST-HAND 101st soldiers or 5 SFG guys. :backhand:

[khukuri]

I dont hear ya complaining when somebody say lets kill all iraki moslems f*** or something like that.
Do some research. I absolutley have deleted and edited posts of such nature & locked threads. You (like most internet users) can create your but do it from outside of this forum - but the facts still stand here -- many complaints about such threads have been met, users banned, posts edited, threads locked and deleted.
And as MODS have posted repeatedly - we don't read every single thread/post - if you have a complaint about one PM some one.

Hey were is Sixgun anyway?

It was ment to merik

or maybe heve compained to you by pm, i dunno

[khukuri]

Well we call em terrorist because they ARE!!! Most of the fighters left in Iraq are FOREIGN and are therefore called terrorists. They came to the country from numerous other ones, i.e. Iran, Egypt, Libya....any and all terrorist breeding grounds.......And that my friend is why we call this scum terrorists!

Not anymore, before it would be like that!
Theese days its the irakis whos taken up arms!
Believe me on this point!

[shorty]

I DO believe you. I just said SOME of them are foreign terrorists. The rest of the fighters are disgruntled and enraged Iraqis.

[ShadowNeo]

Well your always going to get your fair share of bad apples on the internet, its the only place little Jimmy No-Mates and the like can live out their fantasies.

To be honest, there has been so much crap I tend to ignore it. Words are words, and nothing more :).

[Spearin]

I think that there should be a separate forum for those who can discuss matters in a mature manner.

[weedman]

If you want to get rid of me, I'll go, no doubt. Just tell me.

[Maine Finn]

I think that there should be a separate forum for those who can discuss matters in a mature manner.

Agreed. It would have to be a closed Forum, though, to keep the trolls out.

[Fintin]

ill stand at the door with a chain saw.....bring it on zombie scum.....

[ibstolidude]

IF the posters themselves would simply take RESPONSIBILITY for their own posts flame wars would not exist.

If an idiot post something that is inflamatory - DO NOT RESPOND. - PM a MOD

It is impossible for MODS to sort throught 144 posts of crap do determine what happened. Simply do not post a response. I would wager that the majority of the people posting in THIS THREAD with complaints for th forum's degradation have participated in the flame wars themselves.

Use the responsibility of self government, lest this forum becomes a dictatorship.

[Pooga]

ill stand at the door with a chain saw.....bring it on zombie scum.....
Good Lord, you love them chainsaws don't you.

Bring it on buddy, I got my trusty little sidekick. Yeah, I'm ready, are you ready?

http://www.famousgrouse.com/explorers/gif/spork.gif

[Fintin]

HAHAHAHAHA i just droped my saw i was laughing so hard

[hood]

Wouldn't it be a good thing to list wich users that are banned and why?

Most of the people we ban from here are immature kids. The whole reason they're on here in the first place is because they need someone to hold their hand and give them attention. Making a sticky post that showed the names and why they were banned would just give them more attention which they want. Banned members should be ejected and forgotten about as quickly as possible.

[Truthsayer]

Fair enough.

Just thought it could also act as an...'evidence-list' as to what is actually done, since threads with users complaining are comming far to often last week. Guess it's both pro and con's.

[hood]

I'm also taking many steps behind the scenes to stop old banned users from coming back under new email addresses and names. It's now set where I have to manually verify each new user application before they're allowed to post. It truly blows that we have 3-4 people (and growing) that try to create several new accounts every single day.

[esl]

Around the first of the week it just got to the point where I could no longer even click on my bookmark for this site being afraid that I would see or read something that would just make me snap and type something I would regret. Now, some of the things that are being said are anti-Iraq war, anti-Bush, or even anti-US all together. Respectivly those are your rights as a person to make comments about the way we do things. But in light of that, after reading several posts that were completely and utterly disrespectful to the men and women of our Nation's armed forces over in Iraq, that is not your right to do. I do not care what kind of "Free Speach" laws there are, and I do not care if you are German, French, British, Spanish, or even American. You do not put down the people that wear the uniforms. I believe that that qualifies for any country's armed services.

The problem I have with this atitude is that it absolves soldiers what they may do on the battlefield. Just following orders is not good enough any more!

Would we excuse the Yugoslave soldiers for attrocities it conducted in the early 1990s or the Russians soldiers for what they may have . WHat about the Israel troops? Where do you draw the line? Is it all right to shoot a kid with a rubber covered lead bullit in gaza and kill him cause he threw a rock at you?

Its easy to justifie killing people when you blanket class them all as terrorists. But when you designate ever one in a town terrorist who fight to defend that town cause its sacred to their religion, these people are no longer terrorists. These are religious freedom fighters.

[Maine Finn]

I'm also taking many steps behind the scenes to stop old banned users from coming back under new email addresses and names. It's now set where I have to manually verify each new user application before they're allowed to post. It truly blows that we have 3-4 people (and growing) that try to create several new accounts every single day.

Makes sense to me, sir. Thanks.


I would wager that the majority of the people posting in THIS THREAD with complaints for th forum's degradation have participated in the flame wars themselves.

Stoli, I'm as guilty of this as I can be - my first post on this Forum was made in the middle of a flame war. These days, I do my best to avoid them entirely, and if I do get involved, I try to get everyone to let it go. I just wish regular-member-mediating made more of a difference. It sucks that some threads have to be locked or deleted outright. It comes down to doing what you must to keep the Forum clean.

At any rate, keep up the good work.

~Emily

[Red]

I agree with Trident-Za and haiw on what this forum has become.I believe that one of the problems is people who have no idea about the subject matter start spweing forth all types of posts that have no factual or logical base.I just read a thread where someone made a statement to the effect that even soldiers are mercs.i am like wtf?I believe that it is up to the forum members to curtail this kind of non-sense.The mods can only do so much.We as memebers should ignore posts that we feel are "flammable".Dont answer posts that have anything to do with PMC's, US murdering civilains in iraq,the balkans,israel and things of that nature that might allow the "freaks" to come out of their holes.I am afraid that the level of immaturity that this forum has desended into will drive away many of our good forum memebers and attract more nut jobs and post whores.Please lets help Hood and the mods return this place back to what it used to be.

Also,Hood do you think that forcing people to fill out their profiles might help with this,so we can know what the background of the person is?

[bishop1]

i understand excactly what youre saying Merik, in every way i think. People are just stupid, while it pisses me off to see people bashing Americas missions, the country or its troops, and i want to beat the crap out of them, not just for saying bad things about the best country in the world, but just because theyre so stupid. And it goes the other way too, like a post where it shows dead Iraqi infants and someone replys "5 less terrorists." What kind of stupid ignorant bull****. It would be great if people could just grow up.