An OT forum Olive branch a leaf turned.

You know I have a serious love/hate or perhaps addiction/hate relationship with this board. It definitely brings out the worst in me and I think I'm probably not alone there. I was to man up and admit I've been a huge dick on the OT forum any number of times. Blazerprophet called me on it today and for whatever reason it clicked for me.

It's funny, but a behavior I often complain about is something I realized I had been doing myself. You see the thing I see that's tearing this country apart is the bitter partisanship and lack of civil discourse about issues. I think this is due to the hateful nature of today's media.
Walter Cronkite must be rolling in his grave. I know he was horrified by the descent of the media in the 1990's and 2000's until he died. He said as much.

With guys like Glenn Beck, Keith Oblerman, Rush Limbaugh, Michael Savage and probably quite a few I don't know about on the left it seems no low is too low. Increasingly both sides of the debate show nothing but contempt for one another and a dangerous undercurrent moves in this country. This is captured in the OT forum in microcosm.

Frequently folks both left and right and off the charts say baiting and even hateful things. I get caught up in this because sometimes the claims made are so incredible to me that I find myself getting super pissed off. I'm sure this happens to other folks as well. Well I realized that the kind of devisive "gotcha" dismissive assholish type tone was one I was using again and again due to my anger at folks doing...the exact same thing.

I realized that really, it wasn't even the poster themselves that I was mad at. It was the patently false or at best the tortuous twisting of the truth being posted I was mad at. Often the articles linked were in such a dismissive and smug tone that the points being made were lost on me because it was so enraging. It also seemed like a lot of the time the points being made were mind-blowingly hypocritical. That bs was of course an echo by some media figure that was being repeated. Point is I'd probably have a beer with most any guy on this and be totally fine as long as it didn't stray into politics. I realize that is a sad commentary on this country and my own involvement in that divisiveness.

Obviously DaRizzle and I would have to talk politics and not basketball.

At any rate I'm gonna work hard to moderate my tone and I want to say sorry to those I've been a dick too it would probably be a long list so I will just do a blanket apology. I don't expect everyone else to do the same, but it would be cool if some more folks tried to work at speaking in a reasonable and fact based tone. I realize we don't agree on the facts, that's why there is a debate in the first place. Hopefully, we can start to try and moderate our tones.

 

I don't know what you're talking about.

 

I couldn't read all that, maybe tomorrow. If you apologized for having been such a dick to everyone, I accept on our behalf.

 

Idog,

You know I think it takes a big man to apologize when they may not have even done anything wrong. Unfortunately it's a lost art as most people treat discussions as a game which they have to win.

I think a large part of the "problem"...if it's a problem?... is that people come to the OT forum for different reasons. Some people come to discuss issues, some people come to educate themselves, and some people just come to be a-holes. They get off on just baiting others, making personal attacks, dropping the f-bomb every chance they get, and in general just being combative. It's a shame that more people can't approach the issues in a cooperative manner, realizing that we all have to live in this crazy place and that sometimes our (political) fortunes are great, sometimes they are poor.

In any event, I'll match your apology - you've set a good example. If I've offended anyone by my tone or what they perceive as baiting or making a personal attack, I apologize.

 

Why did I think you were talking about O-Live when reading the thread title?

 

LOL, well if you have a chance to read it let me know what you think.

 

Thanks Yakbladder, I really appreciate your response. Are you a Blazers fan? I mostly see you in the OT forum. If you're a Blazers fan you need to post more. One other question, are you really in Iceland?

 

Yeah, I think it hasn't come to physical violence and people are fairly reasonable about personal attacks other then that though people definitely get rowdy. That's ok of course, it's just not everyone likes that sort of thing. For me personally I think I've been a bit too nasty here and there. This wasn't a condemnation of the OT forum, although it does drive me nuts some times, it was more of a Mea Culpa.

I definitely do feel welcome here and appreciate the lively atmosphere and the light touch of the Mods. Just trying to do my part to make it better, especially for me. I'm out of hand sometimes and I personally don't like it. Thanks for putting this place together.

 

So are you saying you think I twist my opinions to get a rise rather than say what I believe?

If so you are wrong. I get a rise out of my opinion because my opinion doesnt look through rose colored glasses. Now if you want to then ask why Im even here its because I like differing opinion than my own

 

I just read it and it was ast I expected, however you said HUGE dick....I wouldn't have gone that far if I were you.

 

I am a Blazers fan...I was one of the original ESPN transplants to BBF and then over to here.

I just don't post a lot on the Blazers because most everything has already been said and I can't spend all day looking up stats like Mook or Masbee. I chime in when I can.

Some days it seems like Iceland....

 

So really what you're saying is you're looking for someone to give you the correct opinion?

 

Naw man you misunderstood me. I largely agree with what I've seen you post politically, but you're a Lakers fan my natural enemy. I was making a Lakers vs. Blazers joke there not ripping on you bro. We don't always see eye to eye on Basketball but I know you are a cool dude.

 

Correct me if Im wrong, and I apologize if I am but....werent you one of the posters that said about me "my posts arent worth reading anymore"

...And I hear you on the Lakers enemy thing...When I first started posting on bball forums I hated the Blazers with a passion, which was actually the reason I started talking to all these dudes. At the time I WANTED to be a troll! I wanted to just talk shit about the Blazers....but there were too many good natured Portland fans that I just couldnt do it.

Now its just friendly shit talk but at the same time actually having good discussions on bball.

I will not apologize for my Lakers fandom. I was born in LA. A Lakers game was my first outing to a pro sporting event. The Lakers and basketball are the only thing in sports I really give a rats ass about.

So its all good, but I now thought of a question I want to ask you....

Who's opinions on bball do you detest more...Mixum's or mine?

 

No, I just want to see what the majority opinion of the those who are wrong is

Im always in the right, I think thats obvious

 

I don't blame your unfortunate choice of basketball allegiance; it was an accident of birth. What I hate so much about the L*kers (and Y*nkees and C*wboys) is that the most obnoxious fans are never from SoCal, the Tri-State area or the Metroplex. They're from towns with pro basketball, baseball and football teams. They've just picked the winners and turned their backs on their hometowns.

I fucking hate fairweather fans. All those people who hopped off the Blazer bandwagon when times got bad can suck my hairy walnuts. As for people like DaRizzle, mostly I just feel sorry for them. It's not his fault he was born soaked in purple & piss.

 

I think you were dogging on Oden's injuries. Didn't you also kinda laugh about Blake Griffin's injury? That was kinda a low blow to Clippers fan (I think they only have one).

Seriously though, I think it's not cool to delight in injuries. Other then that I think you've been fine. I was seriously PO'd one day and you were dogging on Oden's injuries and saying he's going to be average at best. That's probably why I said that. I still feel that way about those kind of delighting in injuries posts regardless of who makes them. I have called out Blazers fans innumerable times about it especially when Bynum went down last year. I don't wish injury on anyone, not even Kobe.

Mixum I don't even know what to think of to be honest.

So to sum up. Rip on the team all you want, just don't talk about injuries in a happy way as it's lame.

P.S. One thing you should have in common with Blazers fans is a mutual hatred of Bill "Jackhole to the extreme" Simmons. That guy I might actually enjoy seeing get injured.