Quote:
Originally posted by Sazerac:
I've said it before, and I'll say it again:
We need a separate forum for "Serious Discussions".
When the forum upgrade occurs, maybe we can rally for a Serious Discussions forum then. We need a place where these kind of heated debates can thrive and not upset other members who aren't interested in those types of discussions.
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I initially didn't think so, Saz, but events of the past week are starting to change my mind. I'll email you about this and we can bounce the idea off Ziroc.
In the meantime, my best suggestion would be that people who don't want to get involved in serious discussions ignore those threads (like channel-surfing on cable).
I will post yet again some comments I had in one of these threads which got quite heated:
I know most of you love a good spirited debate, since most of you are quite strongly opinionated, if somewhat tactless about expressing opinions, serenely confident in your righteousness 
and in the other's wrongness. I personally don't have a problem with it unless you start making snide remarks about each other which don't have anything to do with the topic at hand, since this might eventually lead to shouting profanities at each other, which then becomes my problem. However, I'm sure will not happen, given that we're all VERY good at exercising self-control, right?
It's actually quite funny listening to you bang heads at each other. Make sure you don't get headaches for no reason. The two most difficult things to do on the internet are: 1) admit that you can't change the other person's point of view; and 2) accept that failing to change the other person's point of view does NOT mean you have lost the argument.
And finally, argue the point, not the person. I know it's difficult to disassociate any personal dislike you may have for a person with the point or stance they are making, but do your best. It's called self-control. Let's not let great discussion threads degenerate into shouting matches.
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[This message has been edited by Memnoch (edited 10-10-2001).]