Usually it’s not because I’m droning on about crap - that hasn’t stopped me very often - but instead it’s because halfway through the writing I realise I don’t actually know what I’m talking about and am only reciting a vague thing I think I heard about or maybe it was a dream. As that would likely be shot down by all the experts around here, I think twice.
This is about my ratio although I’m becoming convinced that ten times our of ten would be better for all concerned.
Not much but sometimes. Usually when it will be in a thread that will just piss me off. I just back off since life is too short to be arguing on the internet.
Yes. The time periods when I am even inclined to post are pretty sporadic, and during those instances I end up deciding against posting more often than not.
I have had a few people in the past ask me to post more, and I was flattered; so recently I have been making an effort to accomplish that. I bet I’ve made them regret their request by now. 
Yes, I did in this thread before this post.
I try (probably unsuccessfully more often than not) to post only when I feel I have something that’ll add to the conversation. I loathe “me too” posts, and will only post that if I can add to it.
A valuable lesson I learned a long time ago is, “The world is much less interested in you than you are.” So I hold back on a lot of posts on this board as well as others. But that doesn’t mean I don’t have responses ready–99.9% of the time, I just keep them to myself.
Yeah, I ask myself after writing it if my post really adds anything to the conversation, sometimes I’ll post it anyway even if it doesn’t though.
Yes, else I would have joined the board 12 years ago when I first discovered it…
Yes, all the time.
The reason THIS is getting posted is because there’s not a lot I can say here that could make me look (more) stupid or annoying.
Right?
I do this frequently in gun control threads. I’ll type out a reasoned response to the usual ignorant nonsense by (name omitted to protect the moronic), and realize I may as well bash my head on my keyboard for half an hour for all the good it’ll do. Some people just don’t care if the facts back up their opinions.
I do it all the time, too, but I’m trying to get out of this particular mentality. On the one hand, I hate missing a thread that’s gone on for so long that I’m interested enough to post in. Yeah, by that point, there may not be much to say that hasn’t already been said. Also, I know that a lot of people don’t like pile-ons, if that’s what’s going on.
But on the other hand, I’m starting to figure that I may as well, since whoever originated the thread would probably rather me post than not, no matter how long the thread has become. At least, from the few threads I’ve started, that’s how I feel. And, I’m always happy to have someone else come in a thread and support whatever is I’m saying, whatever page we’re on.
Yes, probably four times out of five.
I’m very good at lurking without posting on GD style threads unless I know a lot about the topic so there’s nothing to resist there, but in lighter threads I resist at least half of them and I still post way too often.
Yes, most times.
Frequently. I’ve only posted a couple times over the past month or so (including this one), but I’ve started - and canceled - at least a dozen posts during that time. Most of the time, it’s because I feel the conversation has moved on from what I was going to respond to, or I feel my opinion is really not worth reading. And, in most cases, it probably isn’t.
Yes, frequently. Sometimes because I think my point of view is already well-represented, but sometimes because I know my point of view will be misunderstood or unpopular. As others have said, it often isn’t worth the argument. Sometimes I just can’t adequately word what I want to say.
More often than not.
I have an entire MyDocuments folder on my computer full of angsty, long, TMI posts about my family. Nowadays I just pretend I’m writing to The Straight Dope and then file them into obscurity. My family is mostly irrelevant, but sometimes I have to spit it all out before I realize it.
You can sort of tell when I’m about to write one because a melodramatic theme will pop up in my random posts all over the board. This culminates in like a three hour writing session where I just scribble it all down and rant and rave… and file away.