Well, I guess I should thank LolaBaby for launching the very first Pit thread about me. The fact that some people are insensitive bastards isn’t going to stop me from sharing, though. How is it that a guy like, Purd Werfect had enough sense to say the right thing and so many other people didn’t?
I should also thank you because, looking back, you indeed were the first person to express a shred of sympathy. The other respondents before you were MUCH too busy racing to be the first to tell the newly fired guy how little his problems mattered.
To Caricci: I would have simply stopped reading, except I had marked the “e-mail notification” option. I really wasn’t looking forward to yet another “You’ve Got Mail” from someone telling me why my firing was such a walk in the park.
To Tranquilis: What do you mean, you’re “sure” it was rhetorical. Was it after the first time I pointed out it was rhetorical, or the second time?
To trishdish: I thought that Zebra’s post was funny as well. I’ll go apologize to that poster if you think I gave off the wrong impression.
To LolaCocaCola: “Whatever” right back at you. Bitch.
I don’t think Enright3 meant it to be mean. I could be wrong, but I just think it was without tact. I agreed that it could have been worded better or have a little “note” of sympathy (as I tried to do).
I agree that there are a lot of people on the Net who want to be mean, because they can. They’re hidden behind a screen, and sometimes people don’t realize the way they say something or what they say or sometimes, what they don’t say, can hurt somebody.
I was just taken aback by his behavior.
Scene: sunny day, outside.
LolaBaby is sitting on curb, holding her broken knee. She has been hit by a car because she ran out in heavy traffic without looking.
LaurAnge comes along, not knowing what happened but immediately tries to aid LolaBaby. “what happened?” LaurAnge asks.
“Get the fuck away from me!” LolaBaby snarls.
Okay, so I’ll never write screenplays, but that’s just the way I see this.
Look Snooopy, whatever, you don’t have to tell us why, it doesn’t matter anyhow anyway. Again, I’m sorry you lost your job, but I was just annoyed at the attitude in the latter part of the thread.
The SDMB is full of smart posters. As such, I believe that smart posters should be able to recognize a sympathy thread – EVEN if the title is a rhetorical question – and either be sympathetic or stay the hell out.
Ack! Don’t click on the crybaby link posted in the OP unless you want 40 zillion pop up ads on your screen. I figured it was probably a fake link but couldn’t keep from clicking on it.
Stupid curiousity! It’s gonna get me killed some day.
On the OP, some people were funny, some were nice, some were mean, some were flippant. Losing a job is very sucky and stressfull. It looks like Snooooopy was (understandably IMHO) quite sensitive about things and didn’t react well to posts that implied he did something wrong or that things could have been worse.
The title was not immediately evident as a rhetorical question (to me anyway, though I may be dense). If there’s one thing that you can count on about the SDMB it’s : ask a question - get an answer. It may not be one you want / need / expect to hear but it will get answered.
I say give him the benefit of the doubt and cut him some slack. It doesn’t really cost you anything and could help someone who is having a genuinely shitty day.
Snooooopy, if you had even just said, “Hey, guys, I wasn’t really looking for answers to my question. I’m upset, can y’all just take it easy on me?” I think you would have gotten a much different response. I think the people who posted weren’t trying to rub it in or tell you that you deserved it somehow, they were just asking for more information, or trying to help you feel better by giving you worse examples, and you threw a tantrum in response. I understand that getting fired is shitty; it’s happened to me before, and yes, it’s very upsetting. But try to act like an adult and give other people the benefit of the doubt, like you would want them to give you.
LolaBaby, I think I overreacted in here, too. I’m sorry if I’ve offended you at any point. I didn’t see it the same way you did; I saw Snoooopy’s getting mad justifiable 'cause he was under a lot of stress and 'cause, let’s face it, even beside the asking him what it was for, there were some damn snarky answers.
All I see in that thread, for the most part, is people showing you that of all the things that sucked about getting fired, the manner in which you were fired wasn’t personal at all. It was SOP, therefore not really something worth worrying over. It wasn’t a statement about you, you woud have had the same treatment whehter you were the greatest guy in the world or the greatest shithead.
That said, I stand by my oft-stated position that sympathy threads on a large message board are stupid an inane. The best you could have hoped for were empty platitudes from people you barely know. Here are some examples:
“That sucks, Snooop! It is there loss, I am sure you were the best whatever in the world.”
“Wow, terrible, as far as I can tell you are the nicest, most competent person they are likely to ever find for your position. They must be real shitheads without any possible reason for what they’ve done.”
“Wow, you must be hurting. You can always cry on my shoulder. Well, you could, but I don’t give my phone number or AIM name to people I don’t know well.”
When you posted the same thing to your LiveJournal, a much smaller audience that is much more aware and involved with you personally, you got much more of the resposne you were apparently hoping for.
Though not from me, I apparently gave you what you got in that other thread. But then, for all I know you deserved to get fired and it is amazing that you kept the job as long as you did. I don’t really know you that well.
Well, I embezzled $10 gazillion dollars, sold the children of the advertising staff for medical experiments, framed the news editor for the Kennedy assassination and threw buckets of vomit on all the computers.
But that didn’t get me fired.
I grabbed someone else’s tuna fish sandwich out of the refrigerator. THAT’s what got me fired.
Right on, obfusciatrist. snooopy’s thread was just starting to get interesting when it got locked down. Anyone started a “Worst way to get fired” thread yet? Cause I got a good story, too.
Well, obfus, empty platitudes are sometimes just the ticket.
Your entry in my LJ didn’t bother me a bit. Why? Because you mixed in some understanding. There’s light-years of difference between "Wow, that sucks. But it’s not unusual … " and just “Look, dude, I’ve seen a LOT worse.”
I’ve been paying so much attention to this thread that I missed the opening third of that episode of “Buffy The Vampire Slayer” where her mom dies. Always wanted to see that.
