[cialviagra]

To anybody who wants to answer: Since joining the forums, I've noticed that 95% of the time, topics always degenerate into fights. Granted, there are always the enlightened and well-meaning members (Paikea, Neil, and many more) who at least try to bring sanity, and the original topic point, back into focus, but after a while, it gets saddening to see so many people bickering. I would like to know: Is it a clash of egos, or just people looking to educate, vent, and/or express themselves?
BTW: I mean no offense to anybody; I'm just curious.

[97dYA9L3]

For me it is all about my ego.

[Beatris]

A lot of the time its down to the fact that theres a keyboard in the way... and its easy to misinterpret what people are trying to say, especially when people are a little touchy about a certain subject, they get very defensive. Then being into MA they go offensive. Good isnt it! I quite like the rude comments fired at me from Scott and others, but be prepared for an answering barrage!

[dwestemesse]

Welcome to the Internet. Just seems to be what happens, wherever you go. I can think of many explanations, but not going to try to offer them. Different people react in different ways.

[NiliSpuppypax]

it's all about neil.

neil, neil, neil, neil NEIL NEIL NIEL!










(my sorry attempt to pick a fight on the board...haha)


some posts go the wrong way.. some threads go the wrong way... we just have to pick our battles and decide when it's just not worth the effort to wade into a thread (to post OR read)..

[GroosteFoessy]

I'd love if no-one here put their grade in their profile or use the lenght of time they have been practicing kendo as a benchmark.

What agitates people on these forums typically surrounds one person who is practicing less than another,

I guess this is a kendo forum, but i think actually there may be better conversations if there was no profiles almost like usenet in the day.

I reckon everyone should have a place here regardless of rank, thats one of the things i like (liked?) about kendo, they absense of an external ranking systems and the way all grades work/help each other in class.

Sometimes here it is like, "zip it, and come back in 5/10 years whan you know something!"

[QWNPdpr5]

Yeah, why not just P.M. Neil and maybe he'll send you a plane ticket to Saskatoon and take you out to lunch and Paikea can go too.

BWHAHAHAHAH

I have a sandan friend who stopped posting because too often he would give advice and someone (a beginner) would take offense or disagree and start an argument. It was always the same "Yeah, i'm just a beginner but that doesn't mean my opinion is worthless, I studied (fill in MA style) for (fill in number) years and I know something" or whatever.

[Quigoxito]

I'd love if no-one here put their grade in their profile or use the lenght of time they have been practicing kendo as a benchmark. I think that would be a good idea for the Lounge, but it is ridiculous for the rest. How else are you going to know if someone is talking out of their posterior, or is actually giving you the benefit of their experience?
Sometimes here it is like, "zip it, and come back in 5/10 years whan you know something!" And that is a very valid answer! Too many people like to appear knowledgeable to their peers. I call them "internet experts", and every forum on the internet is filled with them. They will give advice and opinions on any subject based upon what they've read, or heard, or simply what they guess things should be. The difference is that in kendo, experience really does make a difference. Someone that has been practicing for 10 years will know a godawful lot more about kendo than someone with 1 year of practice. That's just the way it is, and there's no getting around it!

[outfinofulpv]

Yeah, why not just P.M. Neil and maybe he'll send you a plane ticket to Saskatoon and take you out to lunch and Paikea can go too.

Only if Neil will take me to the Powerstrike Forza dojo and juice bar.

[StitsVobsaith]

Only if Neil will take me to the Powerstrike Forza dojo and juice bar.

Then I will become your padewan.

[pedFlicle]

I reckon everyone should have a place here regardless of rank, thats one of the things i like (liked?) about kendo, they absense of an external ranking systems and the way all grades work/help each other in class.

Don't let the fact that there is no external rank indicator fool you into thinking that the rank system is taken lightly or that there isn't a real class consciousness evident in kendo.

However, I don't usually like to argue from authority. That gets people's back up, and of course there's no real way to verify rank on the internet. I figure if I post stuff that is correct (or at least, insofar as I understand it) often enough, it will provide some sort of sanity check to all the false/misunderstood info presented by newbies. Sometimes out of exasperation I'm reduced to "I've been doing this a long time, so there", but I don't like to.

Having said that, if you are in a physical kendo setting, who are you going to listen to, the guy that just started with you yesterday, or your sempai and sensei? Hang out here long enough and you'll get to know the cast of characters and take their advice for what it's worth based on your knowledge of people's character and experience. But none of the advice you get here should supercede your own sensei.

[dosyrotsbop]

To anybody who wants to answer: Since joining the forums, I've noticed that 95% of the time, topics always degenerate into fights.

Mark Twain once said, "There are three kinds of lies - lies, damn' lies, and statistics!" 95%? I make it more like 94.8032%

It takes two (or more) to fight. Kendo should be teaching us to be immune to insults from others. It's what each of us knows about themselves that's important, not what someone thinks who has only a minimal familiarity with us.

What's below a padewan? Sub-padewan? Mupadewansha?

[Tauntenue]

To anybody who wants to answer: Since joining the forums, I've noticed that 95% of the time, topics always degenerate into fights.

OI! Did you spill my pint/call my mom a slag? Outside, now...

[flowersnewacq]

On topic:
Be it fair or not, the rank(/or arrogance percieved due to) is what starts most fights i think.

Off topic and Devils advocate:
But why should a begineer respect someone they have never met, seen or interacted with just cos they say they have rank, experience etc

I reckon rank in a structured environment works, im not sure it does really on the internet, maybe, i dont know. I mean everyone here just has a user ID, avatar, password and profile....

Like ashi (the you tube guy) or Ignatz friend (sandan) if you use the internet / forums, you should expect what is there, good and bad.
Hang out here long enough and you'll get to know the cast of characters and take their advice for what it's worth based on your knowledge of people's character and experience. I agree with that, regardless of what rank they have or how long they say they have been practicing, you cant expect a forum newbie to respect them when they act like arses.

[Agrisalia]

Arguing on the Internet is like picking at a scab, you know you shouldn't and nothing good will come of it but you do it anyway, or at least that's my exprience anyway. That said I tend to stear clear of arguing technique and stick to history, generally rank seems to have little effect on a person knowledge in that department.

[Cd9JfGHR]

I have a sandan friend who stopped posting because too often he would give advice and someone (a beginner) would take offense or disagree and start an argument. It was always the same "Yeah, i'm just a beginner but that doesn't mean my opinion is worthless, I studied (fill in MA style) for (fill in number) years and I know something" or whatever.

great point. It's why I tend to shy away from some newbie threads...

I'd love if no-one here put their grade in their profile or use the lenght of time they have been practicing kendo as a benchmark.

Personally, I'm very glad that people put their rank up in here.. as neil said, nobody can prove who's on the other side of the monitor, but still...
I think it's good when, for example, a 2.kyu gets up and asks a question about seme, then somebody like Neil (5.dan) can look at the question and give an answer on seme that a 2.kyu needs or can understand. If a 2.kyu asks about seme, he's gonna get a different answer than a 2.dan who asks the same question. (at least, he should get a different answer, IMO).

short of that, if you take it away, then everybody's just gonna ask what everybody else's rank is anyway... so why not just allow it in the profile so people can do a quick check?

How many regulars here start out answering a noob's question with "I'm a .dan, so here's what I think"... Most of the time, you just get an answer.
(Granted, I do that sometimes but not in an attempt to justify my answer (I normally use it as a caveat!), but y'know, I've NEVER seen Neil -- for example -- advertise the fact that he is a m'f'n 5.dan in any of his responses.

In the greater scheme of things, I don't think anybody around here gives a damn who holds what rank... but sometimes, we need to ask questions to people who do hold a specific rank for information specific TO that rank..
and the easiest way to do that is to check a profile and maybe follow up with a PM..

just my opinion
YMMV

[gWhya5ct]

I was told once that the teacher teaches and the student learns whenever he is ready.

[Pipindula]

I was told once that the teacher teaches and the student learns whenever he is ready.

Now that one I like . . . mind if I use it myself sometime?

[AnneseeKels]

I mean everyone here just has a user ID, avatar, password and profile....

Many of us have our name and dojo visible for anyone to see.

[Agehoobionibe]

Now that one I like . . . mind if I use it myself sometime?

I think it is public domain.