Let us start over.

clover wrote:
DSGamer wrote:

Getting together helps. I need to make a point of making it to PAX next year.

At least come up for the weekend, even if you don't do the con the whole time :)

Yeah, I know. I've been literally out of the country that weekend the last few years. I need to plan better. Putting names to faces reminds you that this isn't abstract and I think I make a better impression in person than over the tubes.

DSGamer wrote:
clover wrote:
DSGamer wrote:

Getting together helps. I need to make a point of making it to PAX next year.

At least come up for the weekend, even if you don't do the con the whole time :)

Yeah, I know. I've been literally out of the country that weekend the last few years. I need to plan better. Putting names to faces reminds you that this isn't abstract and I think I make a better impression in person than over the tubes.

It's totally the angry black cat picture.

Could be. Funny thing is that that's the most docile cat. I just randomly caught him freaking out about a fly. Here's what he looks like 99% of the time.

IMAGE(http://farm1.staticflickr.com/32/49802182_7a1ce9cf88.jpg)

Did anyone catch the latest This American Life? It was all about how divisions between Red and Blue are slowly ripping our country apart. Two sisters refuse to speak to each other because of gay marriage; a prominent business owner in the South is afraid to say he's a Democrat because he's sure he'd lose his business; a mom posts on Facebook she supports Romney for his economic plan and her son makes an analogy of how the German people supported Hitler for the exact same reason. And then there's a case study of the New Hampshire state legislature which used to be one of the most civil in the country. Now - many of the state reps carry concealed firearms to sessions.

Quite frankly I was horrified and recognized that I need to tone down some of my rhetoric. I may dislike a lot of Democratic politicians, but I don't hate the average Democrat and can respect a number of their views. I don't think I would completely end a real-life friendship over politics, nor would I stop speaking to family members.

At any rate, it's worth listening to:
http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radi...

Der Spiegel also has an article that says very much the same thing. Link

Also 5 tips to repair the damage from a misunderstanding.

Never mind.

As an outside observer, the thing that amazes and worries me most about the American political divide is the way that party affiliation seems to be such a strong part of some people's personal identity. I've voted for a variety of different Canadian political parties over the years, but I've certainly never thought of myself as a Liberal or a New Democrat or whatever. I don't have a lot of love for our Conservative party, but I certainly don't bear any ill will towards anyone who votes Conservative. We may disagree about many important issues, but that doesn't make them the enemy. I guess it's just a lot easier to fall into that "us vs. them" mentality when you only have two major political parties.

Edit: just to be safe, I'd like to clarify that I'm not trying to claim that Canada is better or anything. We certainly have our own share of political problems. I'm just baffled by the whole "I'm a Democrat, you're a Republican" business. It seems weird to me.

It's a result of the system, Mutton, not the other way around. Because there are essentially two choices in each election, people use that as a shorthand of their general beliefs and attitudes.

I get why the shorthand exists, what weirds me out is the way those labels have become so important to people.

Americans are big believers.

Hey.

The last 48 hours have been more contentious than I'm used to in this corner of the internet. In an effort to avoid jr moderating, I found that re reading Edwin's OP centered me a bit.

I respect everyone here even if we disagree. That's a big deal.

Seth wrote:

Hey.

The last 48 hours have been more contentious than I'm used to in this corner of the internet. In an effort to avoid jr moderating, I found that re reading Edwin's OP centered me a bit.

I respect everyone here even if we disagree. That's a big deal.

I would say the same thing except in a recent post my entire world view was called "morally bankrupt" and "devoid of any positive values." Really, there's nothing else to say at that. When I think morally bankrupt, I think neo nazis, Enron executives, pimps who enslave teenage girls, etc.

I've come to the realization that it's time to stop posting in P&C. I love a good debate but feel there really is little common ground.

jdzappa wrote:

I've come to the realization that it's time to stop posting in P&C. I love a good debate but feel there really is little common ground.

I'm starting to feel the same way lately. Not sure how much of it is due to my own personal struggles in life coloring my perception of (and participation in) the debates here. Historically P&C has been my favorite GWJ subforum.

Farscry wrote:
jdzappa wrote:

I've come to the realization that it's time to stop posting in P&C. I love a good debate but feel there really is little common ground.

I'm starting to feel the same way lately. Not sure how much of it is due to my own personal struggles in life coloring my perception of (and participation in) the debates here. Historically P&C has been my favorite GWJ subforum.

Same, I love discussing games, but the political conversations are so much deeper here than anywhere else I've ever seen. That said, I wouldn't mind if we nuked the Gun Control and Fiscal Cliff threads from orbit at this point.

It was disappointing to see good faith arguments and perspectives be met with scorn, ridicule, derision, and personally insulting language.

I know I need to learn to curb my McFly response, for sure. I try (and hopefully usually succeed) to keep things above-board, but my weakness is when someone gets snarky/sarcastic/whatever in responding to me (or to something I agree with), I have a bad tendency to respond in kind or even escalate it if I let it get under my skin. And then later on I of course end up feeling even worse and regretting it.

I'm kinda like a stupid puppy that way.

In the spirit of dialectics, it:s likely we're all part of the solution and part of the problem at the same time.

Well, except me. I'm just precipitate

clover wrote:

In the spirit of dialectics, it:s likely we're all part of the solution and part of the problem at the same time.

Well, except me. I'm just precipitate ;)

I read that as 'I just precipitate' and thought: "Hmmm. She's raining on someone's parade?"

Reaper81 wrote:

It was disappointing to see good faith arguments and perspectives be met with scorn, ridicule, derision, and personally insulting language.

Reaper81's Sig wrote:

Anyone who posted in this thread is a racist.*
*Except me. - Certis

THE CYCLE CONTINUES.