Something has been bothering me...

[SpyderNut]

A thread in the Off Topic section reminded me of something I've been wanting to get off of my chest for some time now. Recently, I know that several of us have noticed a negative and mean-spirited tone here on the Forum. I am not sure what the problem is or how it got started, but it is noticeable and it is a real turn off. I've recently watched several forum members (some old, some new) get verbally sucker-punched for no perceived reason--sometimes for even the most trivial things. I am not here to call anyone out, make accusations, or to take sides. I merely wish for the people instigating the negativity to please CUT IT OUT. This Forum is supposed to be a place of enjoyment, not a place of animosity. A lot of us enjoy coming here to talk, learn about knives, and to have a good time with each other. I've seen a number of good people leave the Forum for similar reasons in the past and I do not wish to see this happen again. As my late mother used to say, "If you cannot say something nice, please keep it to yourself."

Thank you for reading.

-Michael

(P.S. Kristy, please feel free to move this to the "Off Topic" section if not appropriate for this section).

[PStone]

I don’t post much. And I’m not familiar with the off topic thread, but I agree with you. There has been a “mood” as of late. I hope it passes. I love this place.

Earlier tonight, I saw a member post that they thought they missed out on a knife and asked for a lead on one. He got the help and knife he wanted in about an hour. That’s the type of thing that keeps me coming back. Members helping members. For no reason other than to see another spyderholic happy. :D :spyder:

[Doc Dan]

Man period?

[Joey]

Well I for one am glad you have said something. Let’s hope those who need to hear it, hear it well. I’m new here, and have seen a bit of animosity, but it’s nothing I’m not used to. That said, when I first came here it seemed more peaceful. It was something that made this forum stand out in my eyes.
I won’t get into it, but someone recently got upset in a thread, and he voiced his disapproval. It was partially directed toward me, and I promise you it’s made me want to participate far less in this forum. I didn’t break any forum rules, and even thought I was being helpful. If nothing else, I was just simply participating in conversation. I understand I should not let him get to me, but it’s how I am.
We all could benefit from showing a little restraint, and patience. Let’s keep the good vibes going, and strive to help one another more!
You never know how bad a day someone has had, and we all have our bad days. Please be kind!

[Daveho]

At the end of the day we talking cutlery, while we all have a passion for knives just keep in mind that it’s knives..

[curlyhairedboy]

Spyderco makes a ton of knives, so many that virtually all of us can find something to enjoy and post about. The diversity of opinion and uses I've seen on this forum have opened my eyes to many new knives and many new activities.

We're all fans, and integrity is what we should strive for.

[legOFwhat?]

So it seems some are on edge? :p I'm new here so I've only seen a couple of posts that made me scratch my head. I have noticed this everywhere else for some time.

[snapshot2017]

Maybe in the Blades Forum but i have not found this in the Spyderco forum.

[MichaelScott]

Michael agrees with Michael. I’ve been guilty of being sometimes “mean spirited”. I try not to. It never solves anything and just makes things worse by taking the conversation to a personal level. Differences of opinion and rational discussion of fact are breeding grounds for learning. Someone said that if you listen to those who don’t agree with you, you might learn something. I try to do this too.

I think it is fine to disagree and argue (in the good sense) facts and evidence. I also think it is necessary to call out inappropriate behavior in a civilized way, necessary in fact. We here seem to be very good at self-policing forum behavior and will have to put up with periods of the occasional individual who hasn’t learned polite and courteous behavior.

This forum has become a great online community for me. I’m on it every day. It educates and enlightens me, helps me through hard times and has introduced me to many new friends.

[Xplorer]

I completely agree with Spydernut. It's sad to see the degree with which negativity and confrontation has increased on this forum. Until recently, this forum had been unique in that it was the only knife forum I knew of where people primarily treated others with respect and there was an overall vibe of kindness and generosity. I enjoyed that aspect of this forum as much as I enjoyed access to the depth of knowledge that is available from the collectors, makers and other good people participating here. Sadly, it seems there are a few people lately that are bringing the same disrespectful argumentative tone we've all seen at Blade Forums here to the Spyderco Forum. The shift toward negativity and needless arguments has turned me off and caused me to stay away from the forum and just spend more time in my shop. I think there are still mostly great people participating here and unfortunately it only takes a few bad apples to bring the vibe down. I am hopeful those few will lose interest sooner or later and the kind and respectful vibe that comes from the majority of members here will once again prevail.

Thank you Michael Reinhold for bringing attention to this issue! Your participation here is consistently helpful, knowledgeable and gentlemanly. I appreciate your kindness and your contributions very much!

Chad

[Tucson Tom]

I'm not sure this is really an issue here, but it is certainly something to nip in the bud if it is. I'll do my best try to keep an eye on myself -- I sometimes get the urge to toss in a wise-crack, but sometimes humor can be misinterpreted.

The line is certainly where individuals get attacked. Having a difference of opinions is fine, even healthy, but needs to be handled with respect. I have learned some really valuable lessons when I have expressed what I thought was true and was wrong and got set straight. That is a good thing, but sometimes it stings, and some people may have a hard time with that. On some topics there is just a difference of opinion and that is that.

I do find the atmosphere in this forum very positive and healthy and want to see it stay that way. I have confidence that it will.

[Naperville]

I've seen the arguments here but they are nothing like what I see on other forums. Here in the Spyderco forums mostly people ignore people. :cool:

On Blade Forums I asked, "What 3 Steels Would You Not Buy" :eek: and almost started WW III. They love their cheap Bud-K blade material over there and it was as if I poured boiling water on their favorite wicked witch. :D

[blues]

I've seen the arguments here but they are nothing like what I see on other forums. Here in the Spyderco forums mostly people ignore people. :cool:

On Blade Forums I asked, "What 3 Steels Would You Not Buy" :eek: and almost started WW III. They love their cheap Bud-K blade material over there and it was as if I poured boiling water on their favorite wicked witch. :D

That's a pretty broad generalization considering the many very high end custom enthusiasts on that site. (Including moi.)

Let's just agree that bad behavior isn't limited to just one venue. I think that would be fair to say. (Though we try hard to root it out and maintain civility.)

[sal]

Humility and respect go a long way.

sal

[blues]

Humility and respect go a long way.

sal

Well said, Sal.

[Bloke]

This forum has become a great online community for me. I’m on it every day. It educates and enlightens me, helps me through hard times and has introduced me to many new friends.

Hope you get to laugh sometimes too. :)

https://youtu.be/DuoYSgNIkbI

[MichaelScott]

Thanks, Bloke! I always enjoy your posts, especially ones that poke fun at us.

[ZrowsN1s]

I've seen the forum become unpleasant before. I've had 'words' with one or two folks who were out of line, and honestly I've been out of line a time or two myself. The wonderful thing about this forum is, it never stays unpleasant for long. We have a lot of good people who will gently remind some of us when we're slipping, and we definitely have ways of dealing with malcontents.

[Pelagic]

I quit posting here for months because of this. Sometimes people get their panties in a bunch simply because you like something they've written off as useless. I needed a break and took it. I've never been one to drive my opinions down people's throats and I have no issue declaring my ignorance on any particular subject. However, I sometimes handle animosity wrongly by answering with sarcasm that is occasionally borderline condescending. We are all human and make mistakes. Being a good person is (no matter who you are) a work in progress. Good post.

[JD Spydo]

Hey I'm really glad you brought this issue up Spydernut because not only have I noticed it here at Spyderville but I've been noticing this same mean spirited, non-tolerant mood in a couple of other forums I belong to as well. Personally I don't care that people disagree with me on points and actually I welcome it if they have valid points and to also keep it civil>> what the heck sometimes we learn we are not always right. But on one forum ( not here at Spyderville) I was in a discussion about the Apollo 11 Moon landings and I just asked two questions about radiation exposure and another question about 1969 technology>> and you would think I called someone's mother some extremely foul names the way two people reacted to me :confused: . And I was just doing some fact finding I wasn't even taking either side of the issue.

Here on this Forum I've had a couple of what I considered some disrespectful and insulting comments about a post I made and it was as though they were taking it personally :confused: I'm not going to mention names or the Thread but I do think others are aware of it too. And it's not just here on internet forums either. I can't even go to the grocery store without someone wanting to start some non-sense over the most meaningless issues and incidents.

I think the bottom line is that there are just a lot of unhappy people who are having a really rough time in life with all the rising prices and other negative challenges we've been faced with as a nation>> and a lot of people simply just can't seem to handle any more presssure or opposing viewpoints. Yeah in the past two months there have been times I've felt like I've been walking on extremely brittle eggshells>> and not only do people disagree in a negative tone but they seem to get downright hateful about it :confused: It wasn't like this even 6 months ago either.