# Personal attack on a smug alarmist

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-attack-on-a-smug-alarmist/844239>\
**Category:** About This Message Board\
**Created:** [December 1, 2019, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-attack-on-a-smug-alarmist/844239 "2019-12-01T14:46:56Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Showing post:** 2

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\
**Post date:** [December 1, 2019, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-attack-on-a-smug-alarmist/844239/2 "2019-12-01T16:54:08Z")

</div>

Dear **chela** ,

You’ve been here since 2004. Surely by now you should have been able to work out how to walk the Dope’s silly but rather clear lines regarding personal insults.

You wrote:

> [@Possible sink hole on my property, what do I do?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/possible-sink-hole-on-my-property-what-do-i-do/844013/29):
>
> Don’t be confused,you sounded like a smug alarmist with useless anecdotes for the situation.

What you should have written was:

“Don’t be confused, your post sounded like smug alarmism with useless anecdotes for the situation.”

Happy to help!

---

_[View the full topic](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-attack-on-a-smug-alarmist/844239)._