Douchebaggery Abound on Other Forums

[sdg3205]

So I'm over on the miata asking questions. Why? Because I know dick all about miatas and I'm doing my research.

It's amazing how some people just can't resist putting new people down and being as condescending as possible.

I mentioned that I was told a body panel was replaced on the car I went to see and this is what someone replied with:

"I may be wrong here but I doubt any repair shop would have drilled out approx 200 spot welds. At that point you would have potential structural and alignment issues since it is a convertible and those quarters are the structural frame of the unibody. They probably cut away the damage and seamed in a patch leaving the surrounding unaffected metal alone. Look inside the trunk for a stepped seam. Sometimes you need to think before posting."

Think before I post?! WTF!!! I don't know how many f-ing spot welds hold quarter panels on a miata!

Anyway I let lose on this guy. I might get banned. Oh well.

[Michael]

Many of these car forums are filled with little immature punks that think they know it all(they usually hold down the front counter at your local parts store as well...adding more confidence to their dream that they are the smartest person in the room). Whenever a young person get granted this "crown" be it by someone else or their own delusion, it goes straight to their head and that's where the immaturity steps in, they don't know how to handle it. They can't wait to show you how much they know. Then the condescending tone comes around, multiply that with the anonymous nature of the internet and presto! You have witnessesed the birth of yet another little troll with a self instilled ego and a bad attitude.

[painterdave72]

My girlfriend owns a 91 miata mx5 and it has had the drivers quarter replaced in the past due to damage.. i just ignore people like that..lol.. if you have any other questions about miatas you can ask me if you like.. they are fairly fun cars and pretty easy to work on..Dave..

[Soundkillr]

If the 1/4 is damaged of course they are going to replace the whole thing. What does he think? They are going to straighten it magically then add 17 paches to the wrinkled areas? *Some body shops may pull it and fill with bondo if the damage is minor but, any decent body shop, actually prefers to replace the entire panel. In the long run its easier for them. The guy is clearly an idiot. Ask him to visit any body shop and look at how rear repairs are made. On many cars windshields are structural to the vehicle as well, but it doesn't mean they can't replace them or there is any more risk than usual. One thing people forget, if the manufacturer builds it, there has to be a way to repair it, or they aren't going to be selling them for long. If the only way to repair a spot welded panel was to patch it, insurance companies would quite insuring cars like that quickly due to hidden/unforeeen safety issues. Spot welding is so common in fact, they even sell spot welders that match brand specific vehicles....

[Mike F]

That stinks. I never understood some peoples' need to be so rude on forums; particularly to new people. Everyone had to start somewhere, why be so rude? Thankfully the people here have always been patient and helpful with me, even through me asking some pretty dumb questions!

Sorry that had to be your first experience in the Miata community. Not sure what forum you were on, but I've found some of the people on miata.net to be very helpful over the years. Of course there are definitely a few "internet tough guys" over there too, but not as many as some other places I've been.

[sdg3205]

Well I didn't get banned. Just called "overly sensitive".

Hahah. Onwards and upwards!

[Kane]

Anyway I let lose on this guy.

let lose? let lose?!?! Geez, McFly, why don't you think before you post. :elmo3:

[sdg3205]

let lose? let lose?!?! Geez, McFly, why don't you think before you post. :elmo3:

Bah! Supreme douchebaggery! I knew I should have thought more! I'm such an IDIOT!! I need an adult!

[jackb]

Link?

[Josh]

Link?

x2 :hihi2:

[Roman Legion]

Thats sadly how forums work. Every time you post, you can always expect some moron to give you shit for smallest things, like asking questions. God forbid someone asks a question, I mean aren't we all experts in everything? I'd try to ignore that guy if I were you, I'm sure someone with a real reply will come along and help you. Also, I agree, I do want to see the link. :yoda:

[sdg3205]

The mod over on miata.net is a really nice guy. He gave me a warning for calling the other guy a douchebag and edited my retort from last night. He also mentioned the guy who originally made the comment is known for stuff like this.

Ill post the link when I get home tonight.

[sdg3205]

http://forum.miata.net/vb/showthread.php?t=523200

[Jonathan]

It's amazing how some people just can't resist putting new people down and being as condescending as possible.

I've seen it happen more than enough times at places outside of forums and the Internet. It can happen at sports leagues (like volleyball, hockey, pool, etc.), taking a new role at work or in a new department or building, sh!t, it can happen when you're the new guy at a poker game.

I think it's similar to the rookie initiation or hazing or whatever. People see the new guy, don't know who he is or what he's all about, and figure they better bust his balls just to test him or something.

Just like you see on the forums, it's not the whole group and it's not with every single guy that walks in the door. Not sure what ends up being the trigger, maybe the guy sees you as a threat and you might be a better pool player, card player, or coworker and he won't feel like kingsh!t anymore.

I'd say the overwhelming majority of the time, the guy doing the ball busting and douchebaggery is just a wee bit insecure about himself. If it's on a forum, the guy can get pretty ignorant when he's full up on keyboard courage. If it's in person, it's likely going to be more subtle. It's amazing though how often you see these little gangs or packs of bullies picking on someone. An insecure schoolyard bully. That's pretty much it.

[Spittybug]

It's a natural phenomena.

Put 2 rats in a box and they coexist. So might 5 or 10. Put in 20 and whether there is a food shortage or not, their behavior changes and they become more aggressive.

Give me a little poetic license here and scale this up to the population of the world. Constantly being bombarded with bad "news" from the pitiful excuse we call the press, rudderless politics (enough on that, this isn't a political thread), state of the economy, the speed of technological change, terrorism fears, fiscal worries, etc, etc, etc... people are stressed! It happens continuously over time and slowly we evolve to handle it. But as the pace of change has accelerated, the pace at which humans adapt hasn't - that's biological.

If you feel like people are ruder, you are correct, they are. Deal with it a-hole! (Just kidding! :neener: )

[Jonathan]

It's a natural phenomena.

Put 2 rats in a box and they coexist. So might 5 or 10. Put in 20 and whether there is a food shortage or not, their behavior changes and they become more aggressive.

Give me a little poetic license here and scale this up to the population of the world. Constantly being bombarded with bad "news" from the pitiful excuse we call the press, rudderless politics (enough on that, this isn't a political thread), state of the economy, the speed of technological change, terrorism fears, fiscal worries, etc, etc, etc... people are stressed! It happens continuously over time and slowly we evolve to handle it. But as the pace of change has accelerated, the pace at which humans adapt hasn't - that's biological.

If you feel like people are ruder, you are correct, they are. Deal with it a-hole! (Just kidding! :neener: )

Good call, Owen. I think you pretty much hit the nail on the head.

To me, in a silly and nostalgic way, it can be tied back to a suggestion Ferris Bueller was trying to give us... stop and look around once in a while. We've gotten ourselves so addicted to this fast paced life that it is for this very reason that we can't afford to slow down. If you told me that a main contributor for the outlets of rage and frustration we're seeing nowadays, like on the road, in line at the coffee shop, on the Internet or at car shows, was coming as a result of the stress and pressures of this era we're in, you wouldn't have to convince me.

Quick! ...get me some banana peels and half empty cans of Miller Lite :)

[sdg3205]

Jonathan, that was "so choice!"

[DMCMW Dave]

---If you told me that a main contributor for the outlets of rage and frustration we're seeing nowadays, like on the road, in line at the coffee shop, on the Internet or at car shows, was coming as a result of the stress and pressures of this era we're in, you wouldn't have to convince me.



OR WalMart on the day after Thanksgiving for another example. . . .

[Dangermouse]

"Douchebaggery" is a great word.

[Jonathan]

"Douchebaggery" is a great word.

I'm pretty sure it's a new character in the next JRR Tolkien saga, lol.

Now get out of my way... there are half priced digital cameras in the surprise bin on aisle 5!!!

[eagle-co94]

I had a run-in with a mod on a Challenger forum. He deleted all my posts made in a 24 hour period, accusing me of running up my post count. It was partly true because you can't list items for sale until you have a post count of 50...but I was actually making legit responses to people with tech problems. I called out the very same mod for his posts in the same threads I posted in in which he'd say "welcome to the forum" and completely ignore a new members request for help with their car. Needless to say he got his panties in a twist and banned me...for life. I have to laugh about it because I envisioned the guy looking a lot like a mix of Hilter and Napoleon.

I've run into members on other forums that think their post count is supposed to show their level of knowledge on that particular car. In my experience if you've got 9000+ posts you're doing a lot more talking than actual wrenching and driving. There's a lot of internet tough-guys that always have to have the last word.

[Michael]

In my experience if you've got 9000+ posts you're doing a lot more talking than actual wrenching and driving.

Tell me about it, these Talk members with post counts above 1,600 really need to get a life. Especially the ones that post like 3-4 times late Saturday nights...those guys are losers.

[Josh]

Tell me about it, these Talk members with post counts above 1,600 really need to get a life. Especially the ones that post like 3-4 times late Saturday nights...those guys are losers.

hehe

[GS450-Junkie]

It happens quite a bit on our forum too. I don't post much anymore when it comes to projects I'm working on because It often brings nothing but criticism and arguing. :-) I'm now just happy to post and reply to random threads like this one....

[Soundkillr]

This is true, and I feel the same way. Its a lot better than it was, but still happens. Fortunatly most of the worst offenders have been banned and went on to start their own club....

[Jonathan]

Personally, I think most of what we see in society is all very much entangled together. While there isn't just one simple thing we change or fix and like magic it all gets better, we can understand pieces and try to work away at one aspect at a time, knowing it can help change the bigger picture. What's that expression? "You might not be able to change the whole world, but being kind to one person might make a big difference in their world."

This article was in the paper the other day. It was written by a BC author, but is applicable in many other areas. They mention part way through it about how a particular researcher has "seen a movement away from showing concern for others." When you witness the "douchebaggery" out there or the rudeness or the hit and run accidents (which are finding their way into way too many threads... eek!), you can see how there are likely a ton of reasons why it is happening and not just a single reason.

This article is good, if you have the means, I highly recommend checking it out...

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/life-of-solitude-a-loneliness-crisis-is-looming/article15573187/?page=all

[vwdmc16]

I wont even go back on the Aircooled VW site Thesamba.com, there are so many dicks just there to troll newbies. granted there are alot of repeated basic questions on the fourms, mostly a teen gear head gets his first beetle and wants to make it faster and asks such a basic question like you do I turbo my bug or make a 300hp engine? There are so many more specifics needed to answer that which are totally and completely answered in the site's many stickies and build threads but nobody even bothers to search. Mostly because the site has so many thousands of threads with a horrible search engine.

There are also some old timers there with 20k+ posts, its nuts! Granted there is alot to talk about with possibly the largest car community on the planet with millions and millions of cars and am enormous aftermarket ( that only recently has begun to improve from the horrendous chinese crap that flodded it)

Overall DMCtalk is teh best forum Ive ever joined! thanks guys for not being dicks!

[DMCVegas]

I'm pretty sure it's a new character in the next JRR Tolkien saga, lol.

http://www.tshirthell.com/shirts/products/a1391/a1391.gif

Yeah, as a pro-am Troll, I'm semi-retired. Though I can to a certain extent understand how getting asked the same questions over and over again can get on one's nerves and make you snappy. Now, having said that, this is where the extent of my understanding ends. If it's that way for you that you've reached that point, just let go ya dick. Let the other up and comers answer the questions and become mentors themselves.