RE: the question: ":Why do forum interactions become contentious". . .


I've just had a very unexpected and very unpleasant PM from a forum participant. 

He'd been suggesting I buy a certain component  and I told him politely that I didn't visualize that particular purchase fitting in with my long-range plans.  

His response was to accuse me of wasting everyone's time and to call me an "effing idiot" (except he spelled "effing" correctly). 

The great majority of interactions I've had here have been very enjoyable and recent input from
more experienced forum members has helped greatly in clarifying my plan for the next upgrade cycle. 

The thread on lesser-know Jazz has been great-- lots of participation and lots of terrific suggestions. 

Nevertheless, I've decided to take a break. 

Best regards,

Stuartk



stuartk
Sadly because social media has given access, a "voice" and a platform/forum to anyone and everyone. Due to the safety and relative anonymity of sitting at a keyboard rather than engaging in person people who would otherwise never be aggressive or in your face feel empowered to bully, "shout" and impose their opinions on others, often aggressively. Factor in the era of "selfies", constant bragging and boasting, one upmanship, being able to continually show off and come across as experts on every possible topic large or small, real or imagined and here's where we end up. Am I cynical ? Yeah, but I totally believe it's true. 
I won’t participate in „cable discussions“ any more. Waste of time and energy! Some opinionated „technicians“ without any listening experience with great audio systems seem to only wait until another „cable topic“ comes up to give their worthless 2cents… I made my own experiences over a long period of time and don’t need no second or third tier self absorbed „wanna be technician“ to tell me that I‘m „all wrong“ because he got told so (who believes this?!?!) in his car mechanics apprenticeship 40 years ago …LOL
1). A person who feels the need to waste their time PM'ing their anger has no life.

2). Getting upset at the inane rantings of a total stranger shows that you care too much what inconsequential people say and are letting them control you.

Just hit the Delete button and ignore them. They are not worth one second of your time or thoughts, and should never affect your actions.
@NoNoise - that saying 'If you want to make god laugh, tell him your plans', has been around for a long, long time.... Nobody on here invented it!