# Stop being so civil! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [January 28, 2005, 11:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-being-so-civil/287087 "2005-01-28T11:13:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![Gary\_Robson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gary_robson/32/3448_2.png) [@Gary\_Robson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Robson)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-being-so-civil/287087/161 "2005-02-01T05:47:46Z")
I’m with you, **Johanna**. The last time I checked that thread, there wasn’t anything in there about homeless people or spoofs. Now it’s gone, and I have no idea what happened. Wasn’t there another thread in the last few weeks that got very heated, and the object of the heat claimed his roommate (or somebody) had been posting under his name? This all sounds vaguely familiar. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Robson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gary_robson/32/3448_2.png) [@Gary\_Robson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Robson)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-being-so-civil/287087/162 "2005-02-01T05:51:44Z")
I see there were a couple of responses between the time I viewed this thread and the time I hit “Post.” Was that the whole story? No explanation in the thread itself at all, just _poof_? ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-being-so-civil/287087/163 "2005-02-01T05:51:55Z")
> [@InvisibleWombat](#): > > I’m with you, **Johanna**. The last time I checked that thread, there wasn’t anything in there about homeless people or spoofs. Now it’s gone, and I have no idea what happened. > > Wasn’t there another thread in the last few weeks that got very heated, and the object of the heat claimed his roommate (or somebody) had been posting under his name? This all sounds vaguely familiar. She posted a thread in MPSIMS saying that the original thread was not started by her. And you’re thinking of **Kel Varnsen - Latex Division**. I’m not sure WHAT to think of him. ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 5:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-being-so-civil/287087/164 "2005-02-01T05:58:24Z")
> [@gum](#): > > **Johanna** , [This:](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=5784959&postcount=2) is what **Tuba Diva** said about the thread. > > It doesn’t explain why the thread was _removed_ instead of merely closed. > I expect it has something to do with the fear of the mods/admins of not being seen as PC enough. Uh, why would they care? Who’d call them on it? Are they expecting a pile-on from the governments of Iran and Egypt or something? (And “the liberal masses who control the SDMB” don’t count, because I don’t think you really believe that anything would come out of it from anyone important if the thread remained accessible.) ---
**Author:** ![gum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bbe5ce/32.png) [@gum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gum)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-being-so-civil/287087/165 "2005-02-01T06:05:58Z")
> [@Leaper](#): > > Uh, why would they care? Who’d call them on it? Are they expecting a pile-on from the governments of Iran and Egypt or something? hehehe, cute 🙂 But I think you know exactly what I mean. > [@](#): > > _(And “the liberal masses who control the SDMB” don’t count, because I don’t think you really believe that anything would come out of it from anyone important if the thread remained accessible.)_ Mmmm. Depends who[m] you call _important_, huh. ---
**Author:** ![recurriman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8dc957/32.png) [@recurriman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/recurriman)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 8:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-being-so-civil/287087/166 "2005-02-01T08:35:49Z")
Tell you what Sarah. Why don’t you start a **new** “Ask a muslim woman” thread and give us the _straight dope_ about yourself this time? If you really want to start again with a clean slate (without changing your handle), it’s the only way to clear up all the (justified) suspicion. ---
**Author:** ![Carnick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Carnick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carnick)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 8:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-being-so-civil/287087/167 "2005-02-01T08:50:32Z")
> [@](#): > > The OP disavows that the postings under her name were indeed made by her and requested closure, mentioning a potential breach in computer security on her part. We are investigating the situation and in the meantime have removed the thread from public view. She’s a terrorist! :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Nightime](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e9c0ed/32.png) [@Nightime](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nightime)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 9:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-being-so-civil/287087/168 "2005-02-01T09:31:06Z")
I have to come clean: I’m the homeless man who pretended to be Sarah W. What happened was that I saw her sign up for the Straight Dope, then leave herself logged in when she left the library. After doing some impromptu research on her (through other web sites in which she wrote about her religion), I felt I had enough information to do an impersonation. I thought it would all end there, but as I was lying in wait the next day she came back, logged in, and left again without reading any of the site. I could not resist the temptation to continue my impersonation, though given my incomplete information about her it seems I made her seem worse than she really is. As you can guess, this pattern continued, until she finally discovered what was going on. I do apologize. I just wanted to be someone else for a while. Things have been going really badly ever since I had an affair with Kel Varnsen’s girlfriend. ---
**Author:** ![SolGrundy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbce88/32.png) [@SolGrundy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SolGrundy)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 9:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-being-so-civil/287087/169 "2005-02-01T09:42:11Z")
> [@Nightime](#): > > I do apologize. I just wanted to be someone else for a while. Things have been going really badly ever since I had an affair with Kel Varnsen’s girlfriend. The flaming liberal anti-religious homosexual masses of the SDMB forgive you, **Nightime**. As long as you’re not a heterosexual conservative white American male, of course. ---
**Author:** ![Siege](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dbc845/32.png) [@Siege](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siege)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 10:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-being-so-civil/287087/170 "2005-02-01T10:27:05Z")
> [@roger thornhill](#): > > It should be pointed out that having a good reputation with one’s fellow men is not necessarily something that should be taken at face value, or as an indicator of probity. As Jesus said, “Blessed are you when men hate you, when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their fathers treated the prophets…[But] woe to you when all men speak well of you, for that is how their fathers treated the false prophets.” Just a brief warning. I spent my youth choosing what was Right over what was popular and I do not regret doing so. I’m still suspicious of what’s popular. If I’ve become popular or well-liked here, it’s not because I was trying to be; it’s simply happened. I’ve spoken my mind and asked my questions and I know full well that some of my opinions, not to mention real-life friends, have made me very unpopular with some Christians. I won’t change my views to please them, either. Other people have accused me of watering down the Gospel for the sake of popularity. I find that accusation highly insulting, not to mention about as likely as suggesting that, say, a homeless man broke into my home and posted on this message board under my id. As for **Sarahw** , I’m afraid I also have my doubts, although I will point out that she didn’t post to that thread on Sunday. Still, the thread went on too long and I didn’t pick up a change in tone or language at any point in that thread which would suggest a second person was posting in it under her name. Mind you, I’m not an expert at that. I’m afraid I’m having a hard time buying her story. CJ (or some homeless guy sitting at her computer;)) ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 10:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-being-so-civil/287087/171 "2005-02-01T10:34:33Z")
> [@Excalibre](#): > > We? Southerners? Libertarians? People taking Prednisone for medical conditions? We. You and I. The two people having this discussion. I said that I think forgiveness ought to be unconditional. You said, “I don’t think she merits forgiveness until she more honestly comes forward…”. I don’t think forgiveness is something that one merits, other than by being human. > [@](#): > > Oh, Christians! I get it, you’re faulting me here for being a godless heathen, eh? Not hardly. I’m probably a more godless heathen than you are. I certainly merit nothing, least of all any moral position above yours. > [@](#): > > In fact, this statement contains the subtle implication that I’m demanding she somehow publicly ‘repent’ in some sense for her crimes, and if you read my post, you’d see that it’s clearly not what I said. I made it quite clear why I don’t think that sort of pretending is conducive to what he have here on the boards. I think what you demanded is “merit”. She has to somehow earn her forgiveness. At least that’s how I read what you said. > [@](#): > > Besides, Christian doctrine, to my knowledge, does indeed require one to admit, and even repent, ones sins. Apparently Jesus’s forgiveness is slightly more demanding than you make it out to be. You might be confusing Jesus with some of the more palatable new-age icons. Palatable? I think your version is more palatable. We all want the pound of flesh to appease our indignation. It is far more difficult to forgive without condition than to pardon upon admission. > [@](#): > > Lib, when dealing with me, in the future, please either avoid the veiled insults or state them honestly. The intellectual cowardice of trying to make statements without admitting them saddens me. See, for instance, your repeated misspelling of my name, even after I alerted you to it. Do you do that when you bring me up in threads in hopes that I won’t stumble across your discussions of me? Because it’s not necessary. I don’t do vanity searches. I don’t mind if you insult me; this is the Pit. I’d just rather you were honest about it. Misspellnig your name? Repeatedly? What the…? When dealing with me in the future, read the lines, not the interstices. ---
**Author:** ![FinnAgain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/finnagain/32/12500_2.png) [@FinnAgain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FinnAgain)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 10:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-being-so-civil/287087/172 "2005-02-01T10:35:12Z")
Naw, it was **karl** using her computer after kicking some homeless scum, who is an expert at posting in other people’s styles, in the teeth. ---
**Author:** ![Eleusis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Eleusis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eleusis)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 12:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-being-so-civil/287087/173 "2005-02-01T12:13:03Z")
> [@Liberal](#): > > I’m probably a more godless heathen than you are. Probably not _me_ though 😉 Where’s the beer and a joint smiley? ---
**Author:** ![robertliguori](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/46a35a/32.png) [@robertliguori](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robertliguori)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-being-so-civil/287087/174 "2005-02-01T12:24:54Z")
> [@Eleusis](#): > > Probably not _me_ though 😉 > > Where’s the beer and a joint smiley? Definitely not me. I’m the athiest one of all. You don’t know how long I’ve wanted to be able to use that one. ---
**Author:** ![roger\_thornhill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d9b06d/32.png) [@roger\_thornhill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/roger_thornhill)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-being-so-civil/287087/175 "2005-02-01T12:37:19Z")
> [@Siege](#): > > Just a brief warning. I spent my youth choosing what was Right over what was popular and I do not regret doing so. I’m still suspicious of what’s popular. If I’ve become popular or well-liked here, it’s not because I was trying to be; it’s simply happened. I’ve spoken my mind and asked my questions and I know full well that some of my opinions, not to mention real-life friends, have made me very unpopular with some Christians. I won’t change my views to please them, either. Other people have accused me of watering down the Gospel for the sake of popularity. I find that accusation highly insulting, not to mention about as likely as suggesting that, say, a homeless man broke into my home and posted on this message board under my id. I was aware when I wrote what I wrote that it would appear to be a dig at you, **Poly** and **Tom**. Or even more so at **ME Buckner**. I took the risk not just does the Bible talk about being excluded and derided, but it happens in life. If it’s true as, I think, Paul wrote that “He who lives a Godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted”, then it doesn’t of course necessarily mean that anyone who doesn’t get persecuted is not doing so. But it rings true to me. ---
**Author:** ![Excalibre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/898d66/32.png) [@Excalibre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Excalibre)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-being-so-civil/287087/176 "2005-02-01T15:15:23Z")
> [@Liberal](#): > > Misspellnig your name? Repeatedly? What the…? When dealing with me in the future, read the lines, not the interstices. Oh? How about in this thread? [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=288914&highlight=excalibur](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=288914&highlight=excalibur) You were awfully clever to confine it to links and the quote box - heck, when quoting my messages in order to respond, you changed the spelling of my name - there can’t be much doubt that this is a deliberate action. Especially since you continued doing it in the same thread after I asked you to stop. Remember? That’s the thread that you hijacked, bringing me up when it was irrelevant to the situation. That thread won’t come up now even if you search for “Excalibur” since you were clever enough to conceal each reference to me in a link. However, using the web browser’s “search this page” function will find it, or just examining the thread for the red highlights. Then you did it again when you posted this short-lived thread: [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=289086&highlight=excalibur](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=289086&highlight=excalibur) My assumption, in regards to this thread, is that the misspelled name was an effort to discuss me without it coming up, in case I did a vanity search. Now, I can’t claim for certain that you did this in order to talk about me without alerting me. It’s possible that it was just your more typical back-handed insult (you did, after all, continue it after I requested that you stop.) The thread seemed to be an effort to drag out the discussion again, after your hijack killed the first thread. So you do all that. Now you’re lying about it. You know, after your consistent strings of backhanded insults to me in other threads, I’m having a hard time accepting the veracity of your current burst of piety. I know you don’t like me - you’ve demonstrated it clearly before. It’s not a concern of mine, since I suspect you can guess my feelings towards you aren’t all that warm either. But the cowardice of hiding your insults from the “search forums” option and than lying about them later, all while clinging to your claims about your religious beliefs, disgusts me. I just wish you’d own up, quit with the guru act, and stop with the proclamations of religious faith while acting in a manner that contradicts them. Some people call folks like that “Pharisees” - I just call 'em “hypocrites”. ---
**Author:** ![Hamlet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hamlet/32/2818_2.png) [@Hamlet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hamlet)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-being-so-civil/287087/177 "2005-02-01T16:39:27Z")
> [@gum](#): > > Nah. Muslims are _good_ people. And we - on the SDMB - will keep on repeating that, until it’s our turn to get a taste of their bigotry. The fact is that there are good and bad people affiliated with any religion, or with atheism. There are bigoted Muslims. There are tolerant atheists. There are bigoted atheists. There are tolerant Christians. There are bigoted **people** and tolerant **people**. > [@gunm](#): > > \*Disclaimer: Like **gobear** , I’m against all religion, but as long as people don’t hurt other people with their believes, I’m fine with it. > The sad truth is: That all terrorists are muslim [by Abd al-Rahman al-Rashid] > [The Sad Truth Is That All Terrorists Are Muslim - Worldpress.org](http://www.worldpress.org/Mideast/1941.cfm) Tim McVeigh. The IRA. Spanish Basques. Abortion clinic bombers. The KKK. Bad **people**. > [@gum](#): > > And we [in the Netherlands - and I don’t mean decades, or even ages ago] have more crimes; thefts, rape, murder, commited by muslims than by people of any other faith. Cite? ---
**Author:** ![Siege](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dbc845/32.png) [@Siege](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siege)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-being-so-civil/287087/178 "2005-02-01T16:40:07Z")
> [@roger thornhill](#): > > I was aware when I wrote what I wrote that it would appear to be a dig at you, **Poly** and **Tom**. Or even more so at **ME Buckner**. I took the risk not just does the Bible talk about being excluded and derided, but it happens in life. If it’s true as, I think, Paul wrote that “He who lives a Godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted”, then it doesn’t of course necessarily mean that anyone who doesn’t get persecuted is not doing so. But it rings true to me. My point is, I _have_ been persecuted already, thank you, which is why I dislike the implication that I haven’t been. Indeed, the verses about being persecuted for righteousness’ sake were one of the thin threads that kept me Christian and convinced me I was doing the Right thing. Mind you, I didn’t need much at the time; I was a teenager, after all. 😉 CJ ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-being-so-civil/287087/179 "2005-02-01T17:06:39Z")
> [@gum](#): > > hehehe, cute 🙂 > But I think you know exactly what I mean. Well, **I** sure as hell don’t know what you mean. Care to fill me in? ---
**Author:** ![roger\_thornhill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d9b06d/32.png) [@roger\_thornhill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/roger_thornhill)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-being-so-civil/287087/180 "2005-02-01T23:27:18Z")
> [@Siege](#): > > My point is, I _have_ been persecuted already, thank you, which is why I dislike the implication that I haven’t been. Indeed, the verses about being persecuted for righteousness’ sake were one of the thin threads that kept me Christian and convinced me I was doing the Right thing. Mind you, I didn’t need much at the time; I was a teenager, after all. 😉 > > CJ Okay, but it wasn’t meant to be an implication. There is so much depth to Jesus’ teachings, which can be glossed over by focusing only on love God and love thy neighbour. And that is to our detriment, I believe. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-being-so-civil/287087.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-being-so-civil/287087.md?page=10)