Post your goodbyes to the SDMB here

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
41

I certainly don’t want to pass judgements on anyone’s personal decisons… but, lol. Reading through the posts in this thread offers just a tinge of amusement. Just about everyone who’s announced they’re leaving insist it “isn’t about the money,” and several have explained that this is the opportunity they’ve been waiting for- to break away and stop devoting so much valuable time to the Internet, etc. Wonderful sentiments, seriously. I’m just not clear as to how one paints a ridiculous $5.00 a year as some kind of… personal wake-up call? If you’re drifting away from the SDMB, if it doesn’t offer the pleasure or stimulation it once did, fine, that I can dig. But those of you posting such tearful goodbyes and describing how sad you are to part ways with so many wonderful people, many of whom you even take the trouble to name, well… what the hell’s the matter with ya?

Either consciously or unconsciously, it is about the money. Not that you can’t swing five bucks a year, but being asked for it somehow offends your sensibilities. (And really, balking about methods of payment is silly. PayPal is offered to those valiant folk resisting the siren song of the credit card. If you’re too lazy to register for PayPal, well, how did you ever get registered here?)

I’d pay three times the amount they’re asking. Easily. For the wealth of information and abundance of camaraderie to be found here? Sh*t, come on.

42

Third attempt here (darn hamsters). Thank you to the person who suggested pasting your post into Word.

Suffice it to say, I’m leaving as well. I don’t think this board will be anywhere near “earadicating ignorance” in a year, rather, I think it will be very clique-y and unfriendly. I don’t have much posting experience and the reason behind that is there is a lot of hostility from certain people toward anyone who disagrees with their viewpoint.

That said, there are some very nice people here, such as FairyChatMom, county, tdn, and I’m sure others.

I resent those of you who post in this thread just to tell us what fools we’re being, how it really must be about the money, etc.

Good-bye everyone, and thanks for the good times!

43

Boy, there’s some names on here that I really hate to see leaving. Thanks for all the interaction, learning and good times and we hope future circumstances will mandate a return.

Oh, and when come back, bring piehole!

44

I met a lot of great people here. Thanks ChiefScott for inviting me. I wish you all well. As for me, I now close this door…

45

Well, aren’t you just the shizznit! Except, not.

In case you missed it, this thread is for people who wish to post their goodbyes, not for criticism of those people for their personal decisions. It takes a special kind of rudeness to imply that other people’s personal decisions and priorities, because they differ from your own, makes them lazy or stupid or cheap.

Is there any wonder I keep hoping I’ll see your so long post in this thread?

46

You’re right. But it’s lame. And no one seems willing or able to offer sound reasons for this melodrama. Including you.

You may count your hopes offically dashed. : )

47

I’m not subscribing but you can track me down on Live Journal (voguevixen) and I’ll probably drop into chat every so often if I feel like it.

Me? I just don’t feel like it’s worth $5. Yes I’ve made friends here and had some laughs, but I can do that anywhere online, or in the real, physical world even! IT’S JUST A MESSAGE BOARD to me. I can take it or leave it. I’m actually sorta tired of it. Seems like the same 100 posts keep getting made over and over.

Plus, you can still read for nothing, and that’s where most of the enjoyment is for me. I’m not someone who gets off on arguing a point to death or whatever. I pretty much don’t have much to say, and what I do have to say isn’t worth $5, that’s for sure!

48

lieu, you officially have the Best Sig Ever.

49

I’d like to second this remark. I personally appreciate the contributions that you-who-are-leaving have made.

I’ve made the decision to stay, but I don’t fault anyone for making a different choice. I wish you well.

50

And you’re insulting. And it doesn’t belong here.

Who made you arbiter of what a “sound reason” is for not wanting to pay to post here? Jesus, you’re a piece of work.

That’s really too bad. You’re the only one in this thread I wouldn’t miss if you left.

51

I may have been insulting to the group at large, Shayna, but I never directed personal nastiness at anyone.
Until now.
Blow me.

52

I’m curious. Those of you leaving for some great “principle”, what principle exactly is it that you are defending? I honestly can’t think of any other than “I refuse to pay for something I enjoy, it should be free and screw whoever has to foot the bill”. Is there another one I’m missing somewhere?

53

Lamar Mundane:

Au contraire, I am not in the least indignant at being asked to pay for a service, but I CAN choose to do without the service. Since I average only about 1-2 posts a day, I think it is stupid to pay any price to shoot off my mouth. I can do that well enough in real life.

If I recall correctly, I participated in that thread and others shortly after 9-11, and, no, said participation wasn’t worth $5.

That’s good, but I prefer to get advice from real people, not faceless voices over the ether.

You are so right, and I can get it for free.

Lamar, here I am going to comment on both your remarks and Moody Bastard’s posts. I agree, you can learn a lot from this board. In fact, the main reason I keep coming back is that when major news events develop, I know I can check out Great Debates and learn of several good web sites, books, or magazine articles posted by Dopers, sources that give far more information than NPR or the execrable newspapers I have access to.
However, I can do that WITHOUT paying $5 for the privilege of shooting my mouth off. Why should I pay money to access this information when I know I can ride the etheric coattails of people like you and the Bastard who are willing to pay to keep the board running?
This is the main reason why I think this board’s administration is making a questionable decision. Those of us who are mainly interested in information can continue to benefit from the board, thanks to the willingness of the clique to pay.

And before any reader of this starts screaming in outrage, bear this in mind: I call myself The Peyote Coyote for several reasons. One is that I feel a great empathy toward coyotes. We’re mean, nasty, amoral creatures who exist on the fringe and most despise and/or fear us. But we ain’t stupid.

54

Moody Bastard - Thanks very much but I think I can express myself reasonably well without your assistance, and assumptions.

Only the OP him/herself talks of “a principle” and I don’t know what principle that is, either.
Yojimbo - I’ll still be seeing you at the less addictive NADS from time-to-time.

55

Did you miss where I said I don’t really enjoy it? I should still pay for it? Oooooookay. If it were “pay to read” I’d pay for it. Since it’s “pay to post” why bother? I can talk out loud to my computer and it would have just as much impact as any random thing I could post here.

It’s not about being a freeloader. If I try some shareware and I like it, I buy it. If I don’t like it, I don’t. I don’t like this place enough to spend $5, much like I don’t like movies enough to pay to see them in a theater. Why is this so offensive to someone? It’s so random! It’s just a personal preference, not some crusade!

56

Your post is a bizarre series of contradictions. You say you can choose to do without it, then explain how you are going to make use of it anyway. You say you prefer to get advice from real people but then you say you will continue to read the boards for information.

Hey, at least you’re honest about riding others coattails. Be my guest. Hop on board.

It makes me wonder why you don’t take someone up on their offer of paying for you? Then you get all the benefits and still don’t have to pay.

Please don’t bother trying to pull me into an argument. I really just posted this to see “Charter member” up there for the first time.

57

First of all, anyone who is posting here to deride those who say they are leaving is obviously missing the point of the thread (so what else is new?). Can’t imagine why anyone would be upset that people won’t be paying to play here, unless they fear that someone saying they won’t pay is implying some sort of criticism of those who will. Wierd.

I want to say goodbye to all who have tried to make the board fun and enjoyable. We have had our share of looneys, and our share of nasties, but for the most part, I’ve found that people, even when they don’t have anything particularly logical or insightful to say, are at least trying to have fun. That’s why I kept posting after all the other changes, such as the move from AOL, the great meltdown, the thread cull, etc.

There are some here I will mention by name, not because they are particularly any better than anyone else, but simply because, as I type this, they come to mind as having caused me some joy here. Bricker, minty green, and others have always made posting about legal, especially constitutional, issues fun. My usual excessive foray into the ins and outs of some obscure point of law is often caused by my fear that I’ll be properly skewered by these people should I fail to be somewhat compleat.

I’ve enjoyed the postings of Uncle Beer, tomndeb, Coldfire, et alia, because they usually pique my interest. I will definitely miss JillGat, who has often provided some unique insights into interesting topics. If your question hasn’t been googled by Duck Duck Goose, you haven’t posted enough!! I am certain that there are numerous others I’d like to mention, but I can’t search you out, cause I’m not a member!

And in case I’ve never mentioned it before, my definite thanks to all the moderators, for putting up with our shennanigans, our complaints, our pain-in-the-ass behaviour and the general assumption of every poster here, especially in Great Debates, that we have the one and only correct understanding of the world, and damn anyone who gets in our way. Arnold Winkelried, C K Dexter Haven, David B, Gaudere, MEBuckner, xash, DrMatrix, bibliophage, Ukulele Ike, Czarcasm, TVeblen, Coldfire, Cajun Man, you’ve earned my respect and admiration. Oh, yeah, Lynn Bodoni, Alphagene, John Corrado, you too, though I never have been to the Pit; I am sure you are very needed there.

I am certain I won’t really be missed in any substantial way. I hope in the past roughly seven years I’ve contributed something of value to someone (I do recall being cited in a law review article!!). And if you never manage to solve why it is “nine yards,” well, at least we all tried. :slight_smile:

Good luck, everyone!!

Doug

58

Oh, lest I forget
Sha-na-na-na
Sha-na-na-na
hey, hey
GOODBYE!!!

59

My question was pretty clearly (I thought) directed at those who are “leaving as a matter of principle”. I saw that you said you don’t enjoy it enough to pay for it, and that’s fine, who am I to say differently? I am specifically asking what the “principle” here is, for those who are not paying because of the “principle” of the thing.

L_C, yea, I know it was only the OP who mentioned principle in this thread, but I’ve heard it several other places in the last few days as well, and I’m hoping someone can enlighten me.

60

I’ll try and give you an answer Weirddave, one that I’ve seen expressed a few times and I feel somewhat myself. It’s the fact that we’re essentially paying to provide content. All the dope columns are free. The staff reports are free. Reading the boards is free. Some people leaving if asked to pay for that content, and what valuable content it is, would do so and do so happily and understandingly. Especially for the columns and reports which really are actually products.

But what they want us to pay for, from one viewpoint, is the ability to provide them with their own copyrighted content. Not that I’ve seen them use the text from this site in any real manner. A rare quote here and there for Cecil’s column and nothing more but it still rubs some people the wrong way. Anyway paying to provide others with content just feels wrong. It feels backwards. And that’s why some people would have problems with it even if it were just a penny.

My feelings towards this move are a little complicated. There’s this. A base desire to rearrange the furniture of my life. A concern that I do spend too much time on the boards. I guess I’m leaving because of all of them and even then I have a strong urge to stay. Odd.