Comments on: Flame Wars Don’t Save Animals – Be The Change For Animals

By: lauranne

lauranne — Mon, 20 Oct 2014 12:45:53 +0000

In reply to Pamela. I have never seen one. I wish I preferred my safe little world where I didn't know these things happened!!

By: Clowie

Clowie — Mon, 20 Oct 2014 08:27:51 +0000

It’s depressing to see the flame wars – it achieves nothing.
It seems to be the same on so many issues related to animal welfare. Breed specific legislation is another issue where people who claim to love dogs spend time insulting each other rather than coming up with something constructive to put forward.

By: Kimberly Gauthier

Kimberly Gauthier — Sat, 18 Oct 2014 17:19:24 +0000

Well said. I’ve found myself in flame wars many times and it is just a waste of time and energy. When it’s done I always ask myself “how many dogs were saved?” I think that we live in a time where people feel miserable and helpless – I see these fights in every group and every forum on every subject. Someone takes a stand, feels important and like they’re making a difference, but then they forget that the world isn’t black and white. It’s fine to have a strong opinion, but we need to remain fluid, flexible enough to hear and consider other POVs if we truly want to make a difference.

It’s a hard habit to fall into in a world where people are so used to online flame wars.

By: KimT

KimT — Thu, 16 Oct 2014 18:32:38 +0000

In reply to Pamela. Amen on working together - the internet needs you, Pamela!

By: Pamela

Pamela — Thu, 16 Oct 2014 15:22:11 +0000

In reply to Lauranne. You're lucky. Does your lack of familiarity with the term mean you've never seen one? A flame war is when an online argument/debate devolves into persona attacks via email and social media.

By: Pamela

Pamela — Thu, 16 Oct 2014 15:19:36 +0000

In reply to Cathlin. But promoting adoption is such a happy part of the rescue world, isn't it? It's so much fun to be a match maker. :)

By: Pamela

Pamela — Thu, 16 Oct 2014 15:18:19 +0000

In reply to Pup Fan. Thank you for keeping BTC going. I'm seeing so many wonderful and positive posts. It's enough to make me think maybe the trolls are just a loud and vocal minority. :)

By: Pamela

Pamela — Thu, 16 Oct 2014 15:06:15 +0000

In reply to KimT. When groups start to bicker, psychology takes its toll. Science tells us that the more time we spend with people who agree with us, the more extreme our views become. In that sense, the diversity of opinions on the internet could be a real benefit if we didn't get sucked into pointless arguments and figured out how to work together for our common aims.

By: Pamela

Pamela — Thu, 16 Oct 2014 14:48:22 +0000

In reply to Maggie.

But as I replied earlier, I don’t know if I’m really a peacemaker or just a neurotic person who can stand arguments. But I strongly believe that we all need to stop feeding trolls.

Commenting back to argumentative flamers is like taking your gremlin for a midnight swim. 🙂

By: Pamela

Pamela — Thu, 16 Oct 2014 14:37:49 +0000

In reply to Random Felines. I can only imagine how hard it must be for shelter staff to be faced with so much criticism. Especially when it doesn't even pretend to be caring or constructive.