Chat Blog: The Late Edition
Good Evening Nerdfightaria!!!
You will have to forgive me, as this is more or less the first blog I have ever really written, and it is a rather loaded one. So let us get right down to business shall we? Great!
First of all, it is December. This means Finals, Holidays and, I think it fair to say, a good deal of stress for just about everyone. None of us can deny that this time of year is hectic as all get out. That being said, none of us are immune. I think we are all aware of some of the issues in the chat as of late aqnd are all looking for answers as to how to improve the situation. I have a suggestion in this regard. It is actually a rather simple one, and I think it one that we can all pretty easily abide by. It is a little thing called respect.
I think we can all agree that being a nerdfighter means being not only tolerant of anothers system of belief or lifestyle, but ultimately being accepting and welcoming to the differences we share. We do not always agree. This is a fantastic thing! When I first became a part of this community, I was welcomed warmly and found it fascinating that so many different people in so many different places could get togather and discuss ANY topic, while still showing respect for themselves and others. We have a term for this. It is called "civil discourse". It is a term I think we have forgotten, or perhaps just lost sight of. However I must recognize the part we as ningmasters have to play in this.
A lot of people are frustrated and worried that there is a much higher degree of censorship and/or restrictions being put on the chat. And you know, I cannot blame any of you who feel that way. We are all humans, and we all err. It is important to note, however, the actual intention behind all of this. Suck levels are increasing, and we feel it is our responsiblity to quell that rise. I will be the first to admit, we could have done a better job of expressing this to you all in the past. For this, I am deeply sorry and am more than willing to take all of your respective ire unto my hands.
As far as we (Kuhi, Sean and myself) are concerned, we want you guys to come in, chat, and have fun. I want you guys to talk about everything from religion to gay marraige. From the political situation in Iran or Pakistan to the wonderment of the Anglerfish. I want you guys to talk about all of these things because nerdfighters FIGHT suck with our brains. And you lot have not been short changed on the whole intelligence bit. I think we can make a real impact on the world in this respect. We are intilligent, articulate (myself excluded), and ultimately the most beautiful souls I have ever had the pleasure of communicating with. But, there is one very important thing to note here: When we talk about these kinds of issues, people are bound to get heated, and others are bound to get hurt, or feel like their beliefs or opinions are being threatend or looked down upon. We are bound to disagree from time to time. This is where the one and only chat rule comes into play. Respect.
Show respect to others, and have respect shown to you. When things get too heated and people are PC-ing any of the ning masters respectfully with an honest to goodness issue with the current discussion. WE have a responsbility to act. It is our job to do so people. It is why we are here at all. I'll be the first to admit that it is frustrating. especially for those involved who ARE showing respect, to have their discussion stopped. My heart REALLY goes out to you folks, and sadly the ning does not support group PC. I know the forums are there for this reason as well, but likewise, some prefer the almost-real-time flow of the chat. So believe me when I say, I understand and I empathize.
Running the risk of being even more long winded, I will go ahead and wrap this up. Respect eachother, and respect yourself. If you feel like someone is failing to show respect, let us know. DO not encourage suck and let the awesome flow. Our minds work much like parachutes. The only work best when they are open.
Cheers ,
Teh Ningja
You will have to forgive me, as this is more or less the first blog I have ever really written, and it is a rather loaded one. So let us get right down to business shall we? Great!
First of all, it is December. This means Finals, Holidays and, I think it fair to say, a good deal of stress for just about everyone. None of us can deny that this time of year is hectic as all get out. That being said, none of us are immune. I think we are all aware of some of the issues in the chat as of late aqnd are all looking for answers as to how to improve the situation. I have a suggestion in this regard. It is actually a rather simple one, and I think it one that we can all pretty easily abide by. It is a little thing called respect.
I think we can all agree that being a nerdfighter means being not only tolerant of anothers system of belief or lifestyle, but ultimately being accepting and welcoming to the differences we share. We do not always agree. This is a fantastic thing! When I first became a part of this community, I was welcomed warmly and found it fascinating that so many different people in so many different places could get togather and discuss ANY topic, while still showing respect for themselves and others. We have a term for this. It is called "civil discourse". It is a term I think we have forgotten, or perhaps just lost sight of. However I must recognize the part we as ningmasters have to play in this.
A lot of people are frustrated and worried that there is a much higher degree of censorship and/or restrictions being put on the chat. And you know, I cannot blame any of you who feel that way. We are all humans, and we all err. It is important to note, however, the actual intention behind all of this. Suck levels are increasing, and we feel it is our responsiblity to quell that rise. I will be the first to admit, we could have done a better job of expressing this to you all in the past. For this, I am deeply sorry and am more than willing to take all of your respective ire unto my hands.
As far as we (Kuhi, Sean and myself) are concerned, we want you guys to come in, chat, and have fun. I want you guys to talk about everything from religion to gay marraige. From the political situation in Iran or Pakistan to the wonderment of the Anglerfish. I want you guys to talk about all of these things because nerdfighters FIGHT suck with our brains. And you lot have not been short changed on the whole intelligence bit. I think we can make a real impact on the world in this respect. We are intilligent, articulate (myself excluded), and ultimately the most beautiful souls I have ever had the pleasure of communicating with. But, there is one very important thing to note here: When we talk about these kinds of issues, people are bound to get heated, and others are bound to get hurt, or feel like their beliefs or opinions are being threatend or looked down upon. We are bound to disagree from time to time. This is where the one and only chat rule comes into play. Respect.
Show respect to others, and have respect shown to you. When things get too heated and people are PC-ing any of the ning masters respectfully with an honest to goodness issue with the current discussion. WE have a responsbility to act. It is our job to do so people. It is why we are here at all. I'll be the first to admit that it is frustrating. especially for those involved who ARE showing respect, to have their discussion stopped. My heart REALLY goes out to you folks, and sadly the ning does not support group PC. I know the forums are there for this reason as well, but likewise, some prefer the almost-real-time flow of the chat. So believe me when I say, I understand and I empathize.
Running the risk of being even more long winded, I will go ahead and wrap this up. Respect eachother, and respect yourself. If you feel like someone is failing to show respect, let us know. DO not encourage suck and let the awesome flow. Our minds work much like parachutes. The only work best when they are open.
Cheers ,
Teh Ningja
Comment
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Comment by Kawaguchi (Jenny) on December 27, 2009 at 12:15am -
I thought I left a comment...
Maybe I just discussed it in a different place, but this is an amazing first blog Colin. Very well written and thought out. It brings back the old feeling of the chat again. I think people just lost sight of that unsaid respect because a lot of the older Nerdfighters are so busy now. We can't pass down that respect or the things you just know about the chat.
Oh, and thank you for the Word of the Day. I did not know "err" was a real word. This whole time, I thought of it only as an onomatopoeia word.....
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Comment by Jethro on December 16, 2009 at 9:54pm -
The Ningja, you deserve a medal. Thanks for promoting an environment of respect-- it's easy to let things get heated. We all need to make an effort to remember that we are doing a disservice to others when we engage in name-calling and other frivolous taunting. We're nerdfighters, and we ought to know better.
~ Jethro.
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Comment by Clover on December 16, 2009 at 3:46am -
I'm glad that this was said and said well, but now that it has been said, can we please move on? Chat is an awesome place to be and there are always some really great conversations and people there that I feel like negativity and disrespectful behaviour plays such a small part in it. Instead of highlighting the bad again and again we need to focus on how good the good stuff is, right?
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Comment by Clive-φ-Davidson ImagesNM on December 16, 2009 at 12:44am -
Great.
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Comment by Team Unicorn on December 15, 2009 at 10:11pm -
D'aw :3
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Comment by UberFridgeKing on December 15, 2009 at 7:10pm
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Very nicely said Colin, very nicely said. Now can I steal your writing ability for my next blog post?
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