For the next few weeks I will do only one thing on here: Get rid of rude people

[sheetsofemptycanvas]

I spent the 24 hours I was banned doing a lot of soul searching and thinking about what I had done. I have come to realize some things about myself, thanks to the wonderful team that runs this site. I wanted to share.

I often assume everyone has some degree of a sense of humour. I see now that this is a dangerous assumption, as jokes can hurt like a thousand knives cutting through your heart.

I did not mean to imply that anyone would be a d-word for giving out toothpaste for Halloween. Often, the one that gives out toothpaste is the one that cares the most about the children. The d-word is not a word that should be thrown around lightly, and in the future I will reserve it for only the most heinous and grievous misdeeds.

I have come to understand that there are places where feelings, opinions and thoughts are not welcome. I should not impose my will on people who come to this site because they don't have to feel, opine or think. This was unfair of me and I sincerely and truly apologize.

I also apologize for my ignorance in not knowing what the moderators consider rude. I will make a more concerted effort to understand the objectivity of subjective things better on this forum, and indeed, in my life. Who knows how many countless people have thought me rude when I was merely trying to converse and be funny. Sometimes there isn't room for conversation or jokes, especially on internet discussion forums.

Again, I am gravely and truly sorry for my behaviour and will try harder to fit your standards from now on. Like Emily Dickinson before me, I will save my attempts at discourse for my diary. Things like ponderings and musings and questions and answers are private things. I understand that now, thanks to the time-out you so generously provided me with. I can't thank you enough for this kindness.

In the words of Emily Post, “She must not swing her arms as though they were dangling ropes; she must not switch herself this way and that; she must not shout; and she must not, while wearing her bridal veil, smoke a cigarette”. I will try to live my life, and conduct myself on these boards, according to these principals, and am blessed to have had people to show me the path.

We all have a right to our own thoughts and opinions, it is the way you (not you personally, just in general) express them that counts.

Everyone has a sense of humor it's just that we are all different. I know the way I joke around with my friends irl would not be welcome here.

There is always room for conversation and jokes but no one should get their feelings hurt or feel "stupid" for something they do or do not do.

[amanda4]

+1. My Dh kept telling me over and over again. Not a hockey fan!! i almost said "will they just loose and get it over with so I don't have to hear it anymore".

Not you too! My sons been updating me every 5 min. I hate hockey.

[russruss08]

This is great, thank you to you and the moderators!

[jayne_a]

It didn't make me laugh and I'm as crude as they come irl. This is a coupon forum, I guess I separate things. I have a great sense of humour but theres a time and place for everything.

She was banned because of her other comments iin that thread which are clearly highlighted. I had actually requested Boo speak to you Salty dog as well, but I'm not sure if he did.

I dont really need to be ganged up on by the "harbringer of doom" team. Thanks.

Honestly I don't think the word "skanks" was meant in a negative way.. in fact the guys on here who say it, use it on themselves not on other members and it is clearly meant in a fun friendly way. I'm not cracking down on people trying to have fun I'm cracking down on people trying to ruin the place for others and be negative and insulting.

I'm glad that this is all this negativity and rudeness is going. I've read all these posts and alot in the other forums, and I'm surprised that people don't see/understand that they are being rude. I'm appalled by this.

In regards to the whole skank thing. I think that wrong. I know it started out in fun, but so many ppl are offended by it, as it has become a "club" and seems like only some are privy too, and when you come across a thread and someone else is calling another SCer a skank, it make's this site look bad. Yet it is aloud. It really bother's me to see this, but i just ignored it. Now there is the whole dick thing. I thought that was nasty too, i think that these "terms" should not be aloud when talking about other SCer's as with so many newbies, who don't know the originality of it all, will be offended.

And I'm finding more and more click's/clubs/groups what ever you want to call them. And sometimes i'm feeling like i'm not good enough to associate them b/c i'm "not a member" so to speak, and this is frustrating to me.

I do agree that something's may be taken out of context as you can't see the persons face your just reading text.

I hope i'm not offending anyone with this post, if i did i'm sorry, I'm just trying to explain how i feel about some of the things going on in this site.

Good Luck Boo and Sally, and mod's at cleaning up the rudeness.

[FallenPixels]

There are plenty of people who call themselves skanks who are not part of our group of friends and I personally started a thread saying we were looking to include more people (which was ruined and deleted) and starting a train to help them feel more inclusive

Personally, the only time I have felt excluded on SC was when I posted in a Montreal thread which showed in newest posts and was told not very nicely to stay out of their thread since I am not from Montreal

The last skank train had a huge thread full of people having fun who were not part of the train, mods and members together laughing without insulting each other etc - it is a pity we can't get back to those days when SC was fun and the mods didn't have to defend every single thing they say and break up every thread because it turned into a crabfest or attack

[Sally888]

I personally feel teamed up on by the new group the harbringers of doom, where as I've never felt the Skanks have teamed up against me publicly. I was just trying to clear things up that we didn't ban her for a silly post about halloween, because that had 0 to do with Boo's decision.

Sigh.

[Sally888]

- it is a pity we can't get back to those days when SC was fun and the mods didn't have to defend every single thing they say and break up every thread because it turned into a crabfest or attack

+176.7

ITA We use to have a lot of fun in the random threads.

[AmberLab]

+176.7

ITA We use to have a lot of fun in the random threads.

+ 2839

More good-humor silliness is needed around here.

[MercuryBlue]

I personally feel teamed up on by the new group the harbringers of doom, where as I've never felt the Skanks have teamed up against me publicly. I was just trying to clear things up that we didn't ban her for a silly post about halloween, because that had 0 to do with Boo's decision.

Sigh.

I am really sorry you feel this way. These people are my friends because we have a lot in common. But I'm also my own person and I speak for myself. I don't feel that I've 'ganged up' on anyone, and apologize if it's come across that way. Often we get into our little tangents and laugh at each other- but I haven't directed any ire at anyone. I try to be upbeat and have a sense of humor. I don't believe I've ever sworn at anyone at SC or name-called; I've made a point of being as civil as possible.

Of course, I don't have a problem making my opinion known if I disagree with someone, but I try to be as respectful and courteous as I can. It sort of hurts my feelings that you say I'm part of a group that's 'ganging up' when all I've done is laugh and joke and tried to keep things light.

I guess I'm just confused about what I might have done to make you feel 'ganged up on', other than be friends with someone that you disagree with. If I've done anything to inadvertently offend, I apologize again.

[sheetsofemptycanvas]

In my opinion, every forum is going to have "groups/cliques" if you want to call them that. Not everyone is going to get a long with everybody else. That's not to say I would ever "exclude" anybody- I try to be friendly with everyone. We are all adults- there is no reason for anyone to put somebody down on here, for ANY reason. We all have a common interest that brought us to this site- we should try to get back to that!

[cheapass]

I am really sorry you feel this way. These people are my friends because we have a lot in common. But I'm also my own person and I speak for myself. I don't feel that I've 'ganged up' on anyone, and apologize if it's come across that way. Often we get into our little tangents and laugh at each other- but I haven't directed any ire at anyone. I try to be upbeat and have a sense of humor. I don't believe I've ever sworn at anyone at SC or name-called; I've made a point of being as civil as possible.

Of course, I don't have a problem making my opinion known if I disagree with someone, but I try to be as respectful and courteous as I can. It sort of hurts my feelings that you say I'm part of a group that's 'ganging up' when all I've done is laugh and joke and tried to keep things light.

I guess I'm just confused about what I might have done to make you feel 'ganged up on', other than be friends with someone that you disagree with. If I've done anything to inadvertently offend, I apologize again.

While I don't consider myself a harbringer of doom, I have to say that sometimes it makes a person feel ganged up on when they see that you have friends. It's important to be sensitive to these people because one day you might be in a position where other people have friends and you feel ganged up on, and then what? An eye for an eye and two wrongs don't make a right, as they say.

[KMammy]

I personally feel teamed up on by the new group the harbringers of doom, where as I've never felt the Skanks have teamed up against me publicly.

Edited by me 'cause this is the part I'm addressing.

I often feel ganged up on around here, and made friends with people who think like me because of it.

Quite often on a thread I'm the only one saying 'I don't see why shelf clearing/taking the last on a tear pad/etc. is rude'. I tried to keep it polite but was in the middle of the postal thread that went absolutely nuclear, too. I'm usually the first and sometimes the only dissenting voice and get jumped all over as a result. I find it interesting that I recieve PM's and rep supporting me, but people aren't always ok with a public statement.

I haven't ganged up on anybody, but understand it feels that way when people are addressing their posts directly to you.

[TINMACK]

Well, you know even the rainy weather today(or the dark clouds in our own lives some other days) can't wipe the smile off my face.

Looking back on page 10 of this thread, it was noted that you didn't have to wait until Halloween to give out free toothpaste. Well, darned if I didn't have a heartwarming idea right then and there.

So I headed down to the local Sprawl-Mart and loaded up with lots of toothpaste and toothbrushes - there was a pricing/coupon wording error so they basically paid me to take it out of the store. After I loaded it into my truck, I was a veritable dental supply shop hurtling down the highway.

I dropped by the local orphanage, and showed the ladies the toothpaste and brushes I had for the kids.

"Bless you Mr. Mack", one of them said, tears welling up in her eys.

"Eyyyyyyy, right back atcha, sistah", I said. A little too much, but every time I put on this leather jacket I have Fonzie flashbacks.

"Say", I asked them, "would you mind if I took a few of those teenagers over there on a "field trip" so they could learn how to use the toothpaste and brushes?"

"Bless you again", she said, and I just nodded and

As they piled into the back of my pickup truck, a couple made some comments about the lack of seatbelts/handles to hold onto.

"Ahhh no problem", I reassured them, "we're only going on the highway, and I won't be doing more than 110, so lean into it!!" They all chuckled and agreed that the fresh air might do them good. That, and the cold drizzle that was currently falling.

Well, anyways, we got to my place and they climbed out.

"Hey mister", one of them said, "I thought we were going to the dentist?"

"Why would you think that", I replied with a smile. "Well, you told them we were going some place to learn how to use the toothpaste and brushes..."

"Of course, it's right here", I replied. They stared at me blank faced. Oh, those young scallywags, the hope of the next generation.

"You see", I began, "toothpaste is an excellent stain remover in general cleaning applications. For example, fogged chrome can be polished with it, fogged headlghts on a car, flooring stains, etc."

They grumbled a bit, but got right to the work at hand. A couple of times throughout the day I had to duck to avoid the odd rock flying at my head but there's a lot of squirrels around and I assume the kids were just horsing around.

After they finished, everything gleamed from the power of the toothpaste and their endless buffing. Good thing I had lots of those Scotts shop towels for them to use.

After a meal of some Hamburger Helper(the beef was free with the $3.00 coupon) I set about teaching them the finer points of couponing. We had some classes/role plays on shelf clearing, tear pad stealing, grabbing the pink stickers off stuff you weren't actually buying yourself but could use on other items, cashier profiling, finding flyers with printing errors and using them to price match at other stores, etc.

By the end of the day I felt like a regular Artful Dodger, with a little bit of Fagin thrown in to round things out. I had my own little coupon gang - I named them "The Dickens", and promised we'd gang up on some stores soon.

Then I threw some soap at them(Irish Spring - almost free with the Smart Source coupon)and they used it to freshen up their clothes and shoes.

Then I grabbed the garden hose and hosed them off. They complained that they were soaked, but I told them that the drive back in the open air would dry things off. That, and I promised to drive a little faster on the highway to really cause that "drying effect".

So, you know, you just never know how you can make a difference, pay it forward, or just a simple random act of kindness(ROAK) to make the world a better place.

It's a damp and chilly day here, but all I need is the glow in my heart to keep me warm.....

[momof3heathens]

Tinmack:

If you haven't already you need to find yourself a publisher. Some of the most laugh out loud satire I have come across in a long time. Love tongue in check with just enough innuendo to keep people wondering what you are really about.

[Brandy Hunter]

I have a feeling i'm part of the harbringers of doom (sp) but i'm a 100% believer you get what you give / respect is a 2 way street. I'm a generally nice person, but i've been so stepped on in my life that I just don't let it happen anymore, I don't care who you are, your profession, or relation, if you're going to insult me or be rude to me blantly, then you get that back because it's just not fair.

Sorry i'm trying to make this sound easy to read but i'm trying to include so much.. may not make sense.