Civil debates and dissenting opinions

[ScaredSilly]

Originally Posted by Chinmay

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Fear of confrontation in a physical manner is not what I am afraid of, and others can chime in about what they're afraid of, but I don't think physical repercussions are it. I am afraid of being mocked on Facebook, twitter, CD etc. and am afraid that this might cause others to take issue with me or my team at competitions. This can be as simple as not coming to our pit and learning from/teaching me/my team, or can be as complex as not cooperating/blacklisting me/my team.

The original post was referring to online confrontation, repercussions, bullying and other "intimidation tactics being employed to quash any dissenting opinions" Many people made implicit threats to both scaredsilly and MrJohnston. I was intimidated and i wasn't even part of the discussion until I joined to express my disapproval of these scare tactics. What would i even think if someone said they would end me online....
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This is the reason for the original post, and what the topic was of the original, now deleted, thread. My fear is not really of physical issues, it is more along the lines of social media issues and 'blacklisting' at competitions. I was involved in an email chain with the moderator trying to explain my rationale for posting anonymously, and when I asked how I could bring these issues up without fear of reprisal, I was told, that I could not, and that if I was afraid then I should not be posting. This is why I think I need to continue to post anonymously for the time being. So, any time anyone feels slightly uneasy about posting on something, the clear message is: Be quiet and live with the issue. I am really sad this is the message that seems to be sent here.