Aspie Power vrs WP Negativity

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Cowardly Lion: All right, I'll go in there for Dorothy. Wicked Witch or no Wicked Witch, guards or no guards, I'll tear them apart. I may not come out alive, but I'm going in there. There's only one thing I want you fellows to do.
Tin Woodsman, Scarecrow: What's that?
Cowardly Lion: Talk me out of it!


Recently I pulled away somewhat from WP due to the extreme negativity of many threads, the battle of the sexes among men and women, the ugly trolling, and general lack to harmony and goodwill amongst some members who choose to air their dirty laundry with on line conflict.

While I believe many here (thank you for your helping guidance) are working for the common good by keeping the tone of their rhetoric positive and encouraging, the 'glass half empty' crowd seem to have a foothold over most topics of discussion. Chipping in, one finds confirmation from those other despondent's, and those wanting affirmation of the hopelessness that they incorrectly perceive being an aspie is all about.

I also note that many posters, start frenetically then leave, as if dissatisfied with their place in this community, or unable to stomach the ongoing barrage of NT slagging etc, aspie girls vrs guys, and general negative tone.

I believe that many younger members here, are in need of positive advice and guidance, as they feel their way in the NT darkness that surrounds their lives.

So, coming here to find support, many become overwhelmed by negativity and depressing topics. Hardly a refuge for aspies!! !


What I am jabbering on about is simply consider the effects of your topics on others. Especially the more mature posters, who carry the responsibility of age, experience and some authority.

As much as the younger are able to become more positive in outlook with affirmation of true aspie power, the negative crowd could do well by not reciprocating to negative attitudes and bringing themselves down further than where they already may be, or are fast becoming.

If this sounds somewhat obtuse or ethereal in meaning, my basic message is to not ruin this refuge by ugly small talk, take some exercise in the sun and put on a sunny face least the wind turns and that expression becomes fixed, like that of some grumpy old folks, which in turn like a contagion affects those around them.

Aspies can more easily than NT be generally happy to themselves, if they realise their potential power AS AN ASPIE, instead of trying to be something they are not.


Courage and strength, like the lion looking for a heart in The Wizard of Oz


Scarecrow: Come along, Dorothy. You don't want any of *those* apples.
Apple Tree: Are you hinting my apples aren't what they ought to be?
Scarecrow: Oh, no. It's just that she doesn't like little green worms!

You make a good argument.

Somebody's got my tail!

I agree. The tone on the boards is sometimes jaded and depressive, yet there are many opportunities for uplifting discussion.

One issue is that, in the Haven, people don't generally post about how happy they are due to the nature of that forum as a means of support during hard times. Perhaps there should be a forum where people can share good news, success stories etc?

Also, I would be very happy to see less confrontation in the Love and Dating forum.

I think it helps to start topics on productive things, self-help being one of them. I know I have taken great strides to improve my understanding of my own emotions, and I would like to share this information with others to see if they had all learned different kinds of introspection.

I agree, the forums could be a little less grumpy and a little more positive. It's why I usually don't go into the haven or love forums, those are usually the ones that make me walk away feeling worse.

Those are really good points for everybody to consider. I feel that everybody should read this.

I agree that there can be some grumpiness here, but I also understand that it is hard not to be grumpy for some people. Some people have it rough.

There is one advantage to grumpy threads: Someone coming here the first time, new to their condition, can look and say "Hey, it's not just me! I'm not the only one!" That in itself can be helpful to someone.

Indeed, that is true.

Of course it depends on what the "grumping" is about. A lot of it drives users away before they even sign up.

I dont wish to deny anyone having a good rant when they really need it, or others being able to sympathise in turn.

If getting people to read your thread by using catchy tabloid style headings becomes the norm, and manipulating others by appealing to their darker side, then I would question the value to others and the WP community, and parallel the temptation of christ would be more the work of the beast, dividing and conquering, this aspie community?

IE: '666 Beast Runs Rampant at Wrong Planet'

Yeah, it's one thing to rant about something common to the Aspie experience looking for support. It's a double edged sword sometimes though. Especially with Aspies when we tend to assume everyone thinks like us. Even I have posted a complaint I assumed would get a lot of "yeah, I get it" responses, but got, "what the hell is wrong with you?" type responses instead. That can take you off guard, and it's easy to fall into defensiveness from there.

I think that kind of thing is probably more often the cause than not of a lot of the caustic stuff that happens here. But it's somewhat understandable too, if you remember that most of us forget not everyone thinks like us, and it's bound to happen sometimes that every once in a while, nobody does. If you come here looking for support, and get that instead, from others who have the same problem of not understanding or forgetting that you may not think like them, a vicious cycle begins.

It's because of understanding that we all tend to have that problem that the moderators allow things to go a bit further here than you would see on most other forums. We're just Aspies being Aspies.

It would be cool, I think, if there were at least one forum dedicated to positive talk and thinking, with much stricter rules than the other forums. The Haven is supposed to be something like that, in a way, but that one is specifically for people who are in distress. What about a forum that you don't go to when you're distressed, but when you just want to be surrounded by positive energy.

I really think WP needs a place for that, where negative speech, flaming, and ranting are not tolerated. Have you considered suggesting it in the WP.net discussion forum?

EDIT: What I mean is a separate forum section exclusively dedicated to it. I could be wrong, but I think it's been suggested before.

http://www.wrongplanet.net/forum13.html

Last edited by MrXxx on 10 Sep 2010, 12:11 am, edited 1 time in total.

I imagine if some of the controversial and naturally divisive topics quiet down, some may get to relax as a result. If the current state of affairs that people have to live through don't sit well with some others, well they on the other hand won't be in a hurry to tone down the discourse on serious issues for the sake of civility and "positivity". I'm in favor of saying provocative things to get attention to a discussion, as long as such a tactic is temporary in order to get others to start considering something.

Our transparencies and consistent honesty can be a Mr. Hyde behind the Dr. Jeckell. The problem is that we tend to be smart enough to pick up on the B.S. or negativity, but do not always know how to respond with more "neurotypical tact", is the best way I can put it. The result is often these negative arguments. I do not have the answer to this seemingly intractable problem. I just hope that in the end, cooler heads prevail (our logical side), and things dont get too far out of hand.

I made this picture with Wordle at http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/2404671 ... zard_of_Oz
[img][800:641]http://imgur.com/BTlYw.jpg[/img]