Things are taking a dark turn

[madtolive]

check the middle of the 2nd page. we are indeed ambassadors.

everybody in chorus!:

"heavy on the ASSADOR!"

[Eddy Merckx]

Man, reading a few threads around here I'm beginning to think things are taking a turn for the worse. I'm not going to cite other threads, but if you are on MB a lot, you will probably know what I mean.

Basically, I have this advice to offer.

It's not a good idea to bag on or alienate new scooter owners. You don't need to point out that they are inexperienced. You don't need to point out they are not as cool as you are because you've been doing it since the '80s. You don't need to point out that some dork wearing shorts and flip flops ran a red light and is going to kill himself.

Yes, a lot of these new scooter owners will not be riding in a year. But, a lot of them will be. And they are going to be part of the "club" at that point. And there will be more of us, and that will be a good thing.

If you think these poeple are a threat to your identity, then you need serious help. Do you honestly think a Harley rider's esteem is threatened by the 19-year-old kid on a sport bike who is one pothole away from being roadkill?

So what are you going to do, park your scooter because it's becoming more popular?

Back in high school - in the '80s - I heard this about bands that were popping up on MTV. "Man, they are too commerical. They sold out." Of course one of the bands they were talking about was U2!

Get over it.

You do make good points, and some folk do tend to take themselves a bit to seriously ( to include myself ) and we were all once or still may be dorks and noobs on many different topics, so I think you are right and we should all lighten up a bunch when it come to casting judgements on others.

[louie]

Man, reading a few threads around here I'm beginning to think things are taking a turn for the worse. I'm not going to cite other threads, but if you are on MB a lot, you will probably know what I mean.

Basically, I have this advice to offer.

It's not a good idea to bag on or alienate new scooter owners. You don't need to point out that they are inexperienced. You don't need to point out they are not as cool as you are because you've been doing it since the '80s. You don't need to point out that some dork wearing shorts and flip flops ran a red light and is going to kill himself.

Yes, a lot of these new scooter owners will not be riding in a year. But, a lot of them will be. And they are going to be part of the "club" at that point. And there will be more of us, and that will be a good thing.

If you think these poeple are a threat to your identity, then you need serious help. Do you honestly think a Harley rider's esteem is threatened by the 19-year-old kid on a sport bike who is one pothole away from being roadkill?

So what are you going to do, park your scooter because it's becoming more popular?

Back in high school - in the '80s - I heard this about bands that were popping up on MTV. "Man, they are too commerical. They sold out." Of course one of the bands they were talking about was U2!

Get over it.

You do make good points, and some folk do tend to take themselves a bit to seriously ( to include myself ) and we were all once or still may be dorks and noobs on many different topics, so I think you are right and we should all lighten up a bunch when it come to casting judgements on others.

i'm a noob

it seems to me when someone speaks of new comers and inexperience, they're talking about the real dangers of inexperience. hurt talks about that in his report.

when someone talks about the 80's we're getting some history.
i loves history.

i'm starting to feel like i'm kissing butt, uhm i'll have to think that over.

the newbie side of me loves all the new buddy enthuses.




ScooterMonkey
Member

AxeYrCat wrote:
Group hug!

Ok, who just grabbed my butt?!

[ericalm]

At the rate we're adding new members, people stop being a n00b after about a month. Or once they post to this thread.

[jmazza]

At the rate we're adding new members, people stop being a n00b after about a month. Or once they post to this thread.

can that be like the secret initiation? We can all be kind of quiet and dark around new people until they randomly post in this thread and then we will accept them and love them as our own??

[hackett]

can that be like the secret initiation? We can all be kind of quiet and dark around new people until they randomly post in this thread and then we will accept them and love them as our own??

Is that all that it takes? I would've done this days ago!

[Piedmont]

can that be like the secret initiation? We can all be kind of quiet and dark around new people until they randomly post in this thread and then we will accept them and love them as our own??

[/quote]

I refuse to play your silly "post in this thread" game.

Oh....crap.

[gt1000]

BTW, I never intended this tread to be about people flaming others in the forum. I don't see much of that here, which is one reason why MB is so great. I'm just saying, if you see somebody riding without a helmet or full gear, it's their problem. Not yours. Live and let live. Rather than complain about it, lead by example.

Really, the meaning expressed in the above quote is what MB is all about. There are rules here that smartly discourage certain levels of debate on topics like helmet laws, ATGATT, politics, etc. Many of us who wouldn't be caught dead without a full face helmet support the rights of riders to go helmetless. But, when we see something that truly makes us wonder I still think it's a good idea to discuss it here. It's critically important that we all learn from each others' mistakes as well as each others' triumphs.

Anyway, I'm glad you clarified your original meaning. I think if you go back and read the original post with an objective eye, it does sort of sound like it's aimed at folks posting on MB.

[Johnny]

Of all the two-wheeled forums I participate in, I find Modern Buddy to be one of the most cordial, drama-free boards.
If anyone thinks it is moving in a "dark" direction, you should take a peek at the Ton Up Club forums. Anyone with thin skin wouldn't last more than one post.

[pugbuddy]

If they don't want to do something that is up to them and if there are people who are judging them for that then they have too much time on their hands in my opinion!
Just worry about yourself and let other people worry about themselves.

How can we possibly have too much time on our hands when there's so much judgeing of noobs to do? Heck, haven't you been reading--MB has added thousands of noobs this year alone! It's straining our judgemental muscles!

I choose to worry about everyone--but in a nice sort of way, I hope. I learned that from my dogs.

"For peace of mind, resign as general manager of the universe." ~Author Unknown

[Elm Creek Smith]

How can we possibly have too much time on our hands when there's so much judgeing (sic) of noobs to do? Heck, haven't you been reading--MB has added thousands of noobs this year alone! It's straining our judgemental muscles!

This is where my snap judgments come in handy. They are real time savers.

ECS

[brimstone]

p.s. i just had rabbit this past weekend, and i was feeling a little bit guilty about it, until i had my first bite. then the heavens opened up and angels sang and my heart soared because RABBIT IS DELICIOUS!

HEY! Cannibalism is illegal in the United States.

I have to disagree with you my friend...I've got decades of gluten-free cooking under my belt and *I* make the best GF pizza in the world Smile

cannibalism and making girlfriend pizza's? this thread truly has taken a dark turn.

[Drumwoulf]

Maybe we don't know how it's changed since we ARE the new guys.

I am assuming in 'the old days' there was a lot less "You should take the MSF course, and you suck if you don't" and a lot less "you wear sandals and shorts? You are going to regret that!!!" kind of talk. That doesn't bother me, though.

I'd like to think that at least some of THAT kind of advice is done out of concern for the new scooter rider. IMO some of these newbies think they're just on larger bicycles, and don't have a clue that what they're really on are smaller motorcycles, and should be treated as such...

[Elm Creek Smith]

There are, in my humble opinion, two types of scooter/motorcycle riders: those who have crashed and those who don't wear (enough) gear. YMMV.

Me? I wiped out at 70 mph on a BMW R50 in the long ago and ruined a perfectly good full set of Golden Bear of California leathers and helmet. That's why I'm a full face/modular helmet guy nowadays. There's nothing quite like wondering if you'll stop before the bubble face shield wears through. Since I've had the Budd, I went down at an intersection due to sand and been run into the median curb at 35 mph by an SUV. Gear kept me from being hurt worse than I was.

If you don't want to wear gear, I probably won't say anything to you about it. However, if you ask me, I'll tell you.

ECS

[n00b4life]

Maybe I can set a record for the quickest transition from n00b to "one of the guys" by putting my first post here.

I'll start off by saying that I've been a forum junkie since 1995 and I've seen some pretty ugly stuff. So far (I haven't read everything, by any stretch of the imagination) this one seems pretty civil. Most of the bad ones resemble the attacks on Craigslist Rants n Raves. This isn't even close (thankfully).

That being said, I did read the "anyone crash their scooter" thread and I was stunned to see how many people had not taken the MSF course and how many absolutely preventable accidents were listed as nobody's fault, or a cager's fault.

I kept screaming at the monitor, but nobody could hear me.

I've been riding motorcycles for 20 years or so and have taken the MSF class. My wife has less motorcycle experience, but has also taken the MSF class.

We both rode motorcycles with helmets (sometimes full face, sometimes open face), gloves, ballistic jackets, etc.

We ride the scooters with 1/2 helmets and that's about it. We spend all of our time on 30 mph streets. Is that the smartest thing to do? Probably not, but we ride 2500 miles a year on our bicycles, with less protection (cycling helmet and fingerless gloves) and often at higher speeds. While scooters are not big bikes, they do have better brakes, better emergency handling and are more visible to the cages.

So, I took the MSF course, wear the "wrong" gear and posted a largely off-topic comment - flame away or forever relinquish your title as a dark and hostile board.

[n00b4life]

Also, IMO, just as with bicycles and motorcycles, the more the merrier, I say. The more two-wheelers there are on the road, the more people will be aware of them and the safer I will feel.

Assuming, that is, that the two-wheelers aren't pissing off the cages, like the cyclists I see ignoring stop signs.

[poop colored buddy]

well i agree that this forum is one of the kindest forums available, a lot of people on here are opinionated and can get a little over zealous at times (i am probably in the top 10 for doing this). That being said, I havent logged onto this forum for about 2 months or longer. The reason being is that people on here tend to get bitchy (that will prob be edited), opinions are fine, but I have all but left this forum because of some of the attitudes and even mine has gotten out of hand at times. My point is that I agree that this forum has gotten a bit out of hand at times, and some of the people not understanding are....i dont know, maybe moderators! so of course you arent going to get it as much. My point is that I am sorry to anyone i have offended in the past, and im glad that someone has pointed this out and called people (me included) out on it. We just all need to remember that we all share this very cool common interest, and lets all just get along!

[KCScooterDude]

well i agree that this forum is one of the kindest forums available, a lot of people on here are opinionated and can get a little over zealous at times (i am probably in the top 10 for doing this). That being said, I havent logged onto this forum for about 2 months or longer. The reason being is that people on here tend to get bitchy (that will prob be edited), opinions are fine, but I have all but left this forum because of some of the attitudes and even mine has gotten out of hand at times. My point is that I agree that this forum has gotten a bit out of hand at times, and some of the people not understanding are....i dont know, maybe moderators! so of course you arent going to get it as much. My point is that I am sorry to anyone i have offended in the past, and im glad that someone has pointed this out and called people (me included) out on it. We just all need to remember that we all share this very cool common interest, and lets all just get along!

All I can say is, Thank you for wearing full gear