egafd.com

I realise that I'm opening myself up to a potential verbal kicking here, but why do so many forum members seem so incredibly angry all the time?

Do people generally come on here to let off steam and get back to "normal real life" thereafter, or are some peeps in a near constant rage offline, too?

I'm all for full and frank discussion of views and ideas, but why do we often just resort to calling each other (and/or relatively harmless third parties) "cunts", "pricks" or similar.

Are some people forgetting to take their pills?

Hi
I dont know really. But I suspect with some, like Be-Seen-Here, its because not everyone appreciates the beauty of his mind and he finds that frustrating when people disagree with his profound insights.

But I think you need to remember that Karl Marx got very angry with people not agreeing with him all the time, or was it Groucho?

But as I said in my thread that I kicked off, which BSH waded into with a bunch of insults, its usually a release valve. If people used that language with complete strangers down the pub, they would end up getting a pasting. They feel safer to get away with it on the Internet. So in that sense its quite a good service.

Invoice in the post, Mr BSH
Goodnight all
David

Some people aren't used to having their views challenged. It's a well known phenomenon that people with lower social skills probably didn't develop their full range of emotions properly as a child. Thus feelings of annoyance quickly turn to feelings of anger.....as does frustration, fear, embarrassment...etc. Anger, for them, is a sort of 'one-size-fits-all' emotion. They are emotionally incompetent; socially disabled if you prefer.

I feel sorry for the above because it's not really their fault.

On the other hand there are some who just think calling names and being aggressive is funny. Sometimes it can be ? exchanges of banter for instance. Other times it's humour that's not taken as it was intended. Easy to do on a forum.

Of course, not all rudeness can be organised into two neat little groups. Some just get pleasure out of upsetting others. A teenage 'I'll say what I want and I don't give a fuck' attitude that they've never really grown out of. None of us are immune from falling back into this behavioural pattern at times, some just do it more often than others. Why they do it might take us back to my first point about social disability.

Some very pertinent points, Mr Slater. For me, if someone is gratuitously insulting, I tend to go into patronising, wind-up mode as you may perhaps have noticed.
A weakness, I know but I think people, who are so frequently insulting for no other reason than you have a view which they disagree with, need answering in some kind of way that highlights that these insults are just ludicrous and stupid.
But as you rightly say, we have all done it.
Must get down the pub now.

David Johnson: your "wind up" approach has certainly been noted. Indeed, the phrase "hook, line and sinker" has come to mind of late...

Sam Slater: well put. It was the types of issues you mention which prompted me to create this thread. In addition to "social disability", I think there is the (related) issue of "little man" syndrome; bloke may well have problems at home/relationship/at work/financial concerns but is to a greater or lesser extent powerless and/or unwilling to resolve them (or even acknowledge them). Solution? Come on here and spew forth, picking on the usual suspects (ie easy targets) for good measure. In fact, that may well explain about half the circulation of the Daily Mail....

You would think a wank would ease the frustration, though. There are plenty of wankers on here....