I don't think the marijuana thing is offensive. Knowing how many kids do it these days, it's not a big deal to me. I'm not stupid enough to do it or try it, so it doesn't offend me in anyway. What's sad is that I find it funny. :p
I don't think the marijuana thing is offensive. Knowing how many kids do it these days, it's not a big deal to me. I'm not stupid enough to do it or try it, so it doesn't offend me in anyway. What's sad is that I find it funny. :p
But Anna & Karen were right when they said it is up to us to change things. It takes more than one or two people, it has to be more than that.
I know I haven't been posting nearly as much as I did before and Angus's death has had quite a lot to do with it, and then getting a new puppy, and then holidays and all. But I truly haven't felt like my heart has been in PT like it used to be.
I even joined a mastiff board, nice people who will help me with problems or offer suggestions since I've never had one and no one here has one. Of course they are all very nice, but it's not PT!
I have formed quite a few wonderful friendships here and am so glad that I found this board and wouldn't trade it for the world.
So I guess what I'm saying is I've been feeling the same way and thought I was the only one. I'm glad to know I'm not though.
So let's get the holidays over and get our fingers to clicking and start having some fun here!!!!
I want to see lots of pictures and hear lots of stories about everyone's Christmas:D
Anyone else with me????!!!!
I did end up deleting the "marijuana gum" thread, as the bad was far outweighing the good in it.
Anna, we would love more posts from you! After Christmas, we'll hold you to that!
For me, the only negative thing about PT are threads like this. :(
How is this negative? There has been a lot of discussion of how PT has changed lately outside PT, and for those of us who have enjoyed the board for many years, it is something that's upsetting, as PT is our passion online. We like to see PT remain its wonderful self, and really, the only reason to make this thread was to discuss the problem, get together, and make PT the wonderful place it always was all over again. Now that everyone 'knows,' hopefully we'll all be able to get together and make PT fun again. Problems that are ignored and put under the carpet can never be solved. You won't understand the 'change' we're talking about unless you've been here for over a year or longer.Quote:
Originally posted by lizzielou742
For me, the only negative thing about PT are threads like this. :(
Thanks Karen. :D
I'm with you Anna. More pictures and more fun threads after New Years. ;)
I guess I never really notice problems, I just go on my merry way posting, and then things like this come up and make me sad that there's people who don't like PT anymore, or who think it should be changed somehow. I guess I feel like talking about negativity brings about more negativity.
Not that I think you all are wrong for talking about it...by all means go ahead....I guess I'm saying not everyone out there notices all these "changes" until they're brought up.
"The Change" was bound to happen. Ever since I've been at PT, there has been fighting. I've watched so many people get attacked here. People have a hard time being open minded. People can get so judgemental and set in their ways sometimes. And certain people can be so cruel. I have seen alot of people get kicked when they are already down.
It eventually breaks the spirit.
I know that it's broken mine quite a bit. I don't feel comfortable being myself on PT. I quickly learned that being honest and forward just causes bashing. I talk about things in my life, but for the most part, I hold back on alot of things that I am thinking or doing. I only discuss certain things with my PT friends through PM's or messenger. I know I am not the only one that feels that way.
I don't think there is a solution though. We've got thousands of members here. We've got all ages and backgrounds. We're bound to have different personalities and opinions. I don't think we can force each and every PT member to be compassionate and open minded. Everyone has to put their two cents in. That eventually runs people off. They get tired of wondering how their post will be judged. They get tired of seeing all the bickering. They get tired pretending to be perfect all the time.
Because, God forbid...no one here makes mistakes, right? We all have a huge savings account set aside to pay for our animal's vet bills in case of an emergency. We'll let our children and our selves starve to death before we neglect our animals, right? We all have a backup plan if we suddenly lose our job or our house. None of us have ever accidentally left our dogs outside over night. None of us have ever accidentally caused our dogs to escape. None of us have ever procrastinated on spaying or neutering our dogs. Now you can stand here and say that when those situations have come up, PT has been supportive. Yeah, I have seen people react wonderfully sometimes. But SOME of those same people turn around and bash the person through PM's and their Live Journals. Some people think that they are the perfect pet owners and everyone should be just like them.
Who wants to wonder which situation will be bashed and which will be supportive. I've seen the same situation, different people each time get totally different reactions. I guess how popular you are goes into play too.
Now, I really don't need to explain myself. The open minded, compassionate, honest people on PT will understand that I am not speaking of PT as a whole. Only the guilty ones will be offended by this post.
I think I kind of go thru life like Lizzie does. With rose colored glasses.Quote:
Originally posted by lizzielou742
I guess I never really notice problems, I just go on my merry way posting, and then things like this come up and make me sad that there's people who don't like PT anymore, or who think it should be changed somehow. I guess I feel like talking about negativity brings about more negativity.
Not that I think you all are wrong for talking about it...by all means go ahead....I guess I'm saying not everyone out there notices all these "changes" until they're brought up.
The things that bother me with PT are things that I deal with everyday in my life. Back stabbing - being hypocritical- talking behind backs.
OH Yes I do my share of gossiping with my 'clique' in the chat but what drives me batty is people who rake someone over the coals for doing something when they did something verryyy similiar themselves and it was all ok. And my blood pressure goes thru the roof when I see people bad mouth others on the board b/c everyone is so 'nasty' when it is laughable that the person(s) saying it is usually nasty to everyone.
In order to make a change here I have to be the one to change myself so that means keeping my trap shut with gossiping, here and in my day to day life as well.
Would I give up my PT?
NOT ON YOU'RE LIFE!
I have made such wonderful, special friends here. I am closer to some of the people I have met here then I am in my everyday friendships.
It breaks my heart that the 'old timer's' aren't posting, I hope they will keep in touch with us.
I am not perfect, so I will be making mistakes and will probably regress sometime talking to my homegirls (;))
And I agree with Tonya (from CA :)) to a point the people who think they are perfect are the ones making mistakes. I wasn't really offended by her post so I am not entirely sure if I was one of the one's she was referring to or not.
Amen!Quote:
Originally posted by shais_mom
And my blood pressure goes thru the roof when I see people bad mouth others on the board b/c everyone is so 'nasty' when it is laughable that the person saying it is usually nasty to everyone.
:)Quote:
Originally posted by Tonya
Amen!
I was thinking along the same lines. (This isn't against you at all PCB). I usually start to feel more negative when everyone keeps pointing out the negative things. Instead of talking about the negative, I think it may be more effective to display the positive.Quote:
Originally posted by lizzielou742
For me, the only negative thing about PT are threads like this. :(
I joined PT almost 4 years ago and it has changed a lot. I miss tons of people who left, but I also love the new people. I'm always very resistant to change, but sometimes change is a wonderful thing. I just keep hoping that the oldies will come back, but at the same time I really enjoy the company of the newbies. They bring fresh ideas and conversation... and more pictures! Of course, I DON'T enjoy all the new trolls and I complain about them a lot on AIM. I think complaining about them publicly fuels their fire in a way. But as PT grows, there will be more trolls no matter what. There will also be more differing opinions, arguments, etc etc etc. I just don't see any way around it because thats what comes with the growth of a public community.
As far as being judgemental, that won't stop. I know some people here who think I'm a goody-goody, Miss Perfect, judgemental person. It really couldn't be further from the truth. I'm very open-minded and nonjudgemental, BUT i am PASSIONATE about animals and when someone is not treating them how they should be treated, I will always say something. I have never said anything in a rude way though. Animals don't have a voice of their own and I care about them too much to just keep my mouth shut for the sake of keeping the peace. I never want to start arguments, but I will always say something nicely if I feel I can offer advice on the matter. I've felt the need to clarify that ever since I found out some people don't like me because I will say something when I feel an animal isn't being treated correctly.
Anyway, I'm tired and babbling so I guess I'll stop now. Just wanted to say to the new people that you are all liked and please don't get discouraged. Keep up the posting everyone!
Just discovered this thread... .
He he, everybody is talking about how so many oldies are gone, or don't post anymore. In case some haven't noticed it yet: I AM BACK!!! !! I was gone for almost a year, and I am so happy to be back!! Yes, some things have changed, but don't we all change?? PT is what we want it to be, as long as be ALL do our best. I chose to forget and put all the problems behind me; so I came back: I haven't regretted one minute :) :) !!
PETTALK is the first site I log into in the morning, and it is the last one I close before going to bed or watching tele!!
Come on, everybody, it is almost Christmas! Let's put all our grieves behind us, and inject tons of positive thoughts into our forum! I love you ALL http://users.pandora.be/bernardgabri...0940%20hug.gifhttp://users.pandora.be/bernardgabri...0big%20sun.gif
Lut, I love you! :) Hehehe!! I'm so glad to have you back!!!
You guys, I haven't gone anywhere on purpose. Please don't lump me in the lurkers or not interested group. It is time and nothing else that has taken me away in recent months. I still love it here and come as often as I can!!!! :D
Merry Christmas!!! :D
Logan
I haven't been around much lately, but it is more due to changes in my life rather than changes in this board. Personally, I joined about 2 years ago and the only real changes I have seen is that it has gotten bigger - which creates more. More fluff posts, more divergent opinions, more trolls, more controversy. I am on such time constraints right now with being so involved with our rescue organization, fostering, fundraising, volunteering, etc., that I just don't have the time to visit as often as I used to. It does not mean that I don't still enjoy the site and visit whenever I have the time. Since it is bigger, however, I have pretty much lost track of who everyone is and where their lives are now. Because of my time constraints, I tend to stay away from the general forums and visit the rescue and behavior forums more. The general forums are just too BIG!! Although I do try to view the threads of the people who I have know better. :)
I have never been a very prolific poster (as you can see from my post count) :o but this site has had a profound impact on my life. It was due to this site that I became more involved in animal rescue and animal welfare, as have other people. It may lead us to post less, and visit less, but it makes the world a better place for animals. JMHO
Hey, everyone. It's guster girl. I'm on the computer at work, and, it's not letting me log in as guster girl, so, i created this new name to post on this thread. I've not been on Pet Talk for awhile, but, I'm sure I'm not one of the people that's missed. I wasn't posting much before I got this new job because I honestly didn't feel like I was welcome. And, I've not posted at all lately because of my schedule and lack of personal computer. At least I'm loving my job for the first time ever. I'm living with a couple of roomies and they have a six month old yellow lab boy for Finn to play with, so, Ray and Finn keep me busy, too. Finn will be a year old tomorrow for y'all that loved my puppy! :) But, anyway, I digress. The main reason I left PT was because I made a friend and in turn lost that friend without ever knowing why, and, being here made me fantastically sad about that. :( But, as for Pet Talk itself, the face of it has changed even since I joined. I can see why a lot of people would be nervous about posting things on a lot of topics or being honest about their positions on things. It can be a very ugly place in here, but, I think this thread is actually a good idea, because at least the folks that feel that way can see that they're not the only ones.