Why join if you don't like Segways?

[jgbackes]

Let's push this question around using this thread instead of the e-bike thread that is currently getting derailed.

Why would a person that doesn't think Segways have any value compared to a bicycle join a Segway discussion group?

Why would a person that thinks Fords are the best cars join a Chevy group?

Why would someone that doesn't like NPR pledge?

I have ridden lots of bikes, I have ridden in many charity events. I have biked around Lake Tahoe. I am not anti bike!

I don't understand why when cars, motorcycles, horses are brought up on this forum we don't hear from lovers of those modes transportation that our Segways are flawed in comparison.

My point in the previous discussion was not meant as an attack on having or voicing an opinion, but an attack on voicing an opinion that is not on the general "Pro Segway" topic.

It would not bother me at all in a bike forum for a person to post "Segway owners are losers, they should get bikes instead." I would fight for their right to say it in a place where people are interested.

I surf this forum by using the "New Posts" feature. I just don't like clicking on a link, and finding out it is once again someone that doesn't have anything nice to say about my hobby "poking me in the eye"

Why post in a HO train forum that O-Gauge is better? Why post on a Cessna forum that only Pipers are worth flying?

My mother used to say "If you don't have something nice to say, don't say anything at all"

If you don't enjoy Segways, please keep your opinion to yourself and find a group of people that are like minded.

If you continue to post on a Segway forum that bicycles are better than Segways, you are a troll.

[KSagal]

Well said.

I like bikes too. I ride bikes. But I do not go to bike forums and post how segways are better. I am many things, but I am not a troll.

Some on this forum have posted that John M keeps us somehow more realistic, because if we post anything too absurd, he will trash it. I disagree. If we post that we like to glide around on our segways, he will post that is absurd, and trash it.

Case in point. Someone said that the segway is a transportation device (abbreviated from the original) and JohnM could not help but try to indicate that bikes are superior. It is his opinion, but it is not germane on a segway enthusiast forum.

[Tritium]

All I said was the Segway is just as much of a B/R/U/T tool as a bicycle.
John M felt the need to post a picture of himself and a bicycle as evidence that my statement was false.


If he thinks his rickety old rusty bicycle is any better of a BRUT tool than a Segway, he can go to a biking forum and tell them all about it.

Like Karl said, I don't go to the Android forums saying my iPhone is batter than their Galaxy S4.

[KSagal]

Originally Posted by Tritium

All I said was the Segway is just as much of a B/R/U/T tool as a bicycle.
John M felt the need to post a picture of himself and a bicycle as evidence that my statement was false.


If he thinks his rickety old rusty bicycle is any better of a BRUT tool than a Segway, he can go to a biking forum and tell them all about it.

Like Karl said, I don't go to the Android forums saying my iPhone is batter than their Galaxy S4.

Considering the fact that I own an S3, and my company phone is an S4, you couldn't say it, but that is beside the point.

JohnM is here because he enjoys trying to take the wind out of the sails of people here. Some people have that kind of need in their life.

[Tritium]

Originally Posted by KSagal

Considering the fact that I own an S3, and my company phone is an S4, you couldn't say it, but that is beside the point.

JohnM is here because he enjoys trying to take the wind out of the sails of people here. Some people have that kind of need in their life.

Oops........

[jgbackes]

I read this today on Slashdot…

"Chris Mooney reports at Slate that research conducted by Erin Buckels of the University of Manitoba confirmed that people who engage in internet trolling are characterized by personality traits that fall in the so-called Dark Tetrad: Machiavellianism (willingness to manipulate and deceive others), narcissism (egotism and self-obsession), psychopathy (the lack of remorse and empathy), and sadism (pleasure in the suffering of others). In the study, trolls were identified in a variety of ways. One was by simply asking survey participants what they 'enjoyed doing most' when on online comment sites, offering five options: 'debating issues that are important to you,' 'chatting with others,' 'making new friends,' 'trolling others,' and 'other.' The study recruited participants from Amazon's Mechanical Turk website and two measures of sadistic personality were administered (PDF): the Short Sadistic Impulse Scale and the Varieties of Sadistic Tendencies Scale. Only 5.6 percent of survey respondents actually specified that they enjoyed 'trolling.' By contrast, 41.3 percent of Internet users were 'non-commenters,' meaning they didn't like engaging online at all. So trolls are, as has often been suspected, a minority of online commenters, and an even smaller minority of overall Internet users. Overall, the authors found that the relationship between sadism and trolling was the strongest, and that indeed, sadists appear to troll because they find it pleasurable. 'Both trolls and sadists feel sadistic glee at the distress of others. Sadists just want to have fun ... and the Internet is their playground!' The study comes as websites are increasingly weighing steps to rein in trollish behavior but the study authors aren't sure that fix is a realistic one. 'Because the behaviors are intrinsically motivating for sadists, comment moderators will likely have a difficult time curbing trolling with punishments (e.g., banning users),' says Buckels. 'Ultimately, the allure of trolling may be too strong for sadists, who presumably have limited opportunities to express their sadistic interests in a socially-desirable manner.' Perhaps posting rights should only be unlocked if you pass a test."

[gbrandwood]

This topic has come up before over the years. I maintain that if JohnM is not breaking any of the forum rules, he is fine being here.

I hate when posts are deleted.

I think to only have pro Segway folk on the forum who think everything is rosy is missing a big part of the debate.

Sure, he might challenge our thoughts or points of view but since when was that a bad idea?

[JohnM]

I'm surprised that anyone would want to be part of a forum where I am a senior active member, second only in longevity to the administrator, JohnG. Welcome one and all, regardless of what brings you here.

[jgbackes]

Originally Posted by JohnM

I'm surprised that anyone would want to be part of a forum where I am a senior active member, second only in longevity to the administrator, JohnG. Welcome one and all, regardless of what brings you here.

The question I was asking was not answered. Why did you join? I have to assume there was some reason behind your decision? Do you think you are a troll or am I just misunderstanding your posts.

Seriously please take some time and tell me what I'm missing.

[SegNerd]

I think part of the issue is a very high standard for "liking Segways."

I like Segways very much, and mine has changed my life for the better. But there have been times where, if I said something even mildly critical about any aspect of a Segway (admittedly, sometimes due to poor phrasing on my part), sometimes I am instantly regarded as a troll who was attacking the members.

Is it enough to like Segways but have concerns about certain things? (Not being specific here because I don't want to sidetrack.) Do you have to be a fanatic who thinks that Segways are perfect and criticism of Segways is heresy?

This may not apply to the members mentioned earlier in this thread, but it really doesn't take much around here to get labeled as a "hater."