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Has Phatmass Changed, Or Have I?


Gabriela

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friends, its a cycle. someone posts one of these "phatmass, you've changed!!?!11" threads every cycle. 

 

An dat' awright mon. S'all part o da circle a life. phatmass

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hmmm.... if there are actual personal attacks going on, feel free to report them... we have some annoying opinions around here but I don't see personal attacks much myself... just sometimes hard headed people on any given side sometimes who don't seem to be listening at all to the other side sometimes (but that always happens)... anyway, I wonder what this is specifically about... we're generally taking a hands off moderator approach as much as possible these days, but we are interested in hearing anything that seems like a personal attack.

 

but anyway, we want people who aren't Catholic at all to be here and to say interesting opposition points of view, they're absolutely welcome to be here and to say things that we vehemently disagree with, of course personal attacks aren't allowed but neither are they required to agree with us even when we think it'd be reasonable for them to do so lol... I have always found it strange when people get on our non-Catholic posters asking them why they bother sticking around if they're so non-Catholic... we're not supposed to be some isolated only-Catholics-allowed board here, we honestly don't have nearly enough non-Catholic posters actually... the glory days of Phatmass IMHO were when there were real debates with real protestants saying things we really disagreed with.

 

If that is glory, well, I'll be in the lame board. ;)

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And... a lot of people are back in school.... or entered religious life... or got married/engaged... or.... yup, otherwise busy.

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hmmm... so it should be only-Catholic-opinions-allowed?  O.o  I mean, people shouldn't be disrespectful, obviously, but we should be open to the posting of opposing points of view, and we should be happy to have the company of non-Catholics who disagree with us so that we can have a discussion with them and do our best to share our faith!... really only places like Transmundane Lane and Vocation Station are meant to be Catholic-view-only no arguments allowed, everything else should be like real life, Catholics and their non-Catholic friends hanging out and discussing topics even though they have vastly different opinions.

 

“It is not merely true that a creed unites men. Nay, a difference of creed unites men – so long as it is a clear difference. A boundary unites. Many a magnanimous Moslem and chivalrous Crusader must have been nearer to each other, because they were both dogmatists, than any two agnostics. “I say God is One,” and “I say God is One but also Three,” that is the beginning of a good quarrelsome, manly friendship.” -G.K. Chesterton

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Tab'le De'Bah-Rye

hmmm... so it should be only-Catholic-opinions-allowed?  O.o  I mean, people shouldn't be disrespectful, obviously, but we should be open to the posting of opposing points of view, and we should be happy to have the company of non-Catholics who disagree with us so that we can have a discussion with them and do our best to share our faith!... really only places like Transmundane Lane and Vocation Station are meant to be Catholic-view-only no arguments allowed, everything else should be like real life, Catholics and their non-Catholic friends hanging out and discussing topics even though they have vastly different opinions.

 

“It is not merely true that a creed unites men. Nay, a difference of creed unites men – so long as it is a clear difference. A boundary unites. Many a magnanimous Moslem and chivalrous Crusader must have been nearer to each other, because they were both dogmatists, than any two agnostics. “I say God is One,” and “I say God is One but also Three,” that is the beginning of a good quarrelsome, manly friendship.” -G.K. Chesterton

 

 

I think the remarks are coming from catholics to catholics here and has nothing to do with non catholics. I have experienced what i would class as mockery,sarcasm and antagonism and made it clear i don't like to be antagonized or mocked sarcastically, even if you think your playing, but i am not experiencing it at present from the offenders, which i appreciate and feel the peoples whom was doing this to me understand not to do it to me now or have just given up. alleluia. If you don't like something someone is doing than tell them it is not judging it is just an opinion, honesty is the best policy but it doesn't always make us right,so as long as we understand this that we could actually have the wrong view also or only, things smooth out in discussions or debates.

 

P.s. Where taught in this modern west to be so sure of ourselves which can be dangerous, i don't know is actually a positive affirmation that opens us up to learning the truth.

Edited by Tab'le Du'Bah-Rye
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well sarcasm has been on phatmass for a long time, sometimes it does go overboard but sometimes we just need a thick skin towards it, and try not to let it rustle our jimmies.  I understand how it can seem insulting, though to be honest sometimes, table, your posts were very difficult to understand and people were responding with humor simply because they didn't understand you, but your posts have gotten more readable lately.

 

I'm more interested in how we welcome non-Catholic opinions, along the lines of this quote by Pope Francis:

 

"When the Church is self-referential, inadvertently, she believes she has her own light; she ceases to be the mysterium lunae and gives way to that very serious evil, spiritual worldliness. It lives to give glory only to one another." -Pope Francis

 

IMO this is what makes phatmass boring, when it becomes a self-referential echo chamber... we need more people with different opinions than ours to be here.

 

anyway, I don't know to what in particular the OP or some of the other posts were referring... disagreements on the internet are generally annoying, but the few non-Catholics that we do have on here I'm happy to have here.  I hope no one feels that I've jumped on anyone's ship here though, feel free to disagree with me!  I generally try to be cordial to people... I might have some inklings of some of the things people might be annoyed about, there have been things I've been annoyed at too, perhaps you could PM me or another mod about things you're concerned about maybe, because you shouldn't really feel like you can't express your opinions freely here, either, of course

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Basilisa Marie

I don't think the problem is allowing or not allowing Catholic-only opinions.  I think the problem is that some of us (myself included) get so...wrapped up?...in some "discussions" that I think we scare people off. So while at some times a few angry threads were just a part of the general group of things and other people were posting, now fewer people are posting other things and so the angry threads stand out more.  

 

That and, ya know, the whole cycle thing. 

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Tab'le De'Bah-Rye

I don't think the problem is allowing or not allowing Catholic-only opinions.  I think the problem is that some of us (myself included) get so...wrapped up?...in some "discussions" that I think we scare people off. So while at some times a few angry threads were just a part of the general group of things and other people were posting, now fewer people are posting other things and so the angry threads stand out more.  

 

That and, ya know, the whole cycle thing. 

 

 

Someone told me once that if you have a white sheet with one black spot, everyone can see the black spot and sometimes forget the rest of the white sheet. :) something like that anyway.

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AccountDeleted

I don't think the problem is allowing or not allowing Catholic-only opinions.  I think the problem is that some of us (myself included) get so...wrapped up?...in some "discussions" that I think we scare people off. So while at some times a few angry threads were just a part of the general group of things and other people were posting, now fewer people are posting other things and so the angry threads stand out more.  

 

That and, ya know, the whole cycle thing. 

 

 

Things do seem to go in waves. For awhile, a lot of people might get very involved in a discussion but when things start to go south, it gets less appealing to keep posting. I used to take breaks from phatmass, but now I tend to read a lot and post less than I used to. That way I can avoid hostility and personal attacks, and keep myself from getting too upset and responding in ways that aren't particularly charitable myself.

 

But on the other hand, I do think phatmass has changed over the years too. As some people leave (especially on VS where people enter religious life) - others come, and so the culture changes as the people change. It can take awhile for relationships to develop and strengthen perhaps.

 

Every now and again though, a really good thread will get started and turn into a tennis match, with lots of friendly volleying back and forth - now that's something fun to experience! Those threads kind of make up for the ones that turn into flame wars. :)

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We're in a slow cycle, real life has intruded for many (I'd not be posting right now if my chair would get a draft of my diss. back) and there are weddings being planned and losses mourned.  Plus those who are active are mainly posting highly polarizing political issues, almost to the extent you'd expect during silly season the elections, which always deadens posting in Open Mic.  A lot of pholks, self included, may try to talk for a bit in them before going, "you know what? I have better things to do than argue on the internet where no one changes their mind on this sort of thing."

 

 

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This thread reminds me of...

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8TnhNxKNlU[/youtube]

 

Old Phatmass vs. New Phatmass:

 

http://youtu.be/enb9WaYOBOU

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