I did not start this thread. I did not make this po … D’oh! :smack:
I do that a lot with threads about zombies … and werewolves … and vampires. I wonder if it will ever be quantifiable – howm many thousands of hours, or maybe years, or productivity is lost talking about zombie apocalypses, or whether hordes of zombies can take on … well, anything.
I’ve always wanted to start a thead ‘Axe tha pimp!’ But there’s an outside chance someone might actually post to it, and I doubt that I could come up with any witty responses.
nm
This.
And this.
For even slightly controversial topics, I feel like I will have to spend the next 10 posts defending my assumptions and providing cites that the sky is blue, water is wet, and what definition I was using for the word “is.” I assume that posters will bog down the thread in pedantic arguments about a small side item and completely ignore the discussion I was interested in participating in.
I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve typed out a detailed, insightful and fact filled post only to think “Is this too much wisdom for the masses to handle? Yes, it most certainly is. Better delete.” I really do try to bring the world along slowly, so as not to cause too much upset.
Top reasons I don’t post:
[ol]
[li]I’m an idiot.[/li][li]Nobody cares what the hell I think.[/li][li]Deep down, I am a very mean, angry person, who has very little tolerance for bullshit, fucknuttery, and just plain stupid, so frankly, me opening up my personal brand of pissed off at trolls/idiots/etc. would make their nightmares look like their happy place.[/li][li]I’d get a bazillion warnings and get banned for number 3 and since I’m nice and avoid confrontation and hide the pissed off quite well, it’s best if I just shut my damn mouth.[/li][/ol]
My internal conversation is, “Is this too much stupid for the masses to handle? No, it most certainly is not. Better post.”
The only reason I’m posting in this thread is to make it perfectly clear that I did not start this thread.
…
No one asked me, specifically. If I have nothing of value to add, there’s no reason to respond. No one will care or notice if I don’t. Unlike a girlfriend, this board won’t get cranky and think that I’m giving it the silent treatment.
If I can’t be bothered to read a thread, I won’t allow myself to post in it. Clearly, I’m not actually that interested.
A lot of the time, I’m just too lazy. Sure, maybe I could research an in-depth answer to this factual inquiry, or chip in with an insightful and eloquent argument in that debate. But half way through writing the post, I’ll get bored, realize that no one is paying me, the post will turn out much stupider than I had planned anyway, and, oh, look over there, flash games and pornography!
On the other hand, sometimes I’ll post too much in a thread, and realize that it’s just time to shut up and walk away. If my name is on more than half the replies in a thread, I’m clearly mostly just talking to myself. And that’s the kind of thing that gets you put in a padded room if you do it too much. So I’ll stop talking, even if I have more to add.
Along the same lines, if I post a few replies in a thread and notice that no one is quoting or responding to me, I’ll figure that I’m not actually part of the conversation, I’m just the weirdo butting in. So I’ll slink away. I did enough of that in high school, so now I try to stop myself.
However: All rules and guidelines go out the window if I see a chance for a cheap joke or a bad pun. But that, obviously, goes without saying. 
As for starting threads, I should really just stop doing it. They very rarely take off.
Of course, going by my posting history, I should really remember to follow my own advice a lot more often than I actually do.
That happens to me all the time. Weird thing is, it always seems to be the same poster. :eek:
I don’t want to out the freak. 
Where? WHERE?