On Friday, September 14, 2012 4:40:38 PM UTC-4, oriel36 wrote:

You lot disappeared when genuine astronomy entered SAA

I disagree.

USENET went down the tubes when the internet began to flourish and the world wide access of the masses brought politics, religion, and widely rejected theories into every discussion without provocation.

When that was only a handful of posts, it was manageable, but when it became a flood, people got tired of wading through it and left.

At a deeper level, the problem is the lack of civility in either insinuating or outright stating that others are idiots, hypocrites, or "istas". If you are unwilling to make allowance for the way others see the world through their own preconceptions, and with _gentle_ persuasion lead them to the discovery of another truth, or even self awareness, then you are little more than a self absorbed, foot stomping child, who lacks an understanding of the human psyche.

And if through your treatment of others you show that you neither understand the human psyche, or believe your view fallible, then you ultimately render yourself ineffective at the art of persuasion. You are but a noisy gong, that everyone eventually considers annoying and not worth reading.

-Steve