[EricH]

Originally Posted by PayneTrain

When members of the self appointed senior brain-trust neg rep bomb a new member, they heavily discourage the person from trying to understand the community and potentially grow because of future interactions with the community. I'm sure needlessly being a knob over a discussion topic just to get one's jollies off may seem harmless to some, but it's really unnecessary, damaging, and pathetic.

Just as an aside: If a new member is being a prick, then are we sure they're even trying to understand the community?

Yes, there's a reason I'm asking. No, I won't go any further into the matter.

And, for the record, I have never given out a single neg rep. Neutral, yes, on a couple of occasions. Negative, nope (not that I haven't wanted to... but usually by the time I get around to going for it 47 other people have done so already).