Checking Your Sources. Even With Members.

One of the reasons that I enjoy coming to this site is that there are MANY intelligent people, that bring lots to the table. With that said, there is a simple and easy way to find out about a persons credentials and where they stand on particular issues. Especially those that "strongly" debate particular subjects.

I know that every single one of us is passionate, about the issues of US as a People, as well as the People of the Planet, but in between that are very diverse people, people that are maybe more informed then the next person. That in no way tells you about who they are, or what their about.

I have found that I was concerned with the stats that all of us share, and what we are about. I feel that it sort of does tell you about someone, based on what they contributed, and the responses they received from others on a forum of such diverse subjects.

With that said, we also have another nice little button on ATS that can help alot with the debates that we have here. The "Threads" and "Posts" button. I have found this very, very helpful when dealing with certain subjects that some say that they "very" informed in.

I for one have noticed and followed the attitudes of some members, their "internal" debates, and then those that only look to enter into certain threads in order to seem "smarter" than the average person. This can easily be resolved by looking through their posts. You can see if this is indeed a pattern, or a real member, wanting to discuss a subject, by sharing, and participating, other than being a "snob" or "know it all".

So I hope that I have shared something that may ease some of the issues that I have either dealt with, and noticed.

Peace, NRE.

One of the great advantages of the internet is that you don't have to have your view of a persons point coloured by anything else but what they are writing.
Checking into someone's thread history (although I have to admit I have been guilty of it myself) is just a way of prejudicing your views about that person and introducing things into a discussion that don't belong in that discussion.

Does the persons post make a valid point or not? Thats all you really need to be concerned about, their views on other things in the past shouldn't play a role on if their current point is valid or not. Either you can provide a logical argument against that point or you can't.

If the poster is making some claim about themselves however and their history seems to disprove what they are saying then thats a different matter

If the poster is making some claim about themselves however and their history seems to disprove what they are saying then thats a different matter

That is one of the things that I am referring to. I know that those people that have been here for many years have seen or researched or learned from others here, and may have changed their views. What I am speaking of is those that seem to press on, with particular subjects as if they were there themselves. Its very easy to see if this is a pattern of looking to "debate" as opposed to "informing".

People would learn alot more from others, their way of speaking, and even their sense of humor, if they looked into other threads. I for one have seen this, and if I am concerned about a certain subject, or someone may have seemed offensive, I will check their threads, and see a pattern of how they speak, or of them maybe being marked as saying something wrong, and them state that they live in a different country, or they have a weird sense of humor.

This thread in no way is targeting, just helping others to maybe see a different way to understand someone that sometimes, depending on how much time you spend here, your with them a lot of the time.

Peace, NRE.

The only time I've really had cause to look at someone's past threads was when they were claiming to be a photoshop expert, so I looked at their past posts and they had asked for advice on how to resize images etc so I had cause to not believe what they were saying.

reply to post by davespanners


That is a perfect example to what I was saying. Its quite simple, and easy to do. I know that there has been much debate about the quality, and constant bickering between members, that are harsh with others based on their "lack" of knowledge. It can sometimes even derail threads, or people dont want to get in the middle, I have lost several threads due to bickering, and derailing. Not with me, but other members.

So I went to their posts and threads, and realized an immediate pattern. The subject I presented was all they did. They went from thread to thread, doing the same thing, that they did on my thread. It got so bad that I left the thread, but not before me mentioning that I caught on to the game they played.

Even though I still see it till this day.

Peace, NRE.

This was in no way a way to shout out those who do this, but I wanted to make others aware that this is an ongoing thing, that can be simplified if you know how to see the signs.

Peace, NRE.

Thought I would revive this as I have seen many threads today, with those who bring something to the table and then those that flood threads with "how do you know?", and well thats you opinion. Well yes. Its all our opinion. This is a forum to discuss "our" opinions. If we didn't have opinions, then this site would be called "Nothing's Top Secret".

If you are opposed to someones research, then research in return and reply. Its really quite simple, or just make your point and move on, this is very discouraging to newer members, and it quite frankly rude.

Peace, NRE.