weeksy wrote: ↑Tue Jul 23, 2024 7:11 pm
It's not 'you' as you seem to think I implied but it's these topics, the bitterness, the decision, the point scoring time and time again. It's the poisonous attitudes of many which have driven countless away.
Well you said it in the context of my discussions being a problem.
weeksy wrote: ↑Tue Jul 23, 2024 5:57 pm
There's a reason people have left and post less. It's not just because of a lack of love for bikes
I have to accept my posting style appears to attract more than it's fair share of escalating vitriol. I will respond to incessant personal insults and defend myself until eventually I get banned. In fairness, over the years there was one occasion when you actually banned the instigator (and me).
You suggest the rambunctious and energetic posts I seem to generate are the cause of the decline in members because (I assume) you can see how membership is declining due to my continued presence on this forum.
You might just as well suggest it is declining due to the continued presence of Twitter, X, Reddit, YouTube where undoubtedly half of those former posters now reside.
There is also the Trump factor if I may be so bold as to drag this thread back on topic. Trump derangement syndrome is a real thing! The human mind is weak and easily swayed. We all believe we are immune from advertising for example. I can assure you, no one is and if it didn't work, they wouldn't do it.
Now I did endure many years of quite insane levels of criticism for my "extreme right wing" views. I was told I was some "conspiracy theorist nutjob" for example when criticising social media censorship or highly partisan, left wing mainstream media. Trump has had to endure years of unbelievable criticism from deeply partisan msm, social media bias, been kicked off platforms (even when he was the sitting president!), shadow banned, arrested on spurious charges (none of which were validated) and finally someone shot him in the head...
I should remind everyone, especially the Trump haters that half the USA would disagree (if they were allowed to, wouldn't face punishment for doing so or if their opinions weren't censored) but the imbalance of power in the media space has been hugely shifted towards the centre thanks largely to Elon Musk. No longer are you likely to get thrown in jail for being a Trump supporter. The incessant threat from the Biden admin that the greatest threat to national security and to democracy itself is <anyone who doesn't vote dem>.
That just changed. The tide has turned. During that period however I might argue that anyone wishing to join this forum might have left or been dissuaded from joining just by seeing the way one of the few right wing Trump supporters (aka conspiracy theorist nutjobs) was being treated. I'm not going to argue for that position, I merely suggest that without any evidence to the contrary, it is just as valid a "reason" as you suggesting that the energetic bickering in my threads might be.