It's all about Pakistan now

[Carnos Jax]

kj wrote: Right leaning people have several times left, never to return, and said that it is because people here are hostile toward them. Yet, it has come up several times that it is somehow the fault of the right-leaning people here that more right-leaning people don't participate. People said the same thing to Spearmint when he was here, and the same thing to Fly on the Wall, when he was here. I think you guys really need to admit that there is something to their perceptions that people here are hostile.
.
.
My honest attempt is going to be the observation that no one on the left/liberal/democrat side is going to understand that it is really very unpleasant to have 10 people in one thread throwing insults, sarcasm, etc. at you with no support from similar thinkers at all.
.
.

I think it must be a matter of perception (on both sides). To me it seems the right has been equally as hostile. Of course, I'm tempted to say that is what precipitated hostility from the left, i.e. the tone of a post sets the nature of the response. Of course, both sides may simply be biased in their perceptions. At the very least, it averages out the same on both sides of the equation, with the greater numbers of people on the left just creating a higher volume...but that's just a statistical byproduct. How do you think it would be if both sides were equally as hostile but the left/right numbers were reveresed?

kj wrote: Another point is that every right leaning person here has been subjected to out an out insults and name calling. Even DaveS, who has never done anything to deserve it. And fwiw, that's a common theme. "Yeah, I know I just insulted him or called him a derogatory name, but he deserves it." Can we agree that those who call others derogatory names almost always feel justified? Are they though?

You could substitute "left" in your first sentence and it would be equally as valid. Yes, the name calling happens, and I'm sure the one feels the other deserves it. But in many cases the justification is felt due to the other being the one to first throw the insult/name (I've seen this on both sides...of course not that name calling by one necessarily justifies name calling by the other).

kj wrote: ...I think a good portion of those here, are here to be mean. Or maybe it really is just the dynamic set by the general makeup of this forum (left/liberal/democrat)...

Again, it appears that would apply to both sides (to not sound biased).