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I imagine the downvotes have a lot more to do with the way you wrote and not what you wrote.

sc68cal 15y ago
Perhaps, but again - there is some seriously messed up stuff going on there. It's hard to not be outraged and have that spill over. He's outraged at the situation (in addition to being downvoted for the TRUTH), so I think it's understandable.
- anamax 15y ago
  > (in addition to being downvoted for the TRUTH), How do you know why he's being downvoted? I'd guess that he's being downvoted for his ignorant bigotry towards "hillbillies". > He's outraged at the situation ..., so I think it's understandable. Sorry, but outrage, legit or not, is not an acceptable excuse for slaming people who have nothing to do with whatever it is you're outraged about.
rhizome 15y ago
Well, elevating form over content is a hallmark of the superficial. Formalism dictates that the way something is said is more important than the meaning of the words.
- Natsu 15y ago
  And ignoring form causes negative reactions that are best avoided, particularly in cases like this where they are unnecessary. What's better is a happy medium, wherein one does not go overboard in either direction.
- Gormo 15y ago
  But form is content in its own right; in a forum, the tone, diction and precision of someone's contribution contains a lot of metadata about their own emotional investment in the topic, relevant background knowledge, and willingness to participate in constructive discussion. Bugsy's comment may have included some factually accurate content, but his form of expression is a signal of questionable credibility and a potential conversational rathole (such as this has become) should one choose to engage him further.
- lotharbot 15y ago
  I wouldn't say we've elevated form over content. Only that we require form to meet certain minimal standards. This requirement allows us to keep discussions productive and evidence-focused -- in other words, our standards for form result in improved content. Ignoring those requirements leads to low-content discussion like, for example, this one.

Perhaps, but again - there is some seriously messed up stuff going on there. It's hard to not be outraged and have that spill over. He's outraged at the situation (in addition to being downvoted for the TRUTH), so I think it's understandable.

anamax 15y ago
> (in addition to being downvoted for the TRUTH), How do you know why he's being downvoted? I'd guess that he's being downvoted for his ignorant bigotry towards "hillbillies". > He's outraged at the situation ..., so I think it's understandable. Sorry, but outrage, legit or not, is not an acceptable excuse for slaming people who have nothing to do with whatever it is you're outraged about.

rhizome 15y ago

Well, elevating form over content is a hallmark of the superficial. Formalism dictates that the way something is said is more important than the meaning of the words.

Natsu 15y ago
And ignoring form causes negative reactions that are best avoided, particularly in cases like this where they are unnecessary. What's better is a happy medium, wherein one does not go overboard in either direction.
Gormo 15y ago
But form is content in its own right; in a forum, the tone, diction and precision of someone's contribution contains a lot of metadata about their own emotional investment in the topic, relevant background knowledge, and willingness to participate in constructive discussion. Bugsy's comment may have included some factually accurate content, but his form of expression is a signal of questionable credibility and a potential conversational rathole (such as this has become) should one choose to engage him further.
lotharbot 15y ago
I wouldn't say we've elevated form over content. Only that we require form to meet certain minimal standards. This requirement allows us to keep discussions productive and evidence-focused -- in other words, our standards for form result in improved content. Ignoring those requirements leads to low-content discussion like, for example, this one.