Why do think people start fighting in the forums?

[Guest kuroinuyoukai]

I was reading another thread here and wondered to myself why was it that people asked for opinions and started fights when they got what they asked for?

Why do people start fights here? Yes, I am asking for opinions. Serious ones..not the because they're stupid sort of thing,please..

My opinion is that some people ask for opinions and really don't want them. They will do whatever no matter what anyone advises. I personally advoid the threads where there is so much hostility. I have missed a couple of posts that way.

[B][U]By the way, I beg the mods if a fight breaks out in this thread feel free to kill it.I hate all this fighting between members and don't want my thread to be a new battleground.[/U][/B]

[Outlaw]

[SIZE=2][FONT=Lucida Sans Unicode]I think that it's mainly because it's the safest place for people to experess their opinion's and start the arguements fights they wish they could in real life. Without the risk of someone actually knowing who you are, you're free to express your mind without risk of serious retaliation. Hell, whats the worst you could get here? An angry personal message or a banning? Emails can be deleted and new accounts can be made. But in real life, you run the risk of making a real enemy. Hell, you piss someone off too much, they could kick your ***.[/FONT][/SIZE]

[Guest kuroinuyoukai]

[quote name='Outlaw][SIZE=2][FONT=Lucida Sans Unicode]I think that it's mainly because it's the safest place for people to experess their opinion's and start the arguements fights they wish they could in real life. Without the risk of someone actually knowing who you are, you're free to express your mind without risk of serious retaliation. Hell, whats the worst you could get here? An angry personal message or a banning? Emails can be deleted and new accounts can be made. But in real life, you run the risk of making a real enemy. Hell, you piss someone off too much, they could kick your ***.[/FONT'][/SIZE][/quote]

Good point. I don't mind opinions or anything. I just don't understand why some people get their panties in a bunch over it. I mean they are just opinions. That's true you could just start over if you wanted..Well I thank you for your opinion, Outlaw.

I guess I was asking about people that go into threads and stir up crap on purpose. I really that people will argue-but come on are you that bored? Thanks Doukeshi for helping me think what I was trying to say.
Everyone has had very good opininons and thanks for posting!

[AzureWolf]

[COLOR=teal]Well, in all honestly, any discussions or debates you do online are pointless, and absolutley of no value to any person. When someone steps out of a discussion panel online, they are still the same person. If you go to a real discussion panel, really get into it and challenge yourself, then you'll walk out changed.

So there's no fun if there's no flaming going on. You already know what the opposing side is going to say, because IRL, you've heard those arguments before, and not only have you heard them before, but they've also been presented better.

The real fun of online forums lies in playing Devil's Advocate and making arguments in a blunt, direct manner with no fluff to soften blows, then watch reactions. When I show my friends online discussions, the only ones they light up on are the ones where flaming occurs and the most hilarious of responses are made.

Long story short, people start fighting on the forums for entertainment purposes.[/COLOR]

[Pumpkin]

[quote name='kuroinuyoukai']Good point. I don't mind opinions or anything. I just don't understand why some people get their panties in a bunch over it. I mean they are just opinions. That's true you could just start over if you wanted..Well I thank you for your opinion, Outlaw.[/quote][COLOR=#663300][FONT=Trebuchet MS]Well people have things called a temper and when someone loses their temper, well we all know what happens. Fact is, not everything is going to be all fine and dandy and there is always going to be someone that is going to lose it. It's best to just move on and not let it get to you.

It would be nice if everyone learned to accept and appreciate someone else's opinion but thats just not what always works. Flame wars will sadly always be around and frankly it would be kind of boring without atleast some confrontation right? People always say they hate drama but life without atleast some drama life is shall we say boring? I agree with AzureWolf however, most of its for entertainment purposes. [/COLOR][/FONT]

[TheShinje]

[size=1][color=crimson]
Interestingly, most of OB's controversial threads are littered with restraint and reasoned argument, it's probably one of the few places online I can share an opinion on something without being blown to bits for it.
When you get someone who takes your objection to their views as a personal attack , you get problems. If people were able to be 100% objective and emotionally removed from the discussion, then their wouldn't be slides into flaming.

I'm just happy that the ratio of controversail threads that actually do descend into fights or flame wars is relatively small here.[/size][/color]

[renayiiq]

Personally, I just don't like other peoples' opinions. I mean, I asked for advice on how to do something, not whether or not someone thinks I'm a whiny brat. I stated that if they wanted to give me an opinion to PM me, so they should've just PM'd me instead, but they didn't. Maybe I should've made the text a bit bigger or a different color on that part, but if they didn't read it right, that's not my fault.

[Doukeshi]

[SIZE=1]It depends how you define 'fighting'. In some opinions, a heated debate is considered as fighting, whereas I just view it as a strong comparison of views. I honestly like reading contraversial threads just to see who is going to preach just a little too much and a full blown argument take place.

As Azure Wolf said, its all for entertainment purposes.

People who go around specifically baiting people until they react, however, are not entertaining. There is a difference between subject generated argument/debate and just plain flaming. There are some people out there who go into threads, specifically to annoy people just for poops and giggles, 'cause some people are like that.

We can't all just get along, thats not human nature. Conflict makes the world go round and to be honest, I wouldn't have it any other way ^_~. [/SIZE]

[Fyxe]

[color=slategray][size=1]As AzureWolf said... people do it for entertainment. I mean, a lot of people join forums just to try and piss people off. They'll see how fast they can get banned, see how many people they can make mad, see those people's replies, then laugh. It's something people will do if they are bored one afternoon. Etc.

Or, some people will be looking for a particular opinion when they ask for one... and if they don't get the advice/answer/opinion they wanted... they lash out at that person. People's minds work in odd ways.[/color][/size]

[Kei]

[quote name='renayiiq']Maybe I should've made the text a bit bigger or a different color on that part, but if they didn't read it right, that's not my fault.[/quote]

[color=darkblue][size=1]All that would have done was make you look childish. As was said somewhere else, when you post something, someone will always post their opinion, whether or not it meets your personal expectations of acceptableness or not. Even if they would have sent you their opinions through PM, I seriously doubt that the result would have been any different, as you seem very strong-willed about your beliefs.

Anywho, on the subject at hand, as people have been saying, it may stem from the fact they want entertainement, but there are those that "pick fights" because they want to prove their point; they have beliefs and they want to make sure that everyone knows them. If they don't agree after that, they're just an idiot (which is what most flamefests boil down to, though some of our most famous ones did put it more eloquently.)[/size][/color]

[IceWolfEyes]

I have a tendency to agree with most- if not all-that has been posted thus far.

Some folks fight for the entertainment value, grab a coke and some popcorn and watch the feathers fly!

Others for attention. Oh, my gawd, they're like, talking to me!

Some out of ignorance. I think I know what I'm talking about, even though I've never done any research on said topic.

Out of arrogance: I know what you feel, and it's not as big a deal as you think it is (I know this, so you can't possibly).

And some really do want your opinion, as long as it happens to agree with their own decided course of action.

There are a select few who start debates not to irritate, but to learn. Unfortunately there are so many of the other types that these few are over-shouted by the mob.

Well, there ya go. Which are you?

[Guest kuroinuyoukai]

[QUOTE=IceWolfEyes]I have a tendency to agree with most- if not all-that has been posted thus far.

Some folks fight for the entertainment value, grab a coke and some popcorn and watch the feathers fly!

Others for attention. Oh, my gawd, they're like, talking to me!

Some out of ignorance. I think I know what I'm talking about, even though I've never done any research on said topic.

Out of arrogance: I know what you feel, and it's not as big a deal as you think it is (I know this, so you can't possibly).

And some really do want your opinion, as long as it happens to agree with their own decided course of action.

There are a select few who start debates not to irritate, but to learn. Unfortunately there are so many of the other types that these few are over-shouted by the mob.

Well, there ya go. Which are you?[/QUOTE]

Well personally I usually start threads to get to know everybody. So I guess I post to learn. I don't want to start fights with anybody. I am kinda laid back. So I usually don't mind being corrected. I just don't appreciate being flamed if I am wrong. [U]Calling some one a n00bie or idiot only makes things worse, in my opinion.[/U]

[Annie]

[font=tahoma]It's tough to argue/debate in a forum because of the fact that you can't get a voice, a physical voice. There's no way to tell if someone's being a jerk, as opposed to being serious and civil. So, I may say "I really don't like cheese. At all." and some cheese lover out there could take my statement as being really offensive. There's absolutely no real way to defend whether you were being civil or attacking someone. That's mainly what starts fights--people take things too personally.

Now, there are times when you can tell someone's attacking you. It's just that you have to keep in mind that this is just the internet--even I have a hard time remembering that. Especially, when I'm in a debate with a newer member to the OB. I can usually tell when, say, Brasil is actually arguing because I've known him for a good long while now. That goes for all the older members that I know, and "grew up" with here. But if kuro came at me with a debate, I wouldn't have any idea whether kuro was being resentful or wanting a good, clean debate; because I don't know kuro.
[/font]

[visualkei]

I don't think I've really seen the kind of flaming that you might be talking about, but I have seen or been in some online arguments. Really, I don't like arguments, and try to see the other person's perspective when someone says something differently than I think. I try to confirm why they think differently, and most importantly give reasons for my opinions.

The trouble usually starts when the other person is [B]dogmatic [/B]about [B]making [/B]me agree with their point and entirely dismiss my points and reasoning. I think that's when a lot of flaming goes on, either one of the people or both of them won't recognize or put down the other's opinions. I hate it when it's the "you're entirely wrong, and I am right" attitude. [B]IceWolfEyes[/B] mentions arrogance-- I find that more annoying than ignorance.

Putting down or making other people feel stupid for their opinons is pretty mean. For all you know someone might have not put a lot of thought into what they've said, after all it is online, and some people don't write seriously. Not only that, but because it's all written words, sometimes you might read comments as having an attitude. :animesigh

[James]

[font=franklin gothic medium]I think that whenever people disagree about anything, they will either do so in a courteous way or they will get into low-blows. The latter usually happens because people either get upset about something or they feel that they are losing a debate, lol.

Either way, it all comes down to basic immaturity or lack of courtesy. I may disagree with someone and even attack their arguments, but I'm not going to stand there and level really personal comments at those people. That's something which, even on a forum, really tends to lower my regard for the people who do it. And in general it's just not necessary.

One thing that does annoy me, though, is that sometimes people are far too touchy about what is and isn't an argument. If someone is quoting comments and having a debate, that in and of itself doesn't warrant a thread closure. Are we so sensitive that we can't actually seriously debate a topic? Of course personal insults and wildly off-topic stuff wouldn't be welcome, but I think people often mis-represent a legitimate debate as an "argument", implying that it shouldn't be happening.

I mean, some people really knock the idea of quoting the points of someone's argument. But what's better? Quoting specific points and responding to them, or quoting an entire post and vaguely responding in an imprecise way? Or worse yet, not even addressing someone's post at all?

If I am taking the time to respond to someone's specific points, I think they should view that as a mark of respect - afterall, I wouldn't waste my time doing that unless I really wanted to have a discussion. But instead I think that tends to be viewed as an "attack" or something...which is pretty short-sighted and unwarranted, in my view.[/font]

[Semjaza]

My problem with the whole picking apart posts into several quotes thing is that oftentimes the point of the post overall is lost. Instead you wind up with a bunch of little responses to single bits and pieces. No one can ever respond well to that because then they suddenly have to re-explain everything that was questioned, regardless of whether or not the entire post as a whole contained answers to those questions or not. If that even makes sense...

That's now how it always is, but it happens enough here and elsewhere lol.

Honestly, a lot of what is considered a "fight" is not something that would bother people elsewhere. With the way this place is focused, disagreeing strongly is perceived as a "flaming" or whatever by a good deal of people here. Maybe this place is too sensitive, I don't know. I do know that I have to word some things better, myself.

For some of the worst stuff, who knows. Maybe the people are just unhappy in general and take it out on others. Maybe they just get off on being mean. Maybe they just disagree so strongly that they don't check themselves at all. Maybe they don't mean to sound like that at all and it just comes off really badly. I suppose there's a million reasons.

[James]

[font=franklin gothic medium]I think I just don't view it as question and answer, so to speak...I view it as a fluid back-and-forth. The only time I really dislike the point-by-point responses is when they fail to be point-by-point. By that I mean, people respond to things that may not contain a relevant point, which probably confuses the thread. But I'd rather that someone respond to my general points, as opposed to simply writing a couple of sentences in response to my overall post.

I think the problem is more misinterpretation or irrelevant comments, versus point-by-point responses. But then again, it does come down to the individual. I've seen some point-by-point responses that have only served to further confuse the discussion. But then again, I guess that's unavoidable in general no matter what you do.

I do agree about what is considered a fight, particularly. Sometimes when people simply disagree, it gets taken very seriously. But on other sites (including higher quality forums), people seem to be able to have far more "serious" debates without it necessarily degenerating into name-calling. Maybe it's just an age thing, I don't know. Anyway, just a few further thoughts. ~_^[/font]

[XxmoraiNAKIxX]

I think it's because peopel just dont accept other ppl's point of view and just so self -centered on their own way of thinking. i think it's just stupid.

[IceRose]

People as XxmoraiNAKIxX said, do not accept other people's points of view. Every time I see someone who is about to start an argument with me I just don't post anymore to avoid fights, I don't like fights and I don't like imposing my point of view on other people but yeah going back to topic some of the people are either bratty or looking for a fight or they had just been misunderstood by the person.

[2010DigitalBoy]

[COLOR=Purple]Usually it's because someone will explicitly ask that they not get a certain thing (i.e. help, opinions, critisicm, etc.) and thats exactly what they get. (Sorry if this has already been said, I didn't read back)[/COLOR]

[Gavin]

[SIZE=1]Interesting, most interesting.

I find personally, as Shinji pointed out earlier in the thread that the vast majority of the debates and arguments here on OtakuBoards are generally quite reserved and in fairness are a lot of fun to be involved in. Being one of the few infamous members who actively debates here on OB, I've only ever found that things spiral out of control is when people start to make retorts personal. Such "controversial" threads as Gay Marriage and the like often lead to more heated arguments because the two sides are split no middle ground, there's not really any compromise.

When stuff starts to get personal it ruins the fun of the debate, I know some of you will wonder how there's any fun in arguing with someone else over what you consider to be right, but just ask Alex and he'll agree with me. The thrill of getting verbally sparring against someone else is definitely one of the more entertaining aspects of the Lounge, again some may see it as simple fighting but as Annie said older members are able to distinguish between attacks and just retorts.

I think fighting starts when people aren't willing to continue debating against those on the opposite side, and only through childish insults can they try and end the argument. I recall a particular member, who shall remain nameless at this time, though many of you will know who I'm talking about, who would simply label anyone who didn't agree with them as a bigot. Then of course fighting starts when something is taken the wrong way or twisted as an insult and you can't stop people from taking it personally but thankfully this is rare.

Overall actually I think OB has much more mature debates than other forums, where people can voice their opinions without being flamed for it. [/SIZE]