Normalization of Deviance on Chiang Mai Forum

[SDH]

Sawadee Khrup, Khun SDH, my apologies for not addressing my first response to you with the nom de plume, "Khun SDH," with an appropriately honorific salutation; an oversight due to a temporary shortage of eternity.

Perhaps it would be helpful to further define "the group" here: on this forum, as is characteristic of all human social interaction in which a gestalt of membership is salient, there are two groups.

There is the "in-group," and, the "out-group."

Every member here believes, and acts, as if they are part of the in-group.

In reality, every member is in the out-group.

Both combination mind-souls in this meat-package know that they are in the in-group. In fact, internally, they comprise a complete in-group which is in the in-group in here, which is also everyone here's there.

I hope that adds some clarification to this thread, and we can move forward to go back to considering what the flaming-arrow "normalization" actually points to, which seems to have moved sideways in the thread, or may be using stealth technology.

I think it's also useful, I believe, to imagine what this forum would be like without moderation, or what might happen if every person that started a thread had the right to remove responses, and even ban posters: my nightmares have already shown that to me, but I have successfully repressed the memories.

I would also like to ask if, in many responses on this thread, there is an implicit assumption of the general form "life should be fair," in the sense of having expectations that our moderators are always going to be perfectly consistent rational ethical computers, rather than just divine souls, and minds, whose reason dances with emotion. And, an assumption that the person who started the thread "owns it," in some personal way.

Have I ever had a disagreement, and felt aggrieved, for a while, by the actions of a moderator here ? Yes, but when I PM'd them, even though they didn't change their minds, I feel like they did, certainly, listen to what I had to say. How often in this life do you get that ? The sting goes away, if you let it.

The Chiang Mai forum is an excellent on-going experience for me, even though it will never be the "best of all possible worlds," which would be being just an orangutan in Kalimantan again, without this annoying involuntary cohabitation in a body that can't arborate, and a bunch of glossolalic magpies for a mind ... ah, back in my own territory, stroking my own long reddish fur, while chewing a twig, my seven (equally content) wives, and children somewhere else until I need them, able to enjoy luscious fruits in solitude, only rarely having to hoot fiercesomely to chase away some horny scoundrel who dares come sniffing around my harem.

As Alice said to the Duchess, "That's nothing compared to what I could say if I chose," but I reach the limits of what I am allowed to reveal of the "Path of Slack" to the uninitiated. I do not experience that as a loss of freedom, or as a basis to presume that this meat on a bag of bones is topped with anything more than excessive vocabulary.

'Sit usquequaque ludum umbra mortis eclipsis' [1], ~o:37;

[1] 'let the game always eclipse death's shadow' ... an attempt at translation from Ur Orang's (exoteric) "Path of Slack," level one, for the uninitiated, by Orang37; Latin is required to convey the chthonic antiphonal sense of the untranslatable original which is an ersatz copy of the archetypal.

Nil illegitatum carborundum

Romulus

[bobl]

"Normal," and "Deviant," are dynamic subjective frames of reference, modulated by social and cultural factors, and a given group's emergent norms. They also, in common practice, represent value judgments passed by a perceiver for many reasons, including rationalizing one's own vague feelings of irritation, anger, anxiety, fear, terror, etc., the desire to control other individuals who symbolically represent the subconscious "other." Perhaps "deviance" is like the black substrate behind the mirror, that enables the constructed perception of personal identity.

You have the freedom, on this forum, to block messages by anyone whose messages you don't want to read. You have the freedom to report any message which seems to you in violation of forum rules, or what you consider basic human ethics. You have the freedom to post, on the forum, or to moderators, any suggestions you have for the forum's rules, etc.

You have the freedom to go elsewhere if this forum doesn't meet your needs, or troubles you.

The most dangerous human primates I've met in the current lifetime are those who have a strong sense they are "normal," and feel entitled to tell other people what they should do, what is correct, and what they should think. They manufacture, without awareness, both Saints, and Demons.

Not that I think you are dangerous

But, you are right about one thing: there are many obnoxious posters on this forum, including everyone who posts on this thread, or reads it.

"this life without a zoo with monkeys ... is never fun" "cheewit nee, mai mee suan sat mee ling, sanuk ... mai cooey bin" [1]

~o:37;

[1] from the oral (exoteric) tradition of the teachings of Ur Orang for first-level initiates, also known as "The Path of Slack."

tl;dr: One person's normal is another's abnormal. Welcome to the real world.

[2020]

Why is it certain chronic posters on the Chiang Mai forum seem to be able to hijack every topic and more or less deviate it, it seems that certain individuals here are more than equal?

Classic example-

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/533843-reliable-taser-for-self-defence-where-to-buy/

Four pages later, go to the last post......

It would seem that some folks don't consider the fact that not all personal attacks are after money. Giving up a wallet IS the safest option IF a thief is only there to rob you. Perhaps the last woman to get raped in Chiang Mai could very well have avoided the rape by offering the rapist 100 baht. But sometimes that doesn't work.

And there is no need for concealed weapons carry. There are plenty that can be carried in plain sight legally if desired.

But that is NOT what the OP asked about.... and he asked it 6 months ago. This was a dead thread.

He asked where he could buy a taser. And instead of just simply ignoring his post, of saying 'gee, I don't know,' people felt the need to tell him their feelings about carrying one. I wonder about their need to hijack the OP's thread.

OP...if you want one, you can buy them at the Night Bazaar, or in the Military Supply stores outside the moat.

When there is a cloak of anonymity to hide behind, fools will relish in it.

Get them out in the open and accountable for their words/ actions and they will soon change their tune. Confront them, and you'll find most of them have the spines of a jellyfish.

[orang37]

It's an obnoxious old boys club (ie an "old boys club" where they are all obnoxious)

It's been like that ever since I got here over a handful of years ago.

They hijack and ruin threads, and no one does anything about it because it's one of their (obnoxious) mates.

Someone else points out someone is being a schmuck and gets his post removed for being unhelpful .

Sawasdee Khrup, Khun Maps24,

With respect ... I wonder why you are not using your ability, in your account settings, to hide messages from those persons whose posts you don't want to read.

While I make no inferences from the apparent fact you have been using the forum "over a handful of years," and have posted under fifty messages, if it's the case that you have held back from posting yourself because of the negative perceptions you have of other frequent posters:

What do you think of the idea that: if you demonstrate, in your own posts, the qualities, and style, you value, and wish to see, in other posts, as well as don't feed the troll legions, that you may, by example, over time, have influence on the evolution of the forum ?

Yes, "idealism," how passe, but, suppose you come to feel that your posts are valued by those people whose opinions you respect, or that you, at least, encouraged a few other people to smile, or laugh ... along with you ?

Would that not be an excellent feeling, or, at least, a delicious delirium

~o:37;

[kennedy]

Thaivisa, not unlike other forums, have their share of members that have a Narcissistic quality about them.

If you are not familiar with the mental illness, Google it.

[bazmlb]

Topic Closed, more breaches of forum rules will result in suspensions