awww... someone has a crush!

It's adorable!

Voting down comments is one thing, but targeted video downvoting is generally unacceptable.

Very unacceptable, but there are only three videos, which could be coincidental. Check the times of video downvotes, if they are in rapid succession (<1 min) a quick siftquisition will result in a 2 week ban.

You really do care.

Thanks for the ayuda, Deedub, but you drew attention to my terrible comments and now more people (ex.Gwiz) have chosen to downvote. I deserved it, though.

Do you want to hear my sad confession? No? I'm gonna tell you, anyway. Sometimes I don't even mean the things I type. It's like diarrhea of the fingers. I have an childish impulse to stir the pot, and much of the time I am half-joking, making fun of myself, being facetious, or not 100% convinced of what I'm spewing. But people get REALLY pissed off at me. That's probably because I'm silly.

"Pinky's post does not deserve the surprising criticism and rebuke it seems to be getting here. No no no, it deserves outright decimation. It's quite clear pinky that you haven't given the arguments countering yours, which have appeared here and in other threads, even the most cursory perusal. The irony that you would accuse your detractors of delusion then, is simply hilarious when it is you, who is sadly and deeply deluded. In this latest post of yours, which is thoroughly saturated with the most risibly sanctimonious and patronizing piety, you trot out one ludicrous nonexistent myth after another and expect us to somehow in spite of it, take you seriously."

Couldn't have said it better myself.

People don't really get pissed at the posts where you're blatently just stirring the pot. It's when you're making comments and ranting on and on, in that incredibly patronising, superior manner you have going on for ya that people rise up against it. It's all very well you bactracking now, certainly don't blame you, but you cannot use that excuse to get out of all that you have contributed here. M'kay pumpkin

Ask her.

Wow, waking up to this is surprising.

I firmly stand by all those downvotes. thepinky is a troll pure and simple and when I encounter her provoking rambles in my sifting, well, you can guess.

If you're trying to suggest it was blind and random downvoting, you're dead wrong. I've read most of the sift in the two years I've spent reading and watching. I've been a silent member for most of the time, but don't expect me not to downvote once I finally got my lazy ass up and bronzed!

Some people just disagree. I disagree a lot with things thepinky has said, especially concerning abortion. Don't even get me started on that thread. Oi.

And that comment on A Gentlemen's Duel was just rude for the sake of being rude.

I could go on. Odd that this is in contention. Maybe someone noticed I didn't like 'em. Aww, I'm sorry. *Hugs? Excuse me if I take a shower after, though.

I have no personal animosity towards you, but I stand by my downvotes and disagreements. Just wanted to get that out there, since I was mentioned.

It is often a sign of religious belief to blindly say things with complete conviction, whether or not one actually believe in them. If you say something here as if you are absolutely certain of them and they turn out to be wrong, someone is going to rip the argument in pieces. And sometimes (many times) it just pisses people (me) off, when someone writes something like http://www.videosift.com/video/A-Gentlemens-Duel-an-animated-short#comment-535728

It's one thing to have an opinion of how the world works, but it may be wrong and stubbornness won't make it right. I love to see the pot stirred though, so go right ahead, even if your view is not popular. But then, you've never been one to court popularity, eh?

This thread is not just a good reason to have yet another Pinky-hating party. Please. I admitted that I get a little over-zealous sometimes. I'm young and immature and idealistic and easily riled, but I never expected this sort of backlash. I'll try my best not to make everyone all uncomfortable and bothered by my opinions in the future. That is not sarcasm.

I may sound patronizing and superior sometimes, but I think I only get that way when others have been unnecessarily unkind to me first or when I'm really frustrated (ex. porn post). If you get that feeling it is because you are experiencing the affective fallacy and I cannot help what tone you inject into my words.

I do definitely stand by some of the things I have said, though. In the abortion thread, for instance, I meant what I said when I was arguing that abortion is wrong. I was attempting to get the point across that, philosophically speaking, abortion of any kind is unethical. However, ethics is not a black and white science and I do believe that in cases where the agency of the woman has been taken away by the actions of another or when her life or health is endangered, she ought to have the choice. The abortion itself is still unfortunate (to put it lightly) but it would be more of a crime to force the mother to sacrifice her life or well-being for the child's if that is not her choice. Why couldn't I have just said that in the thread? I dunno. Wish I had. THAT sort of thing is what I regret. I just type and type without really thinking it through and being brief. I usually don't troll, I spew what is going through my head at the moment.

I also meant what I posted about pornography being disgusting, the death penalty being wrong, Obama being as much of a politician as McCain, sexism in the media, whining being unhelpful, anti-religious propaganda, and about Gentlemen's Duel being un-funny and boring.

I sincerely apologize for any offense or distress I have caused. Please forgive me and let's move on. I'll try to disagree without seeming superior if you will try not to jump down my throat, call me names, and put me into categories (ex. conservative, feminazi) every time I express an opinion.

@Prozac: I truly hated Gentlemen's Duel. I didn't even crack a smile and was impatient for it to be over. I also had a feeling that most of the upvotes had something to do with bouncing boobies. I was just expressing my opinion for Pete's sake. I truly wasn't trying to troll at all. For once, however, I kept my mouth shut instead of going on and on. Thus, I wrote "the end." It was harmless and certainly did not deserve a downvote. I'm pretty sure that you just hate me. *shrug*

^ It takes character to apologize/explain like that. Kudos. Just try to learn from the reactions and feedback you've gotten in these threads. You wouldn't be the first

Thanks, Rasch. I appreciate that.

>> ^gwiz665:
It is often a sign of religious belief to blindly say things with complete conviction, whether or not one actually believe in them. If you say something here as if you are absolutely certain of them and they turn out to be wrong, someone is going to rip the argument in pieces.

I see what you're saying, Gwiz, but I didn't mean to make it seem like I don't have complete conviction about a word I say. And I'm not always typing blindly. I really do believe the things I say, but I often don't think my comments through. This may sound lame, but if you encountered me in person and we started talking about religion or porn or sexism or abortion, you would probably think me a much more reasonable and intelligent person than you do now, regardless of disagreement.

Most of my diarrhea of the mouth ocurrs because I'm angry. You guys feel like I'm being superior and patronizing and it makes you justifiably annoyed. But think about how frustrated I feel when I see something that I strongly disagree with (often on a moral level) and then read a host of comments that are often (please don't be offended) very superior and self-satisfied. The majority of active sifters share atheist or agnostic sentiments and liberal opinions. To me almost every thread feels like a group of people congratulating each other on incorrect opinions. (Again, no offense, I'm just explaining my perspective.) You can imagine why I appear so aggressive. I'm not excusing myself. I definitely need to be more cool-headed and, painful to admit, open-minded. I think we can all work on those last two things.

I'm not going to admit that I'm always absolutely wrong. That's a matter of opinion, of course. I would like to believe that if my arguments can be easily ripped into tiny pieces, it is the fault of my own failings and not those of the principles behind the argument. I'm sure that you and I very often fall short of absolute truth.

Oh my yes, absolute truth is an ideal that's hard to really get to, and doesn't really exist in morality. I am not offended at all if you think that atheism or agnosticism seems wrong to you. I have little to be offended about. I think that you have not, or don't want to, examine your religion through evidence and accept it on faith. I don't want you to "convert" or cast off your religious shackles, because I say so, but rather I would like to present the evidence such that you can come to the conclusion yourself.

I do give you props for learning from your mistakes and I certainly don't hate you, even if I downvote some of your comments.


And to stay on topic, I don't think this is worthy of a proper siftquisition, because it's not a downvote spree (on all comments/videos) and the two involved members basically just disagree.

^alien_concept

"M'kay Pumpkin" is a good example of what I was talking about earlier. I did take an extremely unfortunate tone here, but if you read volumptuous' comments, you can see that s/he? had taken a very superior tone with me as well. I was also offended by his/her comments about unwanted children (having been a member of a foster family for most of my life) and the judgment call s/he seemed to be making about whether certain people's lives are worthwhile or not.

I'm no better or worse than other people who are disrespectful, but I don't mean to be blatantly rude without provocation. Of course, provocation is no excuse, which is why I'm determined to turn over a new leaf.

>> ^thepinky:
You really do care.

And why did Prozac downvote this?!

Gwiz, do you still think it isn't a vendetta? I'm honestly asking because perhaps you see something wrong with that comment that I didn't intend or catch.

Maybe this is just a simple matter of Prozac not knowing when it is appropriate to downvote comments.

I'm not convinced it is a vendetta. She doesn't like you or your opinions and that's basically it, from my perspective. It happens.

I'm not sure it's my place to analyze the comment deeper, but why not. Comment voting is based on if you like/dislike or agree/disagree with a given post, and if ones judgment is clouded by not liking a person, it is easy to read a comment in the worst possible way.

>> ^gwiz665:
Oh my yes, absolute truth is an ideal that's hard to really get to, and doesn't really exist in morality. I am not offended at all if you think that atheism or agnosticism seems wrong to you. I have little to be offended about. I think that you have not, or don't want to, examine your religion through evidence and accept it on faith. I don't want you to "convert" or cast off your religious shackles, because I say so, but rather I would like to present the evidence such that you can come to the conclusion yourself.
I do give you props for learning from your mistakes and I certainly don't hate you, even if I downvote some of your comments.
And to stay on topic, I don't think this is worthy of a proper siftquisition, because it's not a downvote spree (on all comments/videos) and the two involved members basically just disagree.


Thanks for the understanding.

EDIT: I decided to take this religious discussion elsewhere.

Utmost respect pinky. I think you are right when you say that other people also are guilty of being patronising, and that it's easy to gloss over that when you are in agreement with their pov's. Although I always disliked immensely the way you sometimes put your statements across, I always did think that at least you had balls, even if slightly misplaced at times. Don't change, just grow and learn, like we all do and have

^ alien_concept

Wow. It's extremely cool of you to say so, Alien. I really appreciate it.

Now I feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

>> ^gwiz665:
I'm not convinced it is a vendetta. She doesn't like you or your opinions and that's basically it, from my perspective. It happens.
I'm not sure it's my place to analyze the comment deeper, but why not. Comment voting is based on if you like/dislike or agree/disagree with a given post, and if ones judgment is clouded by not liking a person, it is easy to read a comment in the worst possible way.

Too true.

Trolling is crafting a comment specifically for the purpose of pissing people off, with the hope of getting an inappropriate/overzealous reaction. I seriously doubt that's what thepinky had in mind, regardless of how patronizing some of her comments may seem. While I may find her arguments to be seriously flawed, I've never found them to be troll-like.

Comment voting has apparently evolved from its initial conception. Originally, comments could be applauded, marked inappropriate, or flagged as spam. The reason for the change to up/down arrows was an aesthetic one - a number of users found the second line of text under comments to be too busy, and so it was changed to just a pair of arrows. Somewhere along the way, those arrows became more of a mechanism to agree or disagree, instead of their original use as applauding a well crafted comment or marking one as inappropriate (ad hom attacks, racist/hateful remarks, etc.).

@UsesProzac - I generally have no problem with you using your downvote on videos as you see fit, unless you are downvoting vids based on who submitted them, as opposed to the content of the video. Your downvote history suggests the submitter has more to do with it than the content. Besides the obvious kind of downvoting spree that has gotten other users suspended, there is definitely a grey area of allowing one's votes to be influenced by the submitter. Given the limited number of downvotes, I don't think it's anything to get in a twist about. But I'd urge you to consider being more objective in your assessment of video quality. Keep in mind that your down vote affects not just the submitter, but everyone here, because a down vote on a vid makes it less likely for that vid to be seen by others, especially if cast soon after the vid is posted into the queue.

Oh and for the record pinky, I too was in foster care for a good while, so I know how it is and it gives me a bit more of an understanding about you

I've just gotten home from work, so let me reply so no one thinks I've forgotten.

I'm kind of at a loss for words and tired from work, so don't expect anything eloquent from me, right now.

I never thought I'd have to justify downvoting anything!

If it seems like there's been a sudden rash of downvoting from me, well, there has. I'm a bronze star, newly coined and excited to wield my opinion.

Oh, and thepinky, I downvoted that comment earlier in thread because I think that was a ploy for attention. I think I established earlier that I feel that's your whole intention.

And yeah, I deleted the comment you left on my profile. Are you going to get all up in arms about that, too?

Struggling ... to stay away from ... drama ...
must fight .. harder ...

Don't be a troll.

>> ^UsesProzac:
Oh, and thepinky, I downvoted that comment earlier in thread because I think that was a ploy for attention. I think I established earlier that I feel that's your whole intention.
And yeah, I deleted the comment you left on my profile. Are you going to get all up in arms about that, too?

>> ^UsesProzac:
Oh, and thepinky, I downvoted that comment earlier in thread because I think that was a ploy for attention. I think I established earlier that I feel that's your whole intention.
And yeah, I deleted the comment you left on my profile. Are you going to get all up in arms about that, too?


You think that all I want is attention and this is the reason that I comment? I'm sorry, but this is simply not true. I usually comment on videos because I feel strongly about them or I feel that I can add something to the conversation. Sometimes I say things out of anger or frustration (this is what is seen as trolling by some) or I respond waspishly to disrespect, but I do not do these things for attention. I think that you have an attitude about me that causes you to project intentions and attitudes into my words that I never had.

I really wish that you would stop downvoting my comments. At first I didn't care, but now it is somewhat disheartening to go back to nearly every one of my comments to see that it has been downvoted by the same person with no explanation offered. It is especially discouraging to see comments from the last couple of days downvoted because since Deedub posted this thread I have been making an honest effort to be better. Could you at least occassionally tell me the motives behind all of the downvotes? Then perhaps I could do something to change the things that so offend you.

For example, why these?

In reply to this comment by thepinky:
Very nice, Deedub. But no votes, of course.

In reply to this comment by thepinky:
Upvote for the feminism.

At the risk of being melodramatic: When she was talking about the sexism she encounters, I was reminded of some of the comments made to me on the sift when I still had a photo of myself for my avatar. People accused me of "knowing that I was cute" and "using it to get ahead" and "trying to make people like me," etc. Even other women said that if I wanted to be a real feminist I should change my avatar. These comments surprised me because I was using that picture for the simple reason that while I was quickly creating a profile a friend suggested, "Why don't you use such-and-such picture? That would be perfect." (i.e. it was the right size, a closeup, and the facial expression was a good representation of me.) I wasn't trying to use my looks to get anything from anyone, and it is pretty insulting when people assume that a woman is intentionally using her appearance for personal gain. (Well, I suppose we all want to look good for selfish reasons, but you know what I mean, right?)

Maybe only my weird mind sees the parallel. Of course, Lara Logan as a journalist has it much worse than me on VideoSift.


In reply to this comment by thepinky:
Great video. We complain about more than just technology, don't we? Most of the complaining that I've seen in recent years has had something to do with government, war, and economy. When I hear complaining, it seems like Americans grieve about the state of our nation not because we have it all that badly, but because we are concerned about the dying soldiers, the poverty-stricken families, preserving the Earth for the good of our children, etc. That's why it is okay to be dissatisfied with the world. Hopefully it will result in positive change.

In reply to this comment by thepinky:
Everyone likes the idea of representatives who carry out the will of the people until

1. they are one of the minority
2. they are one of the majority, but the representative ignores the majority.

In reply to this comment by thepinky:
Thanks for noticing. I actually have a good sense of humor, but most people are too pissed off while reading my comments to notice.

They seem harmless enough to me.

By the way, I appreciate the upvote, but I thought it was ironic that the only comment of mine that you have upvoted is also one of the few comments I'm actually ashamed of posting.

In reply to this comment by thepinky:

Well, at least your morals don't conflict. (Excuse me while I vomit.) But, seriously, if you don't think infanticide is wrong, then being pro-choice would be a logical choice for you, albeit immoral and repugnant. It's these people who don't see the difference between infanticide and abortion that I don't understand.>>

^Fronzer:
It's arguments like these that make me glad that I'm not only pro-choice, but also don't have any qualms regarding infantcide.
Oddly enough, I'm against the death penalty. Strange how that works, isn't it?


I DO understand the difference between infanticide and abortion very well. I don't know why I wrote that.

Great comment, jonny. Very informative.

Who the fuck is Pinky?

pinky when you are 10 years older this will all make more sense.

what i learned about arguing is... less is more. and humour works best. and if you tell people they are wrong, they will fight back with equal and opposite force, regardless of facts.

you have to decide if you like the fights and the infamy, or if you actually want to change people's point of view.

and you must accept how little you know, before anyone will listen to you. people with all the answers are just not credible.

^ MINK

Ten years would certainly do me some good.

I definitely don't enjoy fights and infamy. They bring me down. Neither do I expect to change anyone's point of view. I would like to every once in a while give some food for thought and interrupt the deafening chorus of unchallenged Liberal Atheist beliefs. That would be cool.

I hope you never get the impression from me that I think I have all of the answers. Naturally if someone doesn't agree with you it is easy to feel like they are arrogant. I almost always feel like I'm arguing with a person who seems to think he or she knows everything. This is probably my own fault and not theirs. Indeed, I think that if I seem like I have all of the answers, almost all other sifters are guilty of the same thing.

Here is a little song I wrote
You might want to sing it note for note
Don't worry be happy
In every life we have some trouble
When you worry you make it double
Don't worry, be happy......

Ain't got no place to lay your head
Somebody came and took your bed
Don't worry, be happy
The land lord say your rent is late
He may have to litigate
Don't worry, be happy
Lood at me I am happy
Don't worry, be happy
Here I give you my phone number
When you worry call me
I make you happy
Don't worry, be happy
Ain't got no cash, ain't got no style
Ain't got not girl to make you smile
But don't worry be happy
Cause when you worry
Your face will frown
And that will bring everybody down
So don't worry, be happy (now).....

There is this little song I wrote
I hope you learn it note for note
Like good little children
Don't worry, be happy
Listen to what I say
In your life expect some trouble
But when you worry
You make it double
Don't worry, be happy......
Don't worry don't do it, be happy
Put a smile on your face
Don't bring everybody down like this
Don't worry, it will soon past
Whatever it is
Don't worry, be happy

aaaaaaaaaaand that's a wrap folks.

Where is the restroom?

Being ignored is WAAAAY better than being constantly downvoted. Thanks, Prozac. I think that if we tried really hard we could learn to appreciate one another.

I think that if I tried really hard I might have an aneurysm.

Haha!

That joke would have been funnier without the downvote. I want to upvote it but I...can't...quite...click...

I was quite serious. If you and I became friends, my brain could very possibly turn into blood-clotted mush.

Who said anything about friends?

"I think that if we tried really hard we could learn to appreciate one another."

I'm so sorry I didn't adhere to your exact wording, but rather your sentiment.

I appreciate Jessica Alba, but it's not like we're friends or she knows where I live, or she has a restraining order on me... yet.

If you were talking about mutual appreciation, it would approach the realm of friendship, but seeing as Jessica Alba only comes to you from a monitor..

Hey, it's her that can't stop staring at me.

LOL. I saw that video and it made me like her moar.

Mud wrestling would settle this.

ap·pre·ci·ate
Pronunciation: \ə-ˈprē-shē-ˌāt, -ˈpri- also -ˈprē-sē-\
Function: verb

a: to grasp the nature, worth, quality, or significance of
b: to value or admire highly
c: to judge with heightened perception or understanding
d: be fully aware of
e: to recognize with gratitude

I think I was going for A and C. And maybe the whole "value" part of B. As in: I value you as a person and would not choose to hate you based on your dislike of me or your opinions expressed on VideoSift. In other words, I am not personally offended by your every comment because I appreciate that you are a person who is entitled to her own opinions.

>> ^MrFisk:
Mud wrestling would settle this.
Ick.

I didn't mean to downvote this, btw. I hovered over the button for a little while and my finger slipped.

Liar.

oh.my.

Pants on fire. Er, sorry, ankle-length skirt on fire.

See? I appreciate that you are a very spiteful person! (Trying to be funny here. I think this entire "conversation" is amusing. No insult intended. I thought I'd explain myself since you tend to take my comments in the worst possible way.)

P.S. I may not wear ankle-length skirts, but I'm stuffy enough to prefer that you don't use crude language on my profile, if you please.

I like it when you try to be funny. You should try more. Remember, everything takes practice.