Separate Area for heated issues-Politics ect.

[MikePA]

Very well put! Your experience mirrors mine, albeit with different Internet sites. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

As I have said before, people only have so much time to spend on the Internet, specifically on TBN. If they're busy composing the next round of flaming posts in a Political/Religion forum on TBN, then they are not posting in a tractor related forum.

 

[EddieWalker]

I started surfing the net reading political sites looking for arguments and feeling the need to give my view on politics. After a short while I became bored with the whole process and found this site. It's a refreshing, friendly, informative forum here that would gain nothing by opening Pandoras Box.

I have strong political opinions just as I'm sure everyone else does. You're not going to change my mind or point of view, nor will my views have any effect on your outlook on life.

I don't want to know about your personal life, politics, sex life or religion.

I do want to know about your building experience, mechanical skills and knowledge of all things outdoors.

Eddie

 

[PBinWA]

Add my "no" vote to the politics/religion/sex stuff idea.

I surf to TBN after surfing the politics stuff to clean my head of the trash.

 

[OkeeDon]

<font color="blue"> I have strong political opinions just as I'm sure everyone else does. You're not going to change my mind or point of view, nor will my views have any effect on your outlook on life. </font>

Yeah, but I want to know your views, so I'll know whether to like you or not.

NOT!

The fact is I like you just fine right now, and if your views are that strong, knowing what they are might create a 50/50 chance that would change. I don't want to take the risk.

No politics or other "hot" topics.

 

[Gatorboy]

<font color="blue"> No politics or other "hot" topics. </font>

I guess I should forget asking the question: Toilet paper roll -- over or under? /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[wroughtn_harv]

I'm sure Don remembers back in the day when "related topics" went bonkers over the political and relgious discussions. The moderators were working doubletime deleting posts.

And even to this day there is some bad feelings between those involved.

If you want to rant politics and or religion the number of places to do it online is only outnumbered by the sex sites. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Which says a lot about some people. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[Bob_Skurka]

Most people THINK that I am a <font color="red">H</font><font color="green">a</font><font color="blue">w</font><font color="orange">a</font><font color="purple">i</font><font color="brown">i</font><font color="red">a</font><font color="blue">n </font> Shirt wearing, right wing, gun toting, blunt jerk with strong opinions, why would I want them to KNOW it for fact? That is what would happen in a heated discussion forum, it could only make for divisions between people who come to this board to share the common interest of tractors. Tractor ownership crosses all ages, socio-economic boundaries, religions, ethnicities and policital philosophies, and yet it infringes on none of them. We have enough in this world to divide us, why do we need one more place to find that out when we can come here to unite to solve at least one area of concern in our lives?

 

[_RaT_]

As interesting as it would get, I come here to get away from that. When I see the "spin" out there, it get's frustrating. It would undoubtedly make it's way here. With the thousands of blogs out there, you can certainly find the right one with folks that are articulate and behave reasonably well.

 

[hazmat]

<font color="blue">Toilet paper roll -- over or under? </font>

Dave - you better behave or else....... /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

Our politics/morals are shaped by our upbringing, experiences and even "local" traditions that have been going on for hundreds of years

Coastal areas / large cities have been receiving immigrants with little more than the clothes on their backs for 300 years. Assimilating them into our culture almost requires a liberal "welfare" environment.

Middle / Rural America's founding fathers had no one but themselves to rely on - thus the conservative "independent" tradition there.

I'm not saying that there aren't any conservatives on the coast or vice versa, but you see the "trend".

The problem is that anyone who feels strongly enough one way or the other, thinks that the other guy is out of their mind. You are NOT going to convince someone that they are out of their mind via a discussion thread on tractor by net. - That takes years of training as a physiatrist and lots of meds and they're not even all that successful /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif All that will happen is to create bad blood which will spill over into other forums and it just goes downhill from there.

The tbn staff has created this site for tractor enthusiasts. It is very successful and very FREE for us. In order to keep it free, they have to rely on sponsorship. The "better" the site is, the more sponsorship. The more sponsorship, the longer we get to yap about tractors for free. Political discussion will not enhance this site at all - thus it is "off limits".

I really enjoy tbn - it has provided tons of information on tractors and related projects for me. It is my favorite way to "goof off" on the internet. There are so many walks of life here from the weekend warriors (myself) to real farmers. There is such a vast resource of non tractor information here too (despite our best efforts to keep things "related") Ranging from welding to diets with: car trouble, trucks/trailers, plumbing, flooring and house building in between. I even remember one guy finding someone else's lost fedex (or was it UPS?) package (an irreplaceable antique car part).

Let's keep tbn the great site it is. /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

Off soap box now.

 

[slowrev]

A couple of other sites I used to visit had an anything goes section. The garbage carried over to the other sections and spoiled the whole board.