While I may not be the biggest fan of the snark that is GC, look at the bright side..... at least dissent is allowed on this message board! It's pretty boring when everyone agrees.

Oh and Skylark..... the ignore button..... make it your BFF.

What else is missing:
 

FOOD! Lots of virtual munchies, margaritas, mojitos, martinis, etc.!

Grabbing my popcorn and ...... in before the lock! :D (there, it's been said)

Well, if APhiO hadn't been perping Marquette's colors...

Oh snap!

SHEETCAKE!!

I heart SHEETCAKE .... miss SHEETCAKE :(

http://www.cakecouturebyelena.com/im...cake%20Web.jpg

for remembering!

did somebody call the WAHBULENCE? :p:D:eek::o

SHEETCAKE!!! I LOVE YOU!!!

To the OP. Man, its the internet. Yes people at times can be "rude" or whatever. Take it and learn from it. Most people on here are very reasonable people.

well, that was the unspoken obvious. SHEETCAKE never fails to disappoint.

but still, i feel like something is missing.

ah yes. DITY?

I do love the snark, but sometimes, I wonder if we couldn't just give most new people the benefit of the doubt and try to be extra tactful when we correct or challenge them.

Sure, some (and I may be one) are extra dumb about what they post, and some are clearly trolls or lifelong idiots incapable of learning. But because GC is bad about piling on when someone screws up (and I'm as guilty as anyone), and most new users aren't ready for a full on hit by the cult or whatever, couldn't we ease up?

Not a TOS issue, but just a matter of having good manners? Maybe?

Think about how effective MysticCat is. Isn't that something to strive for? He can bring the snark when he needs to, but he avoids just being kind of generally POed and waiting for someone to screw up and I'm not sure most of us do.

as someone told me...

"if he uses the ignore button he will be igging just about everyone here...."

I've been around GC for a while.

I've been a big mean moderator twice now.

I think we can be pretty nasty for little or no reason.

I also think we've gotten worse.

We could be a lot more friendly.

I think this thread has veered off topic a little, but since I don't have time to read all 7 pages that have accumulated in one day, I'm just going to say what comes to mind.

GC can be intimidating--especially when you come here and it seems like everyone knows everyone and we're all buddy buddy. Some of us know each other IRL, but most of us don't--only what we learn about each other on GC.

I think being attacked or not within your first few posts has a lot to do with the topic you chose to discuss (ie-am I asking if even though I'm already initiated I can join another NPC or getting on here for your first time and letting Ms. attitude fly)

Becoming comfortable on GC has a lot to do with what first few posts you chose to make. I observed GC for almost a full year before I became an actively posting member. I was also very choosy about the threads I replied to. I started posting only in my orgs and then broadened out.

And, I'm not going to sit here and claim to be a 'senior member' or anything, but I've been pretty active on the boards all summer and have been able to offer insights, thoughts, pose questions-hell, I even let Ms. Attitude fly in the thread about Homosexuality & MS.

Some GC members do take the board wayyyy too seriously others, like me, I just think it's fun. I've been able to meet and network with greeks all over the country and I enjoy that. Sometimes, the atmosphere here is a little less than inviting but only if you take it that way. My most favorite GC members are the ones that say what they want to say no matter how it's seen (ehemm, AlphaFrog ,<333). They make this place the most fun because they often say the things that I want to say, but don't yet have the nerve.

Either way, GC is what you make it. If you think it's a place full of Ms. Attitudes then that's what you'll see.

If you think it's a place to meet people and share ideas, you'll find even more. (Behind the hazy overcast, that is) ;)

Tons of people have managed to find their way to GC and become part of the community over the years. Those that find it easy to mesh with the GC culture are people who have thick skins, know their shit and either lurk for a long time to get the feel of the place, or they do their searching and research so they avoid posting things we've all seen a million times.

My advice for newbies - lurking is the best advice that I can give outside the words USE SEARCH. If I was showing up as a newbie, I'd try and watch the atmosphere, suss out what the place is like, then start posting on a few innocuous social threads in Chit Chat before I'd jump into serious conversation that I might not realize the history to in this place.

If you're coming on here because you have a specific question, make sure it hasn't been answered before (it mostly likely has; be creative with searching). Be polite when you ask. If you get snarked at, ignore it - even better, check yourself. You might be a trainwreck waiting to happen.


*Use of the word 'you' is strictly for demo purposes only. No specific 'you' is being addressed. If you think you're 'you', then you're mistaken. You're not 'you'.*

You've just trigger an existential dilemma for me.

Generally, you're right, but I still think we could be nicer to new folks.

And Lisa's point about dropping back and using google to search may finally mean I can actually search GC with some success. Usually my results have no connection to my search terms when I use the GC search button.

I HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM!!

Anyway, back to the topic at hand....:p

I agree with all of the above.
I am a sinner as well.
I have made many errors here-some real and some
just perceived.
And have tried to learn from them.
Can "we" be better? Yes.
Can "we" be worse? Yes.
Should posters watch, learn and understand? Yes.
Are there a few threads best not to jump into ice cold? Yes.
Are there ways to better phase questions? Yes.
Is spell check a wonderful thing to download? Yes.

The Grapist!

Oh yeah, and you're all reported. :D

OMG...why could I have forgotten about being reported.

I report myself for forgetting to report people!! lol.

To the OP, I'm pretty much new myself. I haven't been on here a year yet and I'm still learning. Just post and learn from older members. Some members will like you, some won't. Just learn, be yourself, hold your ground, and have fun chatting. You'll be alright.:)

Btw: To the OP. You can't please every joker on here, so don't try.

This is a good thread.

I get e-mails from members on here quite frequently. I just read some of my e-mails from them and something that we've noticed is that the members on here who don't hold the popular opinions get chewed out everytime. So basically, if your opinion differs from the popular opinion, you're a troll. That's funny as hell to me. A member can actually be a troll, but if he/she holds the popular opinion, then people not only love this joker, but they think he/she is a real member. Dumb jokers.

Example: There's a joker on here who thinks it's o.k. for a man to wear a damn bra. Most of these silly jokers on here loved this thread too, simply because his thread was popular on GC. A man wearing a bra? What a joke.

honestly, weve all been new on gc. weve all made mistakes like asking a quetion thats been asked a million times because we didnt bother to check out the search function--which by the way is sooo much easier to find since the new gc came out!!. weve all had not so nice responses by gcers that have been on here longer than us. and then weve been the ones that have been on this for awhile and see new people do the same stuff we used to do and get annoyed by it and figure its our turn to treat them the same way we were treated. i guess its a rite of passage on gc? if you get a response you dont like to a thread you posted in, dont respond back. it only adds fuel to the fire. read around for awhile, and then try posting again in a different forum. this isnt real life--youre not gonna see these people face to face (most likely anyways). therefore, if you dont like what people are writing, unsubscribe to the thread and stop reading it!!

**weve is being used generically here. weve doesnt imply everyone. im sure that there are people that have never had this happen to them. but for this forum ive decided to generalize**

If people cannot handle the snarkiness and bantering, of an internet site, I really feel sorry for them. They're gonna have a hard row to hoe when it comes to facing actual life problems.

Suck it up. You can either join the dark side (we have cookies) or you can go find a cuddly place to go crawl into a fetal position and sing kum ba yah with the softer, gentler greekchatters. Either way, we don't care. People come and go. If you sitck it out, fine. If not, there will be 10 other posters like you to take your place.

Stop singing, "Pain, despair and agony on me." Post or don't post. It doesn't matter.

Too bad this is all to big to become my signature! :)

Love you too.

I totally would have Rushed SAI if we didn't have stinky MPhiE who kept SAI from forming a chapter.:D:D MysticCat knows how I feel about Music G(r)eeks!!:p

And, once again, if the OP think she got it bad from the mean, snarky GCers, she outta check out a few of the times that TippieChick or OTW and I have had it out. Good times were had by all and everyone moves on. I still enjoy their posts, and I will polish and hand over TippieChick's Queen of Mean Crown whenever she wants to come out and play with us.:D:p

ETA: I can't believe this thread is still open. I was sad yesterday when I had to leave, because I thought for sure when I came back this thread would be closed.

No, not D.

AzuleBatMierda strikes again. :D

Te amo AzulePaloMierda.

Holy shit if some Spanish speaker somehow gets this on Google, they're going to think I'm muy loca.

I'm laughing, honored and humbled at the same time. If only my wife and kids thought the same. :D

We Music G(r)eeks love you, too. http://www.smilieshq.com/smilies/cha...racter0205.gif

As for me, I think no one caps off a thread like wptw does.

Too bad siggies have a 4-line limit... but yes, we do need to have a "has this thread gone totally batsh!t" checklist. you know, in case you're not sure.

oh man, that was awesome.

is it too early for one of these:
http://www.chriskula.com/misc/trainwreck.jpg

mike says hi, BTW.

I don't think an ETA to put that in the OP would be too early for that.

I love the one with Mike.

So does Drolefille. Just to bring her facial tattoo fetish back into discussion.

ETA: BTW this is my favorite wptw.

the "WTF has this thread turned into" checklist
 

crazy newbie GCer? check
Tom Earp response? check
snarky response from Dionysus/AF/whoever else? check
Senurset I "i'm so hot" hijack? check
cat macro? check
"intimidated by my hotness" reference
a DITY? wisecrack
a threat of being reported
train wreck insert
cameo by SHEETCAKE, The Grapist, or anyone else of GC yesteryear
GCer playing devil's advocate
GCer attempting to get back on OT
virtual snacks
GC BFF declarations
"in before the lock" declarations
"the ignore button is your friend" slam
a random "why are NPC/NPHC so different?" remark
a Rudey "this thread is gay" remark
my personal favorite... TEACH FOR AMERICA, BIZNATCHES!
ETA: mention of AI and/or writing recommendations

and lastly, one of two things:
the actual lock, or
another GC newbie (or drunk GC regular) resurrecting the thread with a really thoughtful response, unbeknowst to them that the thread is like 50 million years old.

anything else?

That one is good. But I think my favorite is this one, where he put me in my place and I was forced to bow to the master.

No, but I think GC should look into requiring sponsorship. (I heard about the idea from an extremely reputable hair transplant salon.)

Alopecia Awareness is where it's at!

does somebody have a sound effect for the tune that's played when you lose a gome on the Price is Right?

the poster formerly known as RainMan would... if you can find him under all the "OMG i'm a nupe now yo yo" mumbo jumbo.