I don't know if the Nevaeh thread was a turning point. Maybe. I think her thread happened to be during a time when it was very ugly and nasty here. Personal attacks were out of control and I think MT lost a lot of respect through it all. A lot of good people dropped off and I'll be willing to bet a lot of new good people avoided joining. I'm not sure MT has completely regrouped after all that. That time is like a big elephant in the room that may or may not be dead.
But, I WILL give the political crap a huge HIGH FIVE for why people may be not be participating. The same names chasing the same arguments round and round just doesn't invite conversation.
As for Fuzz being a good boy? Hmmmm. Now, THERE'S an elephant that may or may not be dead!
I think the Nevaeh thread is an anomaly that really means not much in the long term. The personal attacks in that topic were so far over the top that nothing can compare. How many regular members were reported over and over and BANNED. I know Fuzz and Fluffy were, and probably others. It was gang up on someone and if they tried to respond they were reported until dead. Frankly, it was sick. I blocked the topic and it stayed that way. It was an easy thing to do and anyone can. Since every post you have made in this topic has complained of the politics topic, I suggest you just block it and only get other topics.
As far as “good people that did not join” I disagree. The topic died down is all. They were here for one flavor and when that flavor became stale they left for a new flavor.
Many years ago I was just a reader. I read the topics and was discouraged that the politics topic was always of 7 or so regular posters doing personal attacks on FF (who responded in kind). It was not “discussion” but rather always “pile on FF”. My point is that it hasn’t gotten worse, just changed some. However, the one thing that is certain, without the politics topic MT is very tiny. There just are not the posts to keep people coming back. One day the past week I looked in toward evening and there were maybe 5 posts; for the entire day. If people came here and could see 3 or 4 days of accumulated posts in “recent” they would not bother coming back.
Starting new topics is another I find interesting and have watched. BRD starts a lot of topics and they are good reads. He usually gets a high “read” count, and few, if any, responses. Why is it that way? My personal guess is that people read and agree, and therefore there is no compulsion to respond.
Politics is very far down on my personal list. My first love is writing, closely followed by reading. I spend a part of each day reading and learning. It is just as much a need as is eating to me. However, that said, a great deal of my time is devoted to my family. My daughter is soon to graduate from Eastern and I have spent many hours helping her, sometimes with understanding, and sometimes just by being there. I take care of my autistic grandson and with his mother and I spend a great deal of thought, study, and discussion working at some new problem to adapt to or find a way to correct. So, parenting, autism, and family are always top of the list. Those topics are always going to get my first listen. I am primary the cook (usually the only one), and sometimes the recipes are nice, but to be honest I shy from them because it is just a reminder of the burden of coming up with dinner again.
I guess my point is that all of those topics I prefer, but if there is a post, it is generally a read it one, and not something to comment on; whether that is my post, or someone else’s.
What I think would be good for MT is to post articles here instead of just a teaser at the news site, the whole article and let that generate talk. People respond at the news site and on FB, but if it was here there might be a renewed interest in other kinds of posts as well.
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Topic: MEN Downsizing: Future of MT? (Read 2984 times)
