I rarely participate in gaming forums, be it poker, sportsbook, thoroughbred, etc.  It becomes quite easy for the testosterone level to get high, and the next thing you know you're worse for the wear for having gotten into a pissing contest with a small-time idiot.  
It'll never happen, but I think the best way to counteract a lot of this would be if posters were forced to use their real names. Rather than having "tacomax" antagonizing "raiders" (just using a recent altercation between these two as an example), if you had Bill Simmons the mechanic from Leicester, England, stirring up shit with John Van Der Meer the professor from Yuma, AZ, the two might be a lot more apt to watch how far they take things. Anonymity promotes cheap shots and aggressive behavior without the fear of being exposed or retribution, and I for one don't like hiding. In addition, many try to tout or build their "forum cred", whereas in real life they're simply losers. I'm a member of a community forum where everyone (city commissioners, business owners, etc.) posts under their full name, and it might just be the most productive forum around. Ideas are discussed far more than personal attacks, and we're all the better for it.
Would be curious if there were any sites out there that had their members post under their legal names? GL...
							
						
					It'll never happen, but I think the best way to counteract a lot of this would be if posters were forced to use their real names. Rather than having "tacomax" antagonizing "raiders" (just using a recent altercation between these two as an example), if you had Bill Simmons the mechanic from Leicester, England, stirring up shit with John Van Der Meer the professor from Yuma, AZ, the two might be a lot more apt to watch how far they take things. Anonymity promotes cheap shots and aggressive behavior without the fear of being exposed or retribution, and I for one don't like hiding. In addition, many try to tout or build their "forum cred", whereas in real life they're simply losers. I'm a member of a community forum where everyone (city commissioners, business owners, etc.) posts under their full name, and it might just be the most productive forum around. Ideas are discussed far more than personal attacks, and we're all the better for it.
Would be curious if there were any sites out there that had their members post under their legal names? GL...
							
						