This forum is getting worse now.

[ssuperflash]

Ok, the other thread wasn't really constructive, so I'll list out some reasons the forums aren't looking too sharp:

1. Posters making prediction for 2020, already. Come on now, don't these people realize that 2016 predictions made even a week before the election were completely off? What makes you think you'll get anything right this early on?

2. "Populism" is not a political ideology. It seems like half of the posters here switched from Romney conservatism to just calling themselves "populists", as if that is morally superior, or something. It doesn't actually mean anything.

3. Fake trolls and foreign spies as posters. It is quite obvious that a lot of these Gabbard supporters are fake operatives that are trying to hand the election to Trump in 2020.

4. "Trump won, so now even bad things can be good." Apparently, just because Trump won, a lot of posters are justifying literal bigotry and racism. Ugh.

5. People eliminating candidates from primary contention already. I shouldn't even have to mention why this is problematic after the 2016 primaries.

[DC Al Fine]

Ah you don't remember the forum in 2013.  Fun times

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

Ah you don't remember the forum in 2013.  Fun times

That was the worst year ever.

[Since I'm the mad scientist proclaimed by myself]

Ah you don't remember the forum in 2013.  Fun times

What happened then?

[LLR]

Don't like it? I have just the solution for you!

[DC Al Fine]

Ah you don't remember the forum in 2013.  Fun times

What happened then?

The things SSSuperflash is complaining about mostly

[DavidB.]

This has been going on since forever. The solution is AAD.

[Antonio the Sixth]

Ah you don't remember the forum in 2013.  Fun times

That was the worst year ever.

Of course you'd say that.

[Antonio the Sixth]

This has been going on since forever. The solution is AAD.

In the same way the "solution" to an incurable disease is death, yeah.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

It has the advantage of being a relatively intimate space that this forum had when it was smaller (and which contributed much to its quality) and which has been lost. Honestly think you'd quite like it now.

[Antonio the Sixth]

It has the advantage of being a relatively intimate space that this forum had when it was smaller (and which contributed much to its quality) and which has been lost. Honestly think you'd quite like it now.

Fair enough, I guess I might give it another try at some point.

Doesn't it still have trolls roaming free and basically no moderation, though?

[The world will shine with light in our nightmare]

Ah you don't remember the forum in 2013.  Fun times

What happened then?

Basically a bunch of group bullying.  It wasn't pretty.

[White Trash]

I like how every supporter of Tulsi Gabbard MUST be a troll looking to hand the election to Trump. Ya know, some people might actually like the cut of her jib and support her policy plans. Crazy idea right?

[Meclazine for Israel]

Don't like it? I have just the solution for you!

Ouch!

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

It has the advantage of being a relatively intimate space that this forum had when it was smaller (and which contributed much to its quality) and which has been lost. Honestly think you'd quite like it now.

Fair enough, I guess I might give it another try at some point.

Doesn't it still have trolls roaming free and basically no moderation, though?

Not really, Tony.  Moderation is low, but the racist/homophobic garbage usually gets removed.  Foul language is not moderated.  Just confine yourself to the political boards like Al mostly does and you'll be fine.  Ignore the other stuff.

[SWE]

It has the advantage of being a relatively intimate space that this forum had when it was smaller (and which contributed much to its quality) and which has been lost. Honestly think you'd quite like it now.

Fair enough, I guess I might give it another try at some point.

Doesn't it still have trolls roaming free and basically no moderation, though?

It took longer for atlas to ban einzigne than it did AAD.

[Antonio the Sixth]

Fair enough. I'll have to take stock of what the overall culture is like, but it might be worth it.

[Santander]

Honestly, I think it is getting better.

[Sir Mohamed]

Well, I don’t agree that it has gotten worse. At least not since I have joined in April 2015 (can’t believe it’s almost two years, time is going bye so fast).

For sure, the 2020 board is almost pure speculation as of now. Like the what-if-section and parts of the election-trends section. I myself don’t take the 2020 board that seriously and think nobody should actually. If you don’t like the section or think it is not useful, don’t read it or make posts there. Where is the problem? Every poster chose for him- or herself where to make any posts.

On all online forums you have a certain number of “problematic” posters. You can’t avoid that completely unless it turns really ugly (insults, hate speech or proven trolling socks; what should lead to a ban). But the number is quite low here in my judgement. It even dropped after the election. I haven’t seen posts from StatesPoll, Seriously and Happy Sad Trumpista (or was it originally Little Big Octopus?) for a while now. Just having another opinion or political philosophy is necessarily bad. It is indeed interesting to discuss with political opponents about some issue and argue about position in a civilized manner.

[jamestroll]

Atlas always makes confident predictions based on the most recent general election for all future elections. Ask this site to make a map of the 2080 Presidential election and this site will produce a map that looks exactly like 2016.

I think the site has a tendency to overthink results. I have also noticed older posters are less like that as a rule. That could be before the posts who are 60, 50, 40, 30 even 25 have been through numerous cycles.

The overthinking is what created the "blue midwestern wall". You know, the region of the country that swings the most and was almost entirely governed by Republican governors. Now most of those states are being seen as likely Republican going into 2020.

I refuse to even read the 2020 board. I did make a thread of a generic. democratic victory of a healthy popular vote margin (6 to 8 points) and I was bashed.

Clearly the Senate favors the GOP keeping control, almost a certainty. That is like in the 2010 elections how the Senate was a hole too tough to climb for the Republican Party. But if I or anyone else makes a prediction of a Democrat winning something in 2018 we are just bashed.

I am not going to bash teenage posters. Scrolling past their posts if I disagree is a reasonable solution. Naturally this forum has had quality go way down. Hillary Clinton lost the presidency unexpectedly. It created a bunch of overconfident Republicans and angry to hostile Democrats. This is an election result analysis forum, and in January 2017 we can not really make any intelligent discussion of 2018 or 2020 elections.  So all people will do is predict what they want to have happen! GOP WILL GAIN 15 to 20 SEATS IN HOUSE AND 10 SEATS IN SENATE!!!!! NO!! YOU ARE A HACK! DEMOCRATS WILL GAIN 60 HOUSE SEATS, HOLD ALL THEIR OWN SENATE SEATS AND PICK UP AZ, NV, TX, AND UT IN 2018!.

Normally we have a good idea of an election even a month or so before. This cycle was different and clearly the Comey Letter and the ObamaCare Premiums hurt Clinton and Senate democrats. I think Feingold and Kander can attribute their loses to those two incidents.

Someone told me the other day to explain to them why 2018 midterms would be different from 2014 and 2010. Answer is simple: Different year, different climate, different president. I think the burden is more on the other side of this issue to explain why they think 2018 will mirror 2014 and 2010. Even 2010 and 2014 were different!

The justification of racism and bigotry needs to stop immediately. Every community has their own concerns and issues they have to deal with. Just keep in mind that Trump was the first candidate in ages to directly address rural white working class concerns. To assume that Obama reached a floor with them and Hillary did not need to campaign with them was utter nonsense.

[Antonio the Sixth]

Ah you don't remember the forum in 2013.  Fun times

What happened then?

Basically a bunch of group bullying.  It wasn't pretty.

What are you referring to? I genuinely don't remember.

In my recollection, the period going roughly from late 2011 to mid 2013 strikes me as the closest thing to a golden age the forum has had since I joined. The wave of edgy libertarian trolls brought in by the conjunction of Hamilton's insanity and the rise of the Tea Party finally faded away, and this was before the forum civil war over Opebo and other sh*tposters started derailing everything, eventually leading up to AAD. Plus, the 2012 election was so much fun ("Hold the line!"). I fear we're never going to see such a great time again.

[The world will shine with light in our nightmare]

Ah you don't remember the forum in 2013.  Fun times

What happened then?

Basically a bunch of group bullying.  It wasn't pretty.

What are you referring to? I genuinely don't remember.

The IRC gang.  I'm not going to name names.

Occasionally you'll see them pull their antics in fantasyland, but otherwise they've pretty much subsided.

[Antonio the Sixth]

Ah you don't remember the forum in 2013.  Fun times

What happened then?

Basically a bunch of group bullying.  It wasn't pretty.

What are you referring to? I genuinely don't remember.

The IRC gang.  I'm not going to name names.

Occasionally you'll see them pull their antics in fantasyland, but otherwise they've pretty much subsided.

I never hung around on IRC much, but I think I see what (and who) you're talking about. It didn't strike me as THAT bad, but I might have missed something.