Why are 99% of the people on this forum seemingly incapable of having a civilized argument?

[DocSwag]

I just wanted to put this out there, so here I go:

 

It seems to me that whenever an argument happens on the Internet, it always, always turns into a flame war. Very rarely have I ever seen a civilized argument on this forum. Nearly everytime it always turns into a flame war with one person calling the other guy an idiot and saying stuff like "Why don't you get your facts before trying to make arguments that have nothing to back them up." And then the guy who was flamed at shoots back at them and proves them wrong and calls them an idiot and says the same thing back at them. And I'll admit, I'm guilty of this but now I think I'll try to change for the better and stop trying to start/continue flame wars.

 

So why is this happening? Well I'm guessing it's probably because of the Internet. The Internet lets us have a conversation with someone even if they're not face-to-face with you. This is both a good and bad thing-the good part is that it lets you communicate with others no matter how far apart you are; the bad apart is you lose all the politeness and you become very uncivilized whenever an argument starts. Because you're not face-to-face with that person, you lose all your politeness and become an uncivilized monster capable of saying mean things that you normally wouldn't say. This is also why cyber-bullying is such a big problem.

 

The only people that I have seen on this forum that seem capable of having an argument without turning it into a flame war are mods. I guess there's a reason why they're mods-mods are those people that are capable of having a civilized conversation even when they aren't face-to-face with the person they're arguing with.

 

So what am I saying? Stop becoming uncivilized people every time you start or get involved in an argument. Become civilized people. Don't start flame wars. Start being a human again.

 

Also, use happy emoji! They're there for a reason and I feel like they always make your comment so much brighter whenever you use them!  

 

Thanks for reading, and hopefully you or whoever you might send this to gets something out of this!

[mathmeister]

People are already less restrained on the internet and adding an argument to that won't end well. It makes a difference if it's something they are very passionate about but it's really just the fact that there's no consequences past a temporary ban on a forum.

[ComradeVodka]

It's one of the reasons why I'm already tempted to leave. It's 100% impossible for civilized discussions to take place here. 

 

Another reason is the sheer amount of wrongfully given answers passed on an irrefutable truth. And when you prove them wrong they simply refuse to budge and admit their faults

[Kinda Bottlenecked]

Nah....

[Hunter259]

I've seen a lot of people who just refuse facts constantly on here or will argue their side way too hard. Not something I expected from this site but its the internet.

[Megahurt]

I think it's rather because people focus too much on conclusions rather than on the arguments. Faced with the same arguments, different people will come with different conclusions. Different conclusions can be equally valid based on what a person values most.

[theninja35]

I've had many civil debates both here and on other websites or apps. The best way to avoid a flame war is by pulling out of the argument once it starts to get hot.

[DocSwag]

2 minutes ago, ComradeVodka said:

It's one of the reasons why I'm already tempted to leave. It's 100% impossible for civilized discussions to take place here. 

 

Another reason is the sheer amount of wrongfully given answers passed on an irrefutable truth. And when you prove them wrong they simply refuse to budge and admit their faults

Problem is, I can't think of anywhere on the Internet where there are civilized conversations....

[ComradeVodka]

1 minute ago, DocSwag said:

Problem is, I can't think of anywhere on the Internet where there are civilized conversations....

Such forums actually exist. However you should not search for a forum with only civilized conversation, rather for one that has the bare minimum of them

[Oshino Shinobu]

There are those around who can have a disagreement without resorting to insults and swearing. Quite a few of them end up as moderators, as it's a desirable trait for moderators to have. 

 

Quite a bit of the community is young, so some may still be in a more immature mind set than other members. It also depends what sub-forum you're in. Some of the less active subforums are more likely to have arguments/debates without the insulting. If you're in a very active place like the GPU sub-forum, it's less likely. 

[DocSwag]

3 minutes ago, theninja35 said:

I've had many civil debates both here and on other websites or apps. The best way to avoid a flame war is by pulling out of the argument once it starts to get hot.

Really? I never seem to find any

 

Maybe it's because of the sub forums we hang out on....I've seen a lot of AMD vs Intel or AMD vs Nvidia flame wars

[Enderman]

yeah

most of the time now I just dont reply and go somewhere else

[awesomeness10120]

Disagreements are what should lead to arguments and not lead to attacks or fights. For example, an argument between, say, an atheist and a Catholic apologist would go nowhere if one or both attacks the other aggressively.

[vorticalbox]

Discussion != Argument. 

[paddy-stone]

I'm with @Enderman, if the conversations start to get heated, move on... call the other guy an idiot in your head if you like, but don't escalate the argument, try to have a reasoned debate instead. I've been a moderator on several websites and have had to restrain myself from escalating things sometimes... I can be a very angry individual at times, but it's not worth it to get angry and continue flaming each other... sometimes that's what the other guy wants. We all have our own opinions and experiences, so sometimes you can both actually be correct as it's how you came to your conclusion, but the journey may have been different.. so without hearing the rest of someones argument you wouldn't know that you were both actually in the same place.

[iCrushDreams]

No! You're wrong! You're an idiot! Get your facts before you blindly accuse me of having uncivilized arguments!

 

/s

[Okjoek]

By complaining about a "toxic" community, then leaving, I feel it's only contributing to the negativity. Be an example and make the community a nicer place to be for atleast those who you interact with.

[jd-mitchell]

Sadly it isn't just here. I've seen it on Dodge truck forums. I know I;m overstating the obvious.

[Guest]

DON'T TELL ME HOW TO LIVE MY LIFE! 

 

jk i get what you mean, i rarely do it though.

 

maybe if someone has some stuff wrong i try to correct them but i don't talk crap to them.

[airdeano]

no one likes to be told they're wrong.

 

so instead of sticking to the original issue, let's pour some salt into the conversation and construed a new off-topic issue they feel they can win, but ignore the initial issue was the facts did not support their position. so then a can of name-calling is opened and much poop-slinging, reports are made, and they still involve themselves to no end and gripe that they got warning points, when all that should have been done is walk away to something else.

 

we can have discussions, leave the arguments at the front door or your home.

[WkdPaul]

1 hour ago, DocSwag said:

*snip*

 

SciShow just made an interesting video about something similar, worth watching IMO.

 

 

[stconquest]

23 minutes ago, airdeano said:

--

 

we can have discussions, leave the arguments at the front door or your home.

I can't believe you are promoting domestic abuse, what is wrong with you? 

[Briggsy]

Those who are trying to have a civil discussion often end up stating beliefs, feelings, facts or ideas that disagree with someone else's feelings, opinion, beliefs or what they think is fact. It's not always trolling when you provoke someone else, but if you express your opinion openly you will provoke someone.

 

It doesn't help that people attach their identity to a company or a product. That just makes someone impossible not to provoke in a discussion that they feel is about them.

[airdeano]

6 minutes ago, stconquest said:

I can't believe you are promoting domestic abuse, what is wrong with you? 

and this is how it all starts.. making off-topic quips with no basis, or attempt to stay on topic.

 

side note: bringing the hostility from home to the forums is not our promotion, but a personal issue that needs professional attention.

if discussion on these forums develops into domestic abuse, again professional guidance is needed.

[stconquest]

4 minutes ago, airdeano said:

and this is how it all starts.. making off-topic quips with no basis, or attempt to stay on topic.

 

side note: bringing the hostility from home to the forums is not our promotion, but a personal issue that needs professional attention.

if discussion on these forums develops into domestic abuse, again professional guidance is needed.

...it was a joke.  I apologize.  I can be serious.

 

I actually appreciate being proven wrong.  It sometimes takes a while for me to get there, but I do appreciate it.

 

I like being right more though.