Anything To Discuss
tbZBeAst
Join Date: 2003-01-26 Member: 12755Members
Join Date: 2003-01-26 Member: 12755Members
in Discussions
<div class="IPBDescription">round and round</div> Now no doubt some of you will remember me, and some of you won't.
I've been in the NS community since IIRC 1.04. Indeed, if it weren't for NS, its doubtful that playZen, the GSP Shockwave and I run, would be in the healthy state its in now.
I was here for the locking of the discussion board. During my evangelical days I even asked to moderate them. I enjoyed disagreeing with MonsE just for the sake of it (even if in my heart I agreed). I drifted away for a while, playing other things (Planetside) but I still lurked on the boards.
What I noticed was this:
In the 2 odd years of reading the discussion board, very little has changed. I'm not talking about the demographics of the posters, or the general opinions of the average player, I'm talking about the topics.
The perennials are:
Sex offenders and how we should deal with them
The "conflict" in Iraq
American domestic politics
Gun control
Christianity
There's probably some more I've missed, but thats a general roll call. The same topics roll round again and again, the same points made, and counterpointed. New topics created on the same subjects and the zombie discussion lumbers on.
I've drawn 2 possible conclusions from this:
1) These are the topics that are formost in everyone's mind
and possibly
2) There is no point to discussion (and by extension the discussion board) because no-one is actually resolving anything - this is assuming that the discussion board should have a point other than kibbitzing.
Discuss!
I've been in the NS community since IIRC 1.04. Indeed, if it weren't for NS, its doubtful that playZen, the GSP Shockwave and I run, would be in the healthy state its in now.
I was here for the locking of the discussion board. During my evangelical days I even asked to moderate them. I enjoyed disagreeing with MonsE just for the sake of it (even if in my heart I agreed). I drifted away for a while, playing other things (Planetside) but I still lurked on the boards.
What I noticed was this:
In the 2 odd years of reading the discussion board, very little has changed. I'm not talking about the demographics of the posters, or the general opinions of the average player, I'm talking about the topics.
The perennials are:
Sex offenders and how we should deal with them
The "conflict" in Iraq
American domestic politics
Gun control
Christianity
There's probably some more I've missed, but thats a general roll call. The same topics roll round again and again, the same points made, and counterpointed. New topics created on the same subjects and the zombie discussion lumbers on.
I've drawn 2 possible conclusions from this:
1) These are the topics that are formost in everyone's mind
and possibly
2) There is no point to discussion (and by extension the discussion board) because no-one is actually resolving anything - this is assuming that the discussion board should have a point other than kibbitzing.
Discuss!
Comments
In light of the whole America VS the world mindset that seems to be forming internationally, I would say you are probably dead on in your proposal that issues involving western, and specifically American issues are on the tops of everyone's head, even the european and other international members of this comunity.
[edit] in response to #2, we aren't a paid think tank here, since when does resolution have to be a required end to discussion. Some of the issues that we tackle here are pretty huge issues, and some of our more exuberant members aren't exactly brilliant.
I don't think I've had a debate with anyone where I had an open mind. Lack of an opinion constitutes ignorance or apathy, surely. Even if you are not sure about something you generally have already weighed up the pro/cons of either side of the arguement, and will therefore lean slightly towards one point of view.
Discuss? <!--emo&:p--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='tounge.gif' /><!--endemo-->
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[tbZ]BeAst, I'd agree with your first conclusion.
You picked subjects from these topics:
Sex offenders and how we should deal with them -> Politics
The "conflict" in Iraq -> Politics/Religion
American domestic politics -> Politics
Gun control -> Politics
Christianity -> Religion
The other (aforementioned) topic is science. There really isn't much else that you can discuss in-depth.
When was the last time you had a deep and interesting arguement with someone about Maths? ("Damn it man! The Cartesian frame of referrence knocks the socks of your dodgy Reformed Scale!")
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I would not draw the conlcusion that these boards are pointless. On the contrary, the topics they cover may not be varried, but they is such a range of sub-topics to keep even the best of our minds stimulated and interested.
I'm still a fan of Philosophical questions. "What is time?" "Why are we here?" are the age-old examples that always (well, mostly) lead to rich discussion.
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CMEast, too right. <!--emo&:D--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/biggrin-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin-fix.gif' /><!--endemo-->
Grendel, lol.
I don't think I've had a debate with anyone where I had an open mind. Lack of an opinion constitutes ignorance or apathy, surely. Even if you are not sure about something you generally have already weighed up the pro/cons of either side of the arguement, and will therefore lean slightly towards one point of view.
Discuss? <!--emo&:p--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='tounge.gif' /><!--endemo-->
<!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
Open mind != lack of opinion, open mind just means the willingness to change ones opinion if reasonable fact is presented. An open minded person would not catagorize themselfs as 'republican' or 'democrat' but rather lean one way or the other based on how they understand, and value, the facts of the matter.
<!--QuoteBegin--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> </td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin-->
[tbZ]BeAst, I'd agree with your first conclusion.
You picked subjects from these topics:
Sex offenders and how we should deal with them -> Politics
The "conflict" in Iraq -> Politics/Religion
American domestic politics -> Politics
Gun control -> Politics
Christianity -> Religion
The other (aforementioned) topic is science. There really isn't much else that you can discuss in-depth.
When was the last time you had a deep and interesting arguement with someone about Maths? ("Damn it man! The Cartesian frame of referrence knocks the socks of your dodgy Reformed Scale!")
<!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Politics and religion aren't the only catagories those topics fall into, all of them (with the exeption of sex offenders, to some degree) are also issues are a firm focus of the American demographic moreso then anywhere else internationally. In in thier own way, they really are all direct and popular issues of American politics.
There are alot of cool possible discussions that could be going on that fall into religious or political catagories that really have nothing to do with American politics.
<!--QuoteBegin--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> </td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin-->I would not draw the conlcusion that these boards are pointless. On the contrary, the topics they cover may not be varried, but they is such a range of sub-topics to keep even the best of our minds stimulated and interested.
I'm still a fan of Philosophical questions. "What is time?" "Why are we here?" are the age-old examples that always (well, mostly) lead to rich discussion.
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CMEast, too right. <!--emo&:D--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/biggrin-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin-fix.gif' /><!--endemo-->
Grendel, lol.<!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Agreed compleatly.
Another way to look at it is the difference between hearing and listening.
Thats what makes these discussions so entertaining.
Thats what makes these discussions so entertaining. <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
That's why science is a fun discussion, you get the oppertunity to throw in math every once in a while and acctually get everyone's perception of the issue a little more obgective, so the discussion moves to a more complicated level.
8 pages isn't exactly an entry level discussion... I read through 4 pages and decided that the both sides were retarded and I didn't want to be part of the discussion.
No, Super admins appear in read, moderators are still orange.
And for the record, how is this on topic in any way?
If you want me to be on-topic, then I'll say that if the purpose of discussion is to arrive at some sort of consensus, it makes sense that the only threads that are continously re-created are the ones that cannot be resolved for one reason or another. For example, this thread is going to die if no-one goes off-topic, since we're all pretty much in agreement.
It was quite popular and looked at however, and I enjoyed both sides debating over the data.
It was quite popular and looked at however, and I enjoyed both sides debating over the data. <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
Topics sometimes dissapear when someone risks getting banned over something they said in the topic. It's really hard for mods to go and pull out all the crap people say, so sometimes they just delete the hole thing so that they can deal with it later. (Generally deleated topics are just topics moved to a private administrator forum for review)
If you didn't recieve any type of warning, you can probably feel fine just remaking the thread, although if that dissappears too, I wouldn't push your luck.
Thats why politics, religion and philosophy are good subjects, you don't need to know anything to have an opinion <!--emo&:D--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/biggrin-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin-fix.gif' /><!--endemo-->