Help, My Human Thinks He's A Dog

[lupestripe]

I haven't been on any forums, message boards or 'have your say' type comments sections for six months and I feel a lot better for it. These places tend to be the bastions of reactionary and ill-informed opinion and I would rather not read such nonsense. I tend to prefer proper debate rather than thunder and bluster. Plus I am one of those people who is prone to getting pissed off easily.

This means I haven't been on the UK Fur forum for six months either. It simply doesn't offer anything for me. I avoid the main threads for the reasons described above while I only ever used the Northern threads and the one about football. But when the latter is your job and the former merely displays meets I would find out about anyway, my motivation to visit has been severely reduced. Every other topic of discussion doesn't interest me so ultimately I have left it alone.

I also have an issue with the conduct of a small handful of moderators and would rather not patronise the site with attitudes like that. So ultimately, removing myself from UK Fur is just another example of removing myself from the mainstream of the fandom. And that suits me fine.

Posted via LiveJournal app for iPhone.

Comments

[fen-ra.livejournal.com]

As far as I'm concerned UK fur is nothing more than a drama-fest which should be avoided at all costs.

[shep-shepherd.livejournal.com]

Agreed 100%

[lupestripe.livejournal.com]

There is some drama on there but I am usually quite adept at avoiding it. I do skirt clear of all the controversial topics though, plus I am not an asshat.

[moth-wingthane.livejournal.com]

I agree with the above. All the times I ever went to look, there was never anything new - just the same old stuff being recycled. Reminds me I want to get my account there removed.

[lupestripe.livejournal.com]

I think this is the problem with the internet as a whole. I do largely find the fandom a stiltifyingly boring place but then I don't share the common interests of most.

[kevlarhusky.livejournal.com]

After they updated it and changed the theme I find it just plain difficult to use. And that's coming from ME :P But I'm not going to be a whinger and ask it to be changed or anything.

I only ever bothered with the classfieds and the motors sections, and I also haven't been on it in a while. There's just nothing there to hold my interest.

[lupestripe.livejournal.com]

It was when they updated it that I lost interest. Perhaps it was because there was now effort to find not a lot. I don't know. As you say, there's nothing on there of interest to me so I don't bother with it now.

[mr-cullen.livejournal.com]

Yeah, most of the time I only really use the forums to poke people in the eye with a stick for nothing more than my imature amusement.

[lupestripe.livejournal.com]

Ah so precisely the people I am trying to avoid then :P

[mr-cullen.livejournal.com]

Pretty much :3c

[gepardipoju.livejournal.com]

I'm on the you-know-what section a fair bit, mostly because it's my part of the board so to speak and because there isn't any idiocy there for the most part. I also browse the Northern board, but that's it really. Like you, I just can't be arsed anymore.

[lupestripe.livejournal.com]

The Northern board is achingly dull though - nothing going on there at all. It's useful as a conduit for information but aside from that it seems to be a place where people squabble over what to do at meets. I wouldn't know about the other section but as it's members only, I imagine there is a lot more vetting.

[elfasi.livejournal.com]

I stopped using the UKFur forum a long time ago, culminating in my getting trolled over a close fur friend of mine dying from suicide. So far as I'm concerned the place is largely populated by despicable scum who's lives revolve around feeding off the misery of others. Sounds like the Daily Mail offices. But it does seem message boards and comment areas do attract such types, and are well avoided.

Don't think that makes you removed in any way from the furry fandom though. I think the UKfur forum is a part of the fandom in the sense my toilet is part of my house. And I hardly go to meets, but instead I visit furry friends, or small gatherings, or have people over to my house. And I don't feel removed from the fandom. Just removed from groups of kids, maybe. The fandom is what you make of it, and you don't have to consider yourself withdrawn and cut off :)

[lupestripe.livejournal.com]

Yep, that would make me want to leave. I have never had anything that extreme but there are comments on there and behaviours I have seen which have really wound me up. And a lot of that came from the moderators. Message boards always suffer from the delights of web anonymity coupled with the ability to say what you like. Like the press in the UK, the responsibility which is needed is sadly lacking.

I like the toilet reference but at least a toilet has a function, which is something the forum doesn't seem to enjoy. I do have some good close friends in the fandom but I feel my involvement could be so much greater. I do fear I am poisoning myself with my own neourses.

[symphonic-rp.livejournal.com]

I gave up message boards long ago. They are just the place to hear from those who have not a clue what they're talking about. For the last few years I have restricted my online contact with the fandom to LJ and Second Life, as both places give me the power to select who I'll hear from, and thus I can tailor my fandom experience to my own preferences and needs.

Try not to think ill of the fandom because message boards have a tendency to be useless. That's the fault of the boards, not the fandom. You don't need to hear from every small mind that calls itself a Furry. You only need a few Furries who match your tastes to have a great Furry experience.

[lupestripe.livejournal.com]

LJ and twitter are my only two forms of online contact with furs now and that's largely because I can access them on the phone. I agree, it's probably a function of messageboards rather than the fandom and every group has people of the type who frequent such media.