Tell me?
Yes, sir
Have you, in fact, got any cheese here at all?
Yes, sir
Really?
No, not really, sirYou haven’t?
No, sir, not a scrap
I was deliberately
Wasting your time, sirWell, I’m sorry, but I’m going
To have to shoot you
–Monty Python/The Cheese Shop Sketch
Some people enjoy a good argument. Some people enjoy any argument at all, even the most irrational.
I myself have been known to argue about various things just to be a pain in the ass. Hard to believe, I know.
A while back I was very fond of a certain knitting web site. Yes, I really do know how to have a good time. Anyway. On the site, they had a discussion board that was initially about knitting but eventually became a general debate board when the owners got so many complaints about a particularly nasty thread about pinny porn which ended up turning into a brawl about subservient feminine roles in religion and child abuse. Long story. Yes, I said knitting site.
I seldom participated in the proceedings, but over time some topics stood out as repeat offenders. These were the topics that would always degenerate into mayhem and nastiness no matter how hard the person starting a thread promised it would be different this time.
Copyright
Circumcision
Being childless
Breast feeding
Vaccinations.
Really, anything about children
Welfare
Mormons
Weight
The knitters among you are nodding in recognition about copyright but everyone else might be a little confused how a discussion about copyright could possibly get out of control. Well, it’s really something. Knitters often use patterns. Those patterns are typically copyrighted. People tend not to consider copyright when making copies of patterns for their friends or when selling items made from the patterns. It’s understandable that it would need explaining. What always caused heated discussion was when people would try to justify why it was OK for them to disregard he rules.
Knitters, it turns out, are quite the scofflaws when it comes to copyright, which is clearly only meant to apply to other people.
The discussions about children were also particularly vicious. One discussion about circumcision had one knitter accuse another of supporting the torture and mutilation of infants because her religion required her to have her son circumcised.
In another case, a woman who claimed to be a happily “submitted” wife and mother mentioned spanking her son with a switch whenever he was disobedient. At some point, knitters who read her personal blog managed to figure out where she lived and called Child Protective Services regarding child abuse.
The discussions were normally characterized by a mob mentality. On other topics, the same knitters were capable of very intelligent conversation, but when children or copyright were involved there was often a spectacular lack of common sense and basic civilized behavior.
Which made it fun to watch.
The last time I visited the site , there had just been a moderator coup. A new regime is currently running the board, and the drama has radically decreased.
I’ll miss being able to count on them for some verbal fireworks.
The website is called Ravelry.