Consider banning politics

Started by bwv 1080, February 07, 2019, 04:24:24 AM

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bwv 1080

I find this place has become toxic with the political flame wars dominating any musical discussion.  Went over to talk classical, where I will be spending my time now, and the ban on politics and religion really seems to facilitate a much better experience.  Not that I will be missed, but I doubt I'm the only one that feels this way.

amw

Most of the politics are confined to a handful of clearly marked threads which you can just avoid reading if you don't want to see them.

Biffo

Quote from: bwv 1080 on February 07, 2019, 04:24:24 AM
I find this place has become toxic with the political flame wars dominating any musical discussion.  Went over to talk classical, where I will be spending my time now, and the ban on politics and religion really seems to facilitate a much better experience.  Not that I will be missed, but I doubt I'm the only one that feels this way.

As suggested above just ignore the overtly political threads. I have more or less given up on Talk Classical as I find many of the musical threads to be toxic. This forum isn't perfect but there is plenty of civilised conversation to be had.

Ghost of Baron Scarpia

#3
I agree with Biffo, having tested the waters at TalkClassical, the musical threads there can be toxic, with people going on about how music they don't like or understand is inferior. I've stopped participating there, although my account is still active.

The political threads here are mostly toxic, but compartmentalized so I can avoid that content without difficulty.

In any case, I hope you'll reconsider.

Karl Henning

Quote from: bwv 1080 on February 07, 2019, 04:24:24 AM
I find this place has become toxic with the political flame wars dominating any musical discussion.  Went over to talk classical, where I will be spending my time now, and the ban on politics and religion really seems to facilitate a much better experience.  Not that I will be missed, but I doubt I'm the only one that feels this way.

On the contrary, I should miss you.
Karl Henning, Ph.D.
Composer & Clarinetist
Boston MA
http://www.karlhenning.com/
[Matisse] was interested neither in fending off opposition,
nor in competing for the favor of wayward friends.
His only competition was with himself. — Françoise Gilot

71 dB

Quote from: San Antone on February 07, 2019, 05:47:33 AM
I have zero understanding of why people are obsessed with discussing politics and religion, all I know is I do not want to have anything to do with a discussion of either topic.

Maybe people are obsessed with discussing politics and religion because those are things that affect people's lives, perhaps much more than classical music?
Spatial distortion is a serious problem deteriorating headphone listening.
Crossfeeders reduce spatial distortion and make the sound more natural
and less tiresome in headphone listening.

My Sound Cloud page <-- NEW Jan. 2024 "Harpeggiator"

71 dB

Quote from: Ghost of Baron Scarpia on February 07, 2019, 06:09:20 AM
The political threads here are mostly toxic, but compartmentalized so I can avoid that content without difficulty.

Blame the establishment for that! They have divided us so they can keep screwing us up!
Spatial distortion is a serious problem deteriorating headphone listening.
Crossfeeders reduce spatial distortion and make the sound more natural
and less tiresome in headphone listening.

My Sound Cloud page <-- NEW Jan. 2024 "Harpeggiator"

Ken B

Quote from: amw on February 07, 2019, 05:08:03 AM
Most of the politics are confined to a handful of clearly marked threads which you can just avoid reading if you don't want to see them.
If only that were true, but you in particular inject political unpleasantness into all sort of threads.

Ghost of Baron Scarpia

Quote from: Ken B on February 07, 2019, 09:20:03 AM
If only that were true, but you in particular inject political unpleasantness into all sort of threads.

That's not fair. I find many of amw's political views nuts, but I do not recall 'unpleasantness' or a tendency toward unpleasant politics on non-political threads. And talk about the pot calling the kettle black, as evidenced by this unnecessarily argumentative and 'unpleasant' post.

arpeggio

Quote from: Ghost of Baron Scarpia on February 07, 2019, 06:09:20 AM
I agree with Biffo, having tested the waters at TalkClassical, the musical threads there can be toxic, with people going on about how music they don't like or understand is inferior. I've stopped participating there, although my account is still active.

The political threads here are mostly toxic, but compartmentalized so I can avoid that content without difficulty.

In any case, I hope you'll reconsider.

I agree with you about the political threads. Just ignore them.

As a refugee from Talk Classical I agree.  There are a few threads that I follow but I rarely participate anymore. 

Ken B

Quote from: Ghost of Baron Scarpia on February 07, 2019, 12:28:06 PM
That's not fair. I find many of amw's political views nuts, but I do not recall 'unpleasantness' or a tendency toward unpleasant politics on non-political threads. And talk about the pot calling the kettle black, as evidenced by this unnecessarily argumentative and 'unpleasant' post.
It's more than fair. Take a look at the recent American music thread for instance.

It's hypocritical or disingenuous to tell people the politics is confined to a few clearly defined threads whilst injecting it into others. I think the original poster was bothered at least in part because such discussions are not in fact quarantined.

Brian

Quote from: Ken B on February 07, 2019, 01:18:23 PM
It's more than fair. Take a look at the recent American music thread for instance.
That was a good, civil, interesting discussion. Thanks for recommending it.

Oh wait, you didn't like it? huh

Ghost of Baron Scarpia

Quote from: Brian on February 07, 2019, 01:46:39 PM
That was a good, civil, interesting discussion. Thanks for recommending it.

Oh wait, you didn't like it? huh

Where is this thread?

Ken B

Quote from: Ghost of Baron Scarpia on February 07, 2019, 01:47:41 PM
Where is this thread?
You were part of it! I think it was 10 favorite American composers.
It was indeed a civil discussion, San Antone's posts in particular being good.  But it was also an example of a (failed) attempt to inject political trolling. There are other examples, but that was a recent thread where I saw it.

Ghost of Baron Scarpia

Quote from: Ken B on February 07, 2019, 03:02:39 PM
You were part of it! I think it was 10 favorite American composers.
It was indeed a civil discussion, San Antone's posts in particular being good.  But it was also an example of a (failed) attempt to inject political trolling. There are other examples, but that was a recent thread where I saw it.

Yes, I vaguely remember it, I looked for it, didn't find it, and wondered if it was deleted for some reason.

amw

Quote from: Brian on February 07, 2019, 01:46:39 PM
That was a good, civil, interesting discussion. Thanks for recommending it.
Also credit for starting it should be owed to San Antone, not me! (And not really a political discussion either)

Ken seems to be projecting....

Brian

Quote from: amw on February 07, 2019, 03:19:29 PM
Ken seems to be projecting....
I didn't want to be the one to say it  ;)

(While I oppose a ban on politics for the reasons stated above - it's very easy to avoid; the only time I see political posts are when I do my weekly read-throughs of Todd's and amw's post histories - I think Ken's intervention here is a good example of why some people might support it.)

Ken B

Quote from: Brian on February 07, 2019, 05:12:18 PM
I didn't want to be the one to say it  ;)

(While I oppose a ban on politics for the reasons stated above - it's very easy to avoid; the only time I see political posts are when I do my weekly read-throughs of Todd's and amw's post histories - I think Ken's intervention here is a good example of why some people might support it.)

I for one oppose such a ban. But I do think it's best kept quarantined. That requires a little self discipline, sometimes A bit lacking.

Your comment vindicates my earlier claim.

Mirror Image

As long as a member doesn't get on the grandstand on say the 'listening' thread or a composer thread, then I see no reason why political threads should be banned, especially if the threads and the posts are designated to the right part of the forum. Personally, I never understood why anyone would want to discuss politics on a music forum to begin with, but that's really out of my control and makes no difference in the threads that I like to post in.

JBS

I oppose the ban. I will not that compared to social media and overtly political websites, GMG discussions are generally respectful, better informed, and more tolerant of opposing views.

Hollywood Beach Broadwalk