Strange feeling when you "block" someone

I used to feel this way too...but then I realized my grumbling was merely me trying to understand why their attitude bothered me so much. 

I mean, everyone is entitled to their own opinion and if I try looking past the emotion of what I am reading, I might even see their point - which I believe is the whole purpose of solid discourse.  To see and fully understand that which is diametrically opposite to what I believe and to further understand that I can still buy that person a beer and toast them. 
 

I have found that by reading those opposing views, I want to try and understand why they feel that way - are they basing their responses on facts or feelings?  What has made them so angry?  Am I being a jerk?  Should I be apologizing (which has happened frequently)?  This board has helped me to grow up in a lot very good ways, so personally, I have no one on ignore.

I completely get, though, the removing of an element that would otherwise cause too much stress.  I fully respect anyone's decision to do so.

Of course, maybe I'm one of them, and you'll never see this...hehe

I can still scroll on by. I really have learned so much on here about all sides of situations and I like to try to understand even if I can not agree. But sometimes I can't and i need to scroll. Or sometimes we will be having a perfectly civilized discussion and then someone takes it off the rails with personal stuff and insults. Then i usually just leave a thread.

I figure if anyone really wants me to respond to something I said they'll ring the bat bell (tag or quote ) and i'll know. But mostly no one cares but those who are getting personal on both sides of an issue and the thread is no longer comfortable.

UNLESS of course others then post hoff, jello, recipes, and Haiku, then i might pop back in for the comic relief. I'll admit I had backed out of that thread by the one brand-new person I don't even remember the topic, something political, and never went back until someone mentioned it in another thread and I have to admit it was hysterical after that.

i've never blocked...i'm really good at ignoring

gina

I've blocked two people...didn't feel weird. The way I look at it is I come here to interact not to be attacked. I don't deal with those people in real life and I refuse to deal with them here.

You know what? If someone's posts are making the board less enjoyable for you, why keep their posts around? I have 3 people blocked because I just don't enjoy reading what they have to say.

There's one or two I wouldn't mind never seeing again, but I just can't bring myself to block them. I feel like it's almost like I'm giving them the satisfaction that they got to me, even though they would never know.

This is me! Except I have about 12 people on block. . People I never ever agree with and just don't find any enjoyment in reading their contributions. My list did get a bit longer due to all the recent political threads....

This is exactly how I feel. 

I haven't blocked anyone but I think it makes a lot of sense if someone is spoiling your enjoyment of the forum you should be able to do that without any guilt. There are certainly a few whose words make me want to pull my hair out or poke them in the eye occasionally but it hasn't made me want to block them yet. Their words are not that powerful.

I have a couple people blocked in this thread. I do it because I can't remember who is crazy/dumb/angry and don't want to engage with them on a seemly normal conversation. In real life you wouldn't either but you have facial recognition to remember who that person is, on the board I barely remember who is who.

I have someone bloked that I used to do the same thing, unblock to see if I was still right. I always was and I no longer have the desire to see her nasty words. She isn't a person I disagree with, we are all entitled to our own opinions and I get that but she is a nasty, vile person who never says anything nice and her tone is even worse.

I feel no guilt for avoiding people who make my experience unhappy. Why woudl I continue to retun to a place that brings me no joy. Now I have far less worries about that. AND I didn't have to drop to her level to tell her how rude she was - like it would change anything anyhow. Blocking allows us to take the higher road.

Um, if you're taking the board so seriously you feel like a failure, I think you need a serious break from the board to reevaluate your life priorities.

Well, I suppose you did "fail" by not scrolling on by the posts. I "fail" at that all the time, here and elsewhere on the internet. 

My church has been involved in redefining our mission which ultimately led to us selling the building and moving out. Between the first stirrings of the idea and the final congregational vote we had some awful attacks from members who thought we were satan's spawn.   When articles would appear in our local papers and online places these attackers would come out, anonymously of course, and say the most awful things. Our pastor started advising us all, especially those of us in leadership, "do not read the comments, do not read the comments, do not read the comments, do not..." 

And yet... I still read the comments! Comments about our church situation, as well as comments everywhere I go on the internet. I can't help it.   I'm not sure why. sheesh  I even keep a woman as friend on Facebook, someone I added years ago for a game (that I no longer play), who is one of the most hateful Republicans I know. (and yes, I know people in real life who are Republican, and none of them would ever say such awful disgusting things about our Democratic president, just as my Democrat friends would never say them about any Republican president, because whether or not we like who's living in the White House we need to respect the office... but I digress...) -- Anyway, I can't help going to her page and reading. And then I feel awful for doing it. 

And I still read threads here, or at least browse my way through them, when I KNOW -- I know DEFINITELY -- that it will fall apart into name-calling and awfulness. But, I still do it. 

This is one advantage I see to having a separate political board -- to save me from myself. I know I'd never go to another board so I'd just never see those threads. And yet, I didn't even vote for a separate board. lol at me. 


OP, at least you're one step ahead of me -- you've actually blocked people. I haven't yet.