I delete the vast majority of what I type out. Mostly stuff that’s personal experience based that, while adding to the conversation, doesn’t really matter to anyone and isn’t that interesting.
I start writing it because I care enough, and stop when I realize nobody else will.
Sometimes I let myself finish fleshing out the thought, then delete it, but often I just get the bulk of my thoughts out and give up when editing it. I’m pretty verbose, and don’t really have much of an outlet in real life, and I’m an anxious mess about interactions, so… it’s just a way to relieve some of the pressure without it impacting anything.
About half of my responses are deleted. I realize that sometimes I’m just not adding any substance to the conversation.
Several times a day
Sometimes I can’t be arsed with the replies it might generate, others I realise I’m not actually adding anything to the conversation
I’d add to this: if I cannot phrase it succinctly and with the right words, it’s better off unsaid.
The latest: A couple comments about the US VP Debate I had started but decided against. Often times I realize that I’m angry and upset at something I read, but I should step back and breathe before posting a rant and opt instead for something more level-headed.
In the past year: Some replies that I write sound like just backtalk so I don’t post those when they don’t meaningfully advance the discussion. Some discussion topics like about autism, LBGTQ, gender equality, wars, religion, and race issues I want to reply to, to help spur and advance awareness and discussion, but sometimes I feel it’s not my place. I want to leave it for people with more direct experience to provide better answers. Oh and one other reason: sometimes I start writing but delete too topic- or location-specific answers that could doxx myself. I don’t mind people knowing what city I live in or have been in but any more granular than that you will have to know me better personally.
I hate that when I abandon a comment, the annoying little “are you sure you want to leave the page?” dialogue pops up.
If you click “Cancel” on the comment, it does not do that, at least for me on the web UI.
Actually I think it was right n
A stupid argument I was having about how DND isn’t the best tool for many stories that aren’t about combat + resource management. I know people can have fun with anything but it bugs me when people are like “I do a political intrigue game about secret modern vampires in DND 5e” the same way it might bother some of you if someone was like “I put in my screws with a hammer” or “I add up the numbers in my spreadsheet by hand and type them into the totals row one at a time” or “I don’t use copy-paste I just retype everything”
Like, it doesn’t matter but it bugs me a little.
But I was getting down voted into oblivion so I gave up after someone begrudgingly admitted that yes different games have different focuses.
10 mins ago, and I frequently decide against it because I am either unsure of whether I read something right or because I don’t feel like actually engaging in a conversation about the topic.
Literally just now. I was going to agree and add detail about my own thought process, but… meh.
Just about every time. Especially if it’s on my phone. I get frustrated with the typos and having to go back and fix them.
Today
Often when I start a reply on some political nonsense and then realize that arguing won’t make anyone’s day better.
This is what most often gets me.
I’m here to have fun, so I try to limit my political opinions.
If it seems like someone may be missing some important info to make an informed decision and I feel I can phrase it in an educational way and not preachy or confrontational, then I’ll hit publish.
Nearly every day. Sometimes it’s helpful to write out my thoughts, even if they’re too rude or just too banal to actually post.
I’m trying to get better at the whole “If you don’t have anything to add, don’t get involved. If joining in won’t be good for you, don’t join in.” thing. I’m still bad at it, but I at least now know it’s a problem.
Usually when I back out of a comment, it’s for one of two reasons. Either I start second-guessing my level of knowledge about a subject, or (being an over-sharer IRL) I decide I was giving too much personal information.
About three minutes ago.
I had actually written a few paragraphs in response to another thread, but it wasn’t coming together right and would’ve had to have been rewritten almost entirely to get it to my standards, and I just didnt care that much, so I closed it instead, then went to the main page and saw this.
Overall, I would guess that I post less than half of what I write, either because I’m struggling to get it to my standards and don’t care enough to keep going, or because I stop and realize that if I go ahead and post it, it’s likely that if it gets a response at all it’s just going to be some tunnel-visioned ideologue hurling disinformation, fallacies and/or tired emotive rhetoric.
Don’t be so harsh on yourself. This is all informal conversations. You don’t have to hold yourself to such high standards. Your ideas aren’t any less valid because you have trouble articulating them. If someone disagrees or has a problem with what you say then they can just say so and you can clarify.
I choose to hold myself to high standards. Writing is one of the great joys of my life, and there are few things I enjoy more than the satisfaction I feel when I do it well.
Additionally:
If someone disagrees or has a problem with what you say then they can just say so and you can clarify.
Would that that were so, but the reality of the internet in this benighted age is that many (most?) who misrepresent another’s position do so not because they sincerely try but fail to understand it, but because it serves their purposes to do so, and no amount of clarification is going to overcome that. It’s a waste of effort at best, and is actually often detrimental, since saying more just provides them with more fodder for even more fallacies and diversions.
Which is another reason that I write for my own satisfaction.
Thanks for the response though.
