Hmm... compelling, thank you for the response spyderbro. If I may though, some of the perceived cliquishness you observe may not be what you think. One of the most common responses (or the one I see the most) to new posters asking a question is a request for the poster in question to familiarize themselves with the search function. The reason for that is simple, many a battle has been fought here amongst the "in crowd". After a while... the opinions of people with post counts in the thousands tends to homogenize a little. Newer posters that weren't "present" for the aforementioned battles might think that these opinions are standard groupthink without realizing that they are the end result of painful and vitriolic compromise. As a result, when someone signs up and asks a question that somebody spent 14 pages answering 6 months prior... well, sometimes the response might seem a bit gruff :p . Also, after hammering out post after post of minutiae concerning the relative benefits of VG-10 and S35V and FINALLY coming to an agreement on whatever minor point was up for debate... parties to the compromise are likely to think that that decision is the final word on the matter, causing them to respond to the brand new poster who asks which is better in an... overly authoritative manner
. As far as someone telling you not to tell them what to think... you probably shouldn't :p . Anyway, point being, I think new posters should realize that what may appear to be "older" forumites disregarding their knowledge base concerning knives may ACTUALLY be "older" forumites assuming that new posters don't know anything about the forum... not an excuse for bad behavior, certainly, but a factor.
My outlook is colored by having been present, and even having participated in some of these skirmishes. So where you see a clique, I see a collection of avatars that have frequently been at odds. Or, if you will, individuals rather than a group. This category of members (people who have been around for long enough for me to develop a sense of their personalities, I guess) have their own idiosyncratic tendencies. JD, to pick on him for a moment, is pretty into conspiracy theories, Ankerson tests knives like they owe him money, Doc is a bit of a mystic at times, the Deacon is as crotchety as he is knowledgeable (which is to say, very :p ), Seq is the ultimate skeptic, and I am prone to typing entire diatribes prior to completing a thought (that's a diplomatic way for me to say that I am kind of an asshat sometimes :D ). Those are the ones that come to mind... the rest of the in crowd has it's own oddball quirks that you pick up on over time. The only reason this collection of personalities isn't constantly bickering is that we've all realized that none of us is going to retreat from the forum, so we have to be polite to each other to keep the peace :p .
I guess what I'm trying to say is that, spyderbro, (and by adjunct all new members that manage to get through this incomprehensible mess of a post to this point) your concerns are merited and understandable. Nobody likes to feel disrespected, even on the internet. But, I don't see any cure for what ails ya aside from sticking it out for a while. It takes a while for people to accept that you have the knowledge that you have... especially on the internet where you can claim anything. Wikipedia makes for a pretty good pretend PhD, know what I mean :D . Given time, the people who have stuck it out learn your quirks and you learn theirs and then you are in the "in crowd" too... it's not a popularity contest here, it is a longevity contest :p :p . Until then, know that we (or at least myself... as that is the only person I am currently authorized to speak for :p ) value your input and presence. This forum would get rather boring without new blood.
Don't hit at all if it is honorably possible to avoid hitting; but never hit soft.
- Theodore Roosevelt
"I twisted the knife until I heard his heart-strings sing."
- Jim Bowie concerning Maj. Norris Wright
. Love all of yas! :D
