Lynx, I appreciate your giving voice to something that I've been feeling, but truthfully wouldn't have had the balls to express due to my almost pyschotic need to avoid confrontation.

First off, this is not the only band where fans can be nasty behind the veil of the internet. Usually, tho, the moderator removes the overtly nasty comments, so only unmoderated forums allow one to view the nastier bits. The scary thing is that the same people can be super sweet on the boards that they know are being moderated by the band or those close to the band, and then scathing on the ones they think are "anonymous" ( they aren't, at least in the case of my one friend's band, the members read all their boards for shits and giggles.)

I also agree with whomever said that the negativity has been going on forever. It's been a part of the scene since my first show in 1979, but I think it's just magnified because it has been given a platform. I don't think it's a question of young vs. old fans, just a matter of the nature of people. Some, but not all, hippies are kind. I just wish there weren't the hypocrisy.(

At my last show I stood with a consummate whiner( no shows were really good, but this one might be ok...) and a ton of grown men (read OLD men) who pushed and shoved to keep their god given spots like girls at a Justin Bieber show and wouldn't even let a young, short girl take MY spot cuz she hadn't been there all nignt. Mean, selfish and not at all the energy I want to share at a show.

Of course in the long run, no one can make any one else feel anything ,so the best course of action is to ignore the negativity and fight it with rainbows and butterfilies ~ u would be surprised how annoying negative nancies find this to be.

But it still makes me sad, because when I first started with this scene it was cuz I believed everyone in it felt the same incredible, positive vibes that I did and still do.

Thanks for the topic and letting me rant. ~ PEACE TO ALL~

Maybe its just the PhilZone, haha! Don't really see that 'vibe' with Ratdog's board, or here... Knew there was a reason I never posted on the Zone......

Seriously, though, people are jsut pathetic and this mediuam alllows the patheticness to be seen by all. My best guess is most of the people causing problems aren't really happy with their lives, thus acting out online is probably one of their few joys in life.

Anyone remember RMGD? The drama here and other boards is tame compared to the flame wars on that forum.

Thank you for your honest post ....it's always good to know that others --- sane people! --- have similar experiences and/or share similar views......

God bless the Grateful Dead Family

There's always a few folks who never got enough attention as kids, or something. And the anonymity of the internet emboldens
them. Seems like something we have to accept, albeit unfortunately. Lynx, congrats on quitting smoking. That's a great accomplishment.
Hang in there.

some zoners are just... well , dicks .
thats all there is to it.
the best way to fight it is to not fight it
just ignore the jerks
if they dont get any attantion they'll go away

>>>>it's just magnified because it has been given a platform.

The whole world has been given this platform. Look at society today. Can't let our kids go out side anymore and run around the neighborhood since there's so much bad in the world <----- sarcasm alert. It's always been the way it is, now with a personal computer in every pocket in america (and soon the globe) its easier than ever to magnify what sell's - other peoples problems.

THT, some???? ;0)

For example there's a thread going around on the Phil Zone right now talking about how lame some thread on this site is. Really?<<

Yes. Really. It's that lame.

Aw Jesus, Duke. You are a rattlesnake.

get over it

McCluhan was talking about the effect of one-way media, TV particularly, on people's attention spans and ability to discern real information from false, and whether activity can be generated via passive viewing.

I'm not sure if or how what he said applies to multi-party, real-time message board interactions. But I do think that the Internet is in general much closer to a 'facsimile' viewing experience than TV was when McCluhan was writing (because of the near-infinite design possibilities for content and because of the near-infinite variety of content designers). Another huge, essential difference between TV and the Internet is that there's very little on the Internet that isn't interactive on some level through the same medium (owners/operators of websites can be contacted, content can be lifted and used in a different way), whereas in order to respond to something on TV, or to sample it, it's necessary to use one or more other media. Still another is the ability to constantly upgrade, update, and redesign anything on the web, for which TV has no correllary (even reality shows on TV are scripted!).

So maybe the message of the Internet, which is accessed via digital devices in which all known media can be combined (that is,-if there is such one overriding message, and if that one can be reduced to a short phrase) is that the world we live in is a one-stop proposition. At least until somebody pulls the plug!