A parting of the ways

I second denizenofevil's suggestion. It's bad enough to look at arabesque's hurtful, condescending response. It's hard to get over with this topic still open.

could we please have this topic closed? looking at the title is like putting salt in a fresh wound

I would like to inform who ever reads this that the forum has undergone some changes. Please see the new post in rules and announcements for details.

Talkatoast wrote:

There's a lot of good here, and we just need to forgive and forget. I'm willing to have anyone here as long as he or she is polite and respectful.

I could not have said it better myself

There's a lot of good here, and we just need to forgive and forget. I'm willing to have anyone here as long as he or she is polite and respectful.

Talkatoast, that is very kind of you to say. We really appreciate this, Beauty and me, it is a change from the bickering of the last days.

Talkatoast wrote:

I didn't join this forum with the intention of bashing Twilighters. I joined because B and A was boring me. There was too much Twilight and anti-Twilight sentiment that it was driving me crazy. I didn't want to associate myself with that anymore. I did notice some of the juvenile Twilight bashing on here, but I ignored that and answered the other quality questions.

I think this forum's a great idea. I have always wanted to get to know my contacts better, and this is marvelous. I do like the invitation only thing. It seems snobbish, but to me it weeds out the undesirables. I've been on plenty of writing forums in my day to know plenty of undesirables that don't deserve to be writers but insist that they should be. They are rude, arrogant, and plain out mean. They either think they're better than everyone else or they simply want to put you down. I've always wanted an exclusive forum for only invited ones. By having it invitation only, you are decreasing your chances of having people like this because people who are already members are obviously not this way, so they are going to invite people who aren't this way either.

Thank you Talkatoast, this gives me hope that this place can work after all. It is nice to get some support for a change.

I didn't join this forum with the intention of bashing Twilighters. I joined because B and A was boring me. There was too much Twilight and anti-Twilight sentiment that it was driving me crazy. I didn't want to associate myself with that anymore. I did notice some of the juvenile Twilight bashing on here, but I ignored that and answered the other quality questions.

I think this forum's a great idea. I have always wanted to get to know my contacts better, and this is marvelous. I do like the invitation only thing. It seems snobbish, but to me it weeds out the undesirables. I've been on plenty of writing forums in my day to know plenty of undesirables that don't deserve to be writers but insist that they should be. They are rude, arrogant, and plain out mean. They either think they're better than everyone else or they simply want to put you down. I've always wanted an exclusive forum for only invited ones. By having it invitation only, you are decreasing your chances of having people like this because people who are already members are obviously not this way, so they are going to invite people who aren't this way either.

But I greatly understand where you are coming from. I will miss you.

A pity, really. I tried to explain current issues to both Kelsey and arabesque, but apparently to little effect. The truce was a good thing, and I am still convinced that it is. But maybe this entire forum was a mistake. If that is the case, I apologize.

Your 'truce,' even though it was backed with a good intention, was just what a bunch of users on Y!A had already been doing for a long time; it was all common sense.

I am sorry that Arabesque has left and I understand her reasons. I would however, like to comment on the truce. I think it actually did a lot of good. It informed people that some of the haters are backing off and encouraged some of the twilight fans to do the same. I see that as a good thing. Sometimes people just need to know that others are relenting before they will do the same.

That's all I have to say on this subject.

I'm going to try and stop ranting, actually. I'm going to limit myself to the literary portion as well as the just for fun and games portion. I'll avoid the venting-because in reality, people ARE going to have differing opinions. It's okay. Sure, you can point out to the ultra-rabid fangirls that it isn't a good idea to be obsessed, but in reality we are no different-just on the other end.

So I will hate the books, and if people ask for my opinion, I will give them the truth. But from now on, I'm going to abstain from insults, because chances are that the Twilighters are insulting us now for practically the same reasons. If we are going to be better people we need ot just accept and move on. There isn't a need to publically state it. Arabesque hit the nail on the head and I think I will email her a thank-you note for enlightening me.

As you all may have noticed, I've not been very happy with many of the things that have happened both on this site and on Y!A concerning this site. I've tried to make suggestions, but some have been misunderstood. This site's gotten rather self-righteous
I like the premise of a site that is underground for its protection, but is constantly recruiting new people. I like the idea of a place where we can discuss things freely, but to be rude to people who aren't even here? To have a section entirely devoted to the bashing of fans? I came here to escape from trolls, from people obsessed with Twilight-- that includes people who are obsessed with hating Twilight.
I don't know what to do right now, but I've sought advice from a few people, and I'll keep you posted.

Okay. I really agree with GuardianSaiyoko here. As much as the Twilighters piss the living daylights out of me, I should restrict it to the venting section of this forum. I kind of feel snobbish and I'm going to be more neutral now. Basically, I'll be neutral when I'm not on this site, then anti when I'm here, because I kind of feel torn between the two.

I think that we should keep the two completely separate and go underground. I don't like the idea of rubbing it into people's faces anymore (I will admit, it did appeal to me once upon a time). Just let it fade and let things go back to the way they were. Except, I won't be rude.

Yes, I still dislike Twilight, but I won't be extreme. On the scale of 1 to 9 with 1 being a rabid-fangirl and 9 being ultimate hater, and 5 being neutral, I used to be an 8, and I'm going to try to shift myself to a 5.5 or a 6.

You know... I really agree with Arabesque here. I really feel like a snob being here now. Hell, I feel like the snobby popular kids in high school, which I never wanted to feel. I mean I was always one of the awkward kids who didn't fit in anywhere and got looked down on for it. I never wanted to bring that feeling to anyone else.

I'm not going to leave, because I like it here. It was a good idea and I think it still can be. I think it should have stayed a completely separate entity from B&A, though. I answered rudely with the Treehouse rallying cry myself on a few questions during the 'war' phase but I regret it, and I haven't been saying anything about Treehouse on Y!A because I'd rather they were two different things.

Can we just keep them entirely separate, keep this as what it was intended to be- a place to have calm, rational discussions about good literature without any nonsense about Twilight intruding? We have the venting forum for that, after all.

I'm friends with all kinds, although most of the people I know have never even heard of Twilight since my school is a haven of practicality. No one here believes in romance or true love so the books never made it here. But, I can get along with someone with a different taste in books. Hell, I'd have to- I don't even share a taste in books with most of the people here! I just want to discuss literature without questions about the same book that have been asked repeatedly already intruding. I try not to click on them, but... sometimes I actually am interested, like with the question "Is Bella Swan anyone's idol?," and I want to see what people have answered. I try to be polite, most of the time.

Like I said, I agree with Arabesque, but because I still like it here I don't want to leave.

I'm sorry that you feel that way, and I think that you are justified. Your reason is a good one and it was nobody's intention to put down people who speak rationally. Y!A is a pretty cool place to be.

Maybe we ARE making this into something it shouldn't be, but I, for one, am very irritated by the illogical users. All I wanted was a place where we could avoid the illogical. Personally, it had nothing to do with Twilight or the like. I'm friends with multitudes of rational Twilighters--it is the rabid ones that drive me insane. At first, I really tried to put up, but when they really got into my face, I couldn't take it anymore.

I'm fairly sure that you are right about the TC thing, but that is simply because of the abundance of Twilight-related questions. If you are aware about the prerequisites of becoming a TC, which I'm sure that you do because you are a TC, then you should see that this would be a challenge. But I'll try what you suggested. I'll try to avoid the Twilight questions for once and for all and see if I can keep my TC.

But I respect your decision to leave. Good luck wherever you are-you are a very intelligent person and I know you'll be fine. Have fun back at Y!A...

I've decided to leave the forum. The only reason I ever joined was out of respect for the contact who extended the invitation. However, accepting was a mistake. As is obvious from the only other posts I have on here, I don't think I have much in common with all of you. The impression I've gotten and had confirmed is that this is a forum I would not like to associate myself with. I don't care to rant or vent about people who can't defend themselves, no matter how frustrating their behavior may be. I am not anti or pro Twilight, or even neutral (if you're thinking 'deja vu,' it's because I've said this before). Your 'truce,' even though it was backed with a good intention, was just what a bunch of users on Y!A had already been doing for a long time; it was all common sense. There was no 'war' in B&A, just a significant difference of opinion fueled by both sides, meaning both sides are to blame. I refuse to generalize about either side of the argument and I won't associate myself with others who do.

Yes, there's more to the forum than that, I'm sure. But, the fact is that the above is so glaringly obvious that it can't be avoided. The exclusiveness also makes this forum snobbish, which I never aspire to be. I'd rather spend my time where I will feel at ease and free to act the way I always do. I've never had any problems on Y!A the way a lot of you seem to have had, I've never felt stifled or limited there at all. (And, in response to something posted elsewhere here, I know more than a few TCs in B&A who can maintain that badge without answering all Twilight-related questions.)

I also don't care to be around others who put down the people I actually like and respect. I don't tolerate that anywhere, ever. I'm sorry to have associated myself with the forum from the start seeing as this has been the outcome.

If any of you saw Beauty's post on the Outhouse questions, I'm sure you must have read this response by a Y!A user to the first endeavor, which sums up everything beautifully:
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[Don't you think that forming a club is a little juvenile?

Especially considering that you're asking people to behave as they should normally, except that you're prescribing it to them, meaning that if they do behave responsibly, it somehow is all due to you and your club.

There are no positive factors to this, because anyone who would join would behave this way without joining too.... except perhaps for the part about shunning people, which I don't consider particularly brilliant, or potentially gainful.

I say keep your rules and follow them yourself. The rest of us will be guided by our own compass, thanks.]
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By no means am I trying to sound high-and-mighty here, this post is only meant as an explanation if anyone wanted it. I didn't intend for it to be so long. I won't be replying to anything here anymore, so if you would like to contact me you can do so through my Y!A profile, but I might not reply for a while. In case you are worried, I won't be spreading the news of this exclusive forum to anyone, so there is no danger of your secret being spread by me.

So I'm leaving and sticking to Y!A because I like it there, and I like the people there. I'm keeping the same users as my contacts (yes, even if they are fans of Twilight) and doing what I've always done, the way I've always done it.

Peace.