Old vs. New: Maybe we come in peace

as i navigate the topics on ats (of which i'm came to for the best breakdowns of information for almost a decade), i get discouraged by the unfounded and massive expressions of absolute disgust by some members. granted, i may have only just started an account, but lately it seems to have gotten out of control.
i've posted opinions and comments on topics, and almost immediately they're rebuked by the most fiery responses. notice i said "opinions". in some instances that's all we have. among us newer members, i see it all too often. we get shot down by some of the self-proclaimed holy veterans. and they have no problem expressing that we don't know what we're talking about because we're new. that's most discouraging. you have no idea what we know if we're newer. give it a chance, man. one member even said that we shouldn't be so quick to lend our comments, because we were obviously brought here under the coercion of the main stream media. all i could do was laugh. i came here to help discern truth vs. fiction in the msm. i hold no allegiance to either party. and just a general sweep of trump vs. clinton support: you're damned if you do and damned if you don't. granted, those kind of discussions are often insightful, but as of late, they only give a glimpse into the (in)tolerance by any particular member. facts are completely lost among the back and forth of who's stupider. there have been days that i've wanted to comment on something, but am discouraged by the thought that some long-term peckerwood is gonna lose their minds over anything that doesn't work for them (which can be expected, but maybe better received if stated on a smaller nuclear level than what has been seen lately).
and god oh god, i wish there was a "sarcasm" button. we all know that sarcasm and facetiousness doesn't translate well over text. yet no one stops to consider this as the case when someone remarks on a topic. the immediate go-to is "you don't know what you're talking about, dumb @ss."
i'm no hippy, so i'm not gonna do the "give peace a chance" song and dance. and being passionate about your stance is extremely important, but maybe we could learn alot more from each other if we dropped the attitude and paid attention to the dialogue.
that's just my two cents...and i'm not looking for change for a dollar.

a reply to: PolyCottonBlend

Let me tell you that seniority means squat. I am barely 5 months old and I still remember my first week here like it was yesterday. Don't feel discouraged, you just have to look beyond the self-righteous partisan trolls and just be yourself. Respect is earned, not given, so the X amount of years somebody has been here means jack if they spent all that time doing nothing.

a reply to: PolyCottonBlend

Even looking back at threads from 2014 you can see how our community was more tolerant and accepting of everyone's opinions.
Fast forward to the end of 2015 going into 2016 and You will see the comments going down the drain.
Now, it's like almost Immediately any UFO thread is bashed and scrutinized by almost always the same handful of members. Religion is called down by people who cannot understand the meaning of faith and the OP made to feel like a labeled a fanatic.
Have you ever been to the forum board GLP?
Granted ATS has not hit that level of low yet - with full out racism, and threats made to OP's.
The mods here do an excellent job of upholding the T&C, but something's do end up slipping through and hang around a bit longer then they should.

I think that once the same handful of commenters finally realize that they're wasting their time here and move on, things will get better again.

To be used for entertainment purposes only. Any connections to persons living or dead is pure coincidental.

a reply to: PolyCottonBlend

Don't be discouraged from expressing your opinions, and don't be afraid to alert a mod if you feel you are being unfairly harassed or bullied - no one likes a bully. You have just as much right to be here expressing yourself as what I do.

I think you'll be alright.

originally posted by: Macenroe82
a reply to: PolyCottonBlend

Even looking back at threads from 2014 you can see how our community was more tolerant and accepting of everyone's opinions.
Now, it's like almost Immediately any UFO thread is bashed and scrutinized by almost always the same handful of members.
I think that once the same handful of commenters finally realize that they're wasting their time here and move on, things will get better again.

In all fairness most UFO new threads are nothing but a link to a YouTube video, or another CGI photo that got debunked here 10 yrs ago. Most of the new posters aren't using the search function to answer their own questions and those of us who have been around the topic for what seems like ever, may unfairly get a little testy?

Plus there is about a six month learning curve for someone to realize this place isn't just a "Post and Run" kind of site.

I'm sorry the OP feels this way, but it's usually best to ignore opinions of posters you haven't come to respect over time.
JMO

Harden up.

oh I totally ignore it for what it is. as far as I'm concerned, this is imagination land. I'm not gonna let a bunch of gruffed up anonymous people ruin my day. however, it does make one lose interest when there's nothing productive about feedback.

regarding: harden up. way ahead of you on that one. it'd be very easy to pick apart some of the comments that fly around, but I don't. people get so wrapped up in tirades that they often fail to correctly address the topic...not to mention the spelling and grammar. I just laugh. why isn't there a "bless your heart" button?

a reply to: PolyCottonBlend

spelling and grammar. I just laugh. why isn't there a "bless your heart" button?

wut...lik dis...

originally posted by: Macenroe82
a reply to: PolyCottonBlend

Even looking back at threads from 2014 you can see how our community was more tolerant and accepting of everyone's opinions.
Fast forward to the end of 2015 going into 2016 and You will see the comments going down the drain.
Now, it's like almost Immediately any UFO thread is bashed and scrutinized by almost always the same handful of members. Religion is called down by people who cannot understand the meaning of faith and the OP made to feel like a labeled a fanatic.
Have you ever been to the forum board GLP?
Granted ATS has not hit that level of low yet - with full out racism, and threats made to OP's.
The mods here do an excellent job of upholding the T&C, but something's do end up slipping through and hang around a bit longer then they should.

I think that once the same handful of commenters finally realize that they're wasting their time here and move on, things will get better again.

It just might be circular, the same who attacked the Alien, CT, etc threads moved onto political threads because that's where most everyone is. Also with that the political circus attitude has leaked over into all the threads.