Where Did Everyone Go?

[dancingalone]

I haven't been active for some time, but now that I am back it seems the forum is a lot slower with fewer participating members than in the past. Where do the cool kids go these days to talk martial arts?

 

[jobo]

I haven't been active for some time, but now that I am back it seems the forum is a lot slower with fewer participating members than in the past. Where do the cool kids go these days to talk martial arts?

facebook

 

[donald1]

I usually just talk about martial arts here if not in class while it happens. Most of my friends could care less about martial arts so I rarely talk about it unless one of them brings it up.

I kinda like Facebook... Like anything, it has pros and cons. Theres a lot of cringy 'inspiration quotes' on facebook. The martial arts groups there are no exception to this.

Other than that, same ol', same ol'.

 

[Monkey Turned Wolf]

Facebook, reddit and discord I believe. Not a fan of any of those personally when it comes to MA discussion.

 

[Flying Crane]

I stay off Facebook altogether.

 

[_Simon_]

I'm active on 3-4 forums all up and this forum is the most active our of them! Looks good to me, but not sure what it usually was like [emoji14]

 

[granfire]

Forums are declining in general.
I try to stay off FB these days.

Discord is the new platform, but who knows.
It's good but lacks certain features. I am considering to start a channel to give my FB friends a means to not be there.

And when you can't practice what you preach, you quickly run out of material to talk about.

 

[jobo]

Forums are declining in general.
I try to stay off FB these days.

Discord is the new platform, but who knows.
It's good but lacks certain features. I am considering to start a channel to give my FB friends a means to not be there.

And when you can't practice what you preach, you quickly run out of material to talk about.

yes they are, 10 years ago you could find an active forum on nearly and topic of intrest,
its hard to say why that may be, lot of reasons i suggest, moderation id one key reason, with mods shutting down any debate that becomes passioned, as people generaly want to talk about thibgs they feel pasiobate about with people who are equally passionate, it becomes an exercise in futility and peopke just go else where,, nothing kills a forum faster than a whole lot of people agreeing with each other , who wants to read that, apart from the people who cant stand being disagreed with, they go off and start their own fqcebook group were no one can disgree.


i returned to a cycling forum, that 8 tears ago had 50 ir 60 active members arguing with extreme passion on the merits of varius chain lubrication, its not just ma that gets lost in the detail, i was verbally attacked threaten with violance and suvsequently banned for saying i put wd 40 on my chain. which no one else agreed with

now there just two old blokes agreeing with each other on being old is&&%%

i used to go on conspiracy site, where people threatenibg to stab me, fire bomb my house or sugesting we shoukd meet and sort it out like men was extremly common,

they never once turned up or maybe they did and realisibg how big i was kept going, i miss the wild west internet

they eventually banned all the people who didnt think the world was flat, that we were rule by shape shifting pan dimebtial beings or that you are enslaved by your birth certificate and the site just died of agreement

it was a little like going to the asylum to laugh at the loonies, but it pasted an hour on pleasantly enough

 

[dancingalone]

yes they are, 10 years ago you could find an active forum on nearly and topic of intrest,

I just joined a Facebook karate group. It seems much more active and the broad majority of members use their actual names on their accounts. I like that. At least there is some knowledge there of who people are and whom they train with.

 

[jobo]

I just joined a Facebook karate group. It seems much more active and the broad majority of members use their actual names on their accounts. I like that. At least there is some knowledge there of who people are and whom they train with.

im glad youve found somewhere your happy,

alot depends one what you want or need, a lot of facebook groups end up as echo chambers, where by their nature they are lijely to all agree that karate or what ever is a very effective life enhancibg art, which is comftable to have your views reflected back at you, but can also be problematic if non of the views you have collectivly agreed on are ever challenged, you may well be collectivly wrong about the art its application to the real world of the best way to train it,and you will stay collectivly wrong unless other vuews are heard and considered

and thts true no matter what the subject matter is

 

[dancingalone]

im glad youve found somewhere your happy,

alot depends one what you want or need, a lot of facebook groups end up as echo chambers, where by their nature they are lijely to all agree that karate or what ever is a very effective life enhancibg art, which is comftable to have your views reflected back at you, but can also be problematic if non of the views you have collectivly agreed on are ever challenged, you may well be collectivly wrong about the art its application to the real world of the best way to train it,and you will stay collectivly wrong unless other vuews are heard and considered

Well, point taken. But, I'll be honest. At my age and years of experience in karate, I'm not exactly looking to have my views changed by a young buck newly enchanted with <insert new art or method>. I know a lot about karate and have learned from some of the best. Haven't used it much in 'real' situations, nor do I expect to. For me, it's a hobby personally and a profession where I make some income. I am content to network and talk obscure fine points of the art with others of like mind and experiences.

Others may find it important to evangelize about their styles and systems. I do not.

 

[Steve]

I'm on a coffee forum and a soap making forum that are both very active. In both cases, the thing that I think keeps them active is it's all based on performance. As a result, there's a complete lack of ********. And in each, there is a science element and an art element. Both drive a lot of interesting discussion.

If you screw something up with soap, it can be diagnosed. Did you add too much lye? Did you pour it too hot? Ultimately, was your technique sound?

Similarly, if you screw something up with coffee, it can be diagnosed. Roast, grinder, water, coffee maker, technique. If it tastes bitter in the cup, it's because you did something wrong. Period.

Both have plenty of room for preferences and opinions, but everyone's opinions are respected and valued because they are all grounded in results. "I do X this way, because it results in Y."

MA isn't like that, and more to the point, this forum isn't like that. We can't even agree on what a result looks like, much less have a discussion that is results driven. Shoot, just today I had to explain again that to be an expert in something you have to do that thing. It seems like common sense to me, and yet here we are.

 

[jobo]

I'm on a coffee forum and a soap making forum that are both very active. In both cases, the thing that I think keeps them active is it's all based on performance. As a result, there's a complete lack of ********. And in each, there is a science element and an art element. Both drive a lot of interesting discussion.

If you screw something up with soap, it can be diagnosed. Did you add too much lye? Did you pour it too hot? Ultimately, was your technique sound?

Similarly, if you screw something up with coffee, it can be diagnosed. Roast, grinder, water, coffee maker, technique. If it tastes bitter in the cup, it's because you did something wrong. Period.

Both have plenty of room for preferences and opinions, but everyone's opinions are respected and valued because they are all grounded in results. "I do X this way, because it results in Y."

MA isn't like that, and more to the point, this forum isn't like that. We can't even agree on what a result looks like, much less have a discussion that is results driven. Shoot, just today I had to explain again that to be an expert in something you have to do that thing. It seems like common sense to me, and yet here we are.

im facinated to know thereare devotees to either sufficent to run a forum, well coffee fine i live on it, but indepth discusion on java blend, that sounds like heaven.
but soap, that stuff i qadh my feet with, that a suprise

though the most unussual one ive seen was a forum dedicated to the appreciaction of electricity pylons

 

[Kung Fu Wang]

Many years ago, my friend asked me, "Why do you spend time on internet discussion? If someone says bad thing about you, what can you do?" Even today I still don't have answer for him.

A: What should I do ...?
B: You may try ...
A: Don't give me those mystery Chinese garbage ...
B: &^%$#@
A: @#$%^&

 

[Steve]

im facinated to know thereare devotees to either sufficent to run a forum, well coffee fine i live on it, but indepth discusion on java blend, that sounds like heaven.
but soap, that stuff i qadh my feet with, that a suprise

though the most unussual one ive seen was a forum dedicated to the appreciaction of electricity pylons

Coffee is pretty straightforward. I mean, if you consider the choices between beans, roasting profiles (light roasts, dark roasts, prolonged first crack, etc), brewing method (moka pot, drip, pour over, french press, siphon/vacuum press, cold brew, espresso), and then the different equipment. And that's really before you get into specific recipes or techniques. I mean, there are a lot of discussions about dosing and extraction, grind quality. It's art and science, which is fertile grounds (haha) for discussion.

Regarding soap making, it's actually very similar to coffee. No one argues the science of it... but you have a lot of discussion about technique. And the choices and troubleshooting never end with soap making. I mean, you can pretty much use any kind of oil to make soap, and they all have different types of acids in them (Lauric, Myristic, Palmitic, Stearic, Ricinoleic, Oleic, Linoleic, and/or Linolenic). Each acid brings something unique to the party when it interacts with the lye. So, it's a lot of individual trial and error. Pig tallow is going to make a different bar of soap than olive oil (aka castile soap). And this is just the soap. You can also add all sorts of adjuncts, from essential oils to things like honey, charcoal, micas, clays, beeswax, coffee, beer, milks (e.g., goat milk). And even after that, you have the art of making the soap. Some people are just crazy talented. For what it's worth, I make really good soap... but I'm still working on making artistic soap.

 

[hoshin1600]

contrary to Jobo, i feel there to much arguing and BS. there is a big difference between debating a topic or concept and being a $#!t bag who argues every little comment and irrelevant word someone writes. i got sick and tired of people making a big deal out of how someone expresses their opinion and the words they use rather than the opinion and/ or intended concept itself. i have seen martial arts forums, that like this one were really busy and once people started flaming each other and throwing insults the page all but disappeared. its sad to see but some people are just a cancer who drive all the decent people away. if im your cancer ,,, im sorry. i also think people in general (because of politics) are more divided and set in their ways and thoughts and do not want to hear others opinions.

 

[jobo]

contrary to Jobo, i feel there to much arguing and BS. there is a big difference between debating a topic or concept and being a $#!t bag who argues every little comment and irrelevant word someone writes. i got sick and tired of people making a big deal out of how someone expresses their opinion and the words they use rather than the opinion and/ or intended concept itself. i have seen martial arts forums, that like this one were really busy and once people started flaming each other and throwing insults the page all but disappeared. its sad to see but some people are just a cancer who drive all the decent people away. if im your cancer ,,, im sorry. i also think people in general (because of politics) are more divided and set in their ways and thoughts and do not want to hear others opinions.

calling people s##t bags isnt really helping to foster a culture of calm considerate discusion, is it?

 

[Steve]

if im your cancer ,,, im sorry.

This made me laugh out loud. It brought to mind the phrase, "Every failed relationship in your life has one thing in common: you."

 

[isshinryuronin]

Well, point taken. But, I'll be honest. At my age and years of experience in karate, I'm not exactly looking to have my views changed by a young buck newly enchanted with <insert new art or method>. I know a lot about karate and have learned from some of the best. Haven't used it much in 'real' situations, nor do I expect to. For me, it's a hobby personally and a profession where I make some income. I am content to network and talk obscure fine points of the art with others of like mind and experiences.

Others may find it important to evangelize about their styles and systems. I do not.

Excellent! Let's get obscure and discuss the finer points of advanced karate. That may leave out some YouTube karate experts, though - Too bad.

Re: the drop off in posters, it has gone way down this year. Those that purposely post provocative or illogical/dumb points just to be contrary and get a rise out of others may be a contributing factor; along with prolonged back and forth between two posters, each trying to top the other. It is boring to the rest of us. After 3 such back and forths each, if there is no agreement or compromise between the two, they should disengage and not consider it a surrender. It's actually a victory for the rest of us. Perhaps a Moderator could step in and suggest a conclusion to the dialog?

 

[Steve]

Excellent! Let's get obscure and discuss the finer points of advanced karate. That may leave out some YouTube karate experts, though - Too bad.

Re: the drop off in posters, it has gone way down this year. Those that purposely post provocative or illogical/dumb points just to be contrary and get a rise out of others may be a contributing factor; along with prolonged back and forth between two posters, each trying to top the other. It is boring to the rest of us. After 3 such back and forths each, if there is no agreement or compromise between the two, they should disengage and not consider it a surrender. It's actually a victory for the rest of us. Perhaps a Moderator could step in and suggest a conclusion to the dialog?

I actually put someone on the ignore list and it's been pretty nice. Hopefully that helps with the back and forth you mention. I'll not contribute to it anymore.