What is your current ignore list?

[Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck]

Honest question: How do some of you guys with huge ignore lists even function? I mean do you really just use Atlas as a personal echo chamber?

Most of the people on my ignore list are trolls.  Napoleon and me don't seem to get along at all so I figure it's best for all if we don't interact more than necessary.  So to answer your question, no.

I'm honored to be on your list.

Looking at his list, I don't think he has the ability to view anything OTHER than speculative 2016 maps and NewYorkExpress timelines.

Rough stuff!

As for me: just a couple 2012 Romney trolls and I don't even remember their names. 

[Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck]

I actually see some value in these threads. It's a chance for posters (A) to see whether they have irritated someone enough to end up on his or her ignore list and (B) to get feedback on whether anyone on their ignore list is worth reading or has become worth reading.

Why is that so problematic? I understand the concerns that some of you have, but do they really outweigh the value of never accidentally reading a post from Aggregate Demand or Pbrower?

Here's my list:

Dave Leip
Reaganfan
HockeyDude
MasterJedi
J. J.
Storebought
Bandit3 the Worker
Christmas Bushie 2014
Kevin
memphis
RosettaStoned
smilo
pbrower2a
Phony Moderate
So rightwing that I broke the Political Compass!
Long titles annoy me
A.G. Snowstalker
Illuminati Blood Drinker
R2D2
ChairmanSanchez
Indy Texas
MATTROSE94
Jo March Bhaer
BlondeArtisit
Ralph Nader
NJ Christian
NewYorkExpress
JRP1994
Clarko95
TX Conservative Dem
IceSpear
RTX
Joshgreen
FDRfan1985
PiMp DaDdy FitzGerald
Maistre
AggregateDemand
bronz4141
Never
Jack982
Dixiecrat
CherryPanda
KCDem

Surprised to find myself here.  Can't think of anything I would've ever done to piss him off.  Probably agree with him on 99% of issues. 

[Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck]

Surprised to find myself here.  Can't think of anything I would've ever done to piss him off.  Probably agree with him on 99% of issues.  

My sense is that you are markedly to my left on a number of issues, but that's not relevant. I wouldn't intentionally ignore someone over political differences. And I rarely get offended over posts, so pissing me off isn't a concern either.

If you're curious, you are on my ignore list because your posts are frequently detrimental to discussion. You act hostile toward people with beliefs that differ from your own and rarely show interest in learning why your beliefs diverge. You frequently slander broad groups with little apparent justification.

Here's a good example from the first page of your recent posts:

Do conservatives understand just how evil they are? 

I feel a bit silly typing this after telling Train that he takes forum dialogue more seriously than I do, but you deserve a frank answer. You seem like a nice enough person, I'm just not a fan of your posting style.

As long as you recognize that it's a style, fair enough.

[Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck]

Surprised to find myself here.  Can't think of anything I would've ever done to piss him off.  Probably agree with him on 99% of issues.  

I won't speak for Averroes, because he already did, but agreement on the issues often has little to do with it.  The four remaining people on my own ignore list are all Democrats (although in Tweed's case, who even knows/cares any more).  You and I also agree on most issues it would appear, and although you're not yet on my ignore list, it's been sorely tempting.  Here's just my two cents; you are irritatingly immature, and your schtick is a cheap knock-off of Lief's opebo's.

I don't put people ignore. That sort of goes against the point of this forum.

Again, there's ignoring somebody for their political opinions, and then there's ignoring them for being stupid or ridiculous (and not in a fun way).  Don't assume it's always the former reason.

ftfy.  Plus, Lief doesn't even like hockey. 

[Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck]

I actually see some value in these threads. It's a chance for posters (A) to see whether they have irritated someone enough to end up on his or her ignore list and (B) to get feedback on whether anyone on their ignore list is worth reading or has become worth reading.

Why is that so problematic? I understand the concerns that some of you have, but do they really outweigh the value of never accidentally reading a post from Aggregate Demand or Pbrower?

Even bad posters can have flashes of insight, or at least spur interesting conversation from time to time.  And it's not that hard to just scroll past.  The "value" you speak of is of negative value to me.

Most of your ignore list is at least tolerable, and there's probably about a half-dozen folks on there who are legitimately high-quality posters whose banishment to your Outer Wastes utterly boggles my mind.

On one hand, I'd list folks... on the other hand, what the hell is the point?  If someone is as ignore-happy as you seem to be, it's clear we have a fundamental disagreement as to what it means to be a forum member, and I'm not sure there's any way to bridge that divide.

It's disappointing, especially coming from someone like you that I generally respect(ed).

I think you take this more seriously than I do. That might sound like an insult, but it's not meant as one. For me, the forum is a place of entertainment first and one of education second. I learn here, but the Atlas Forum is not where I go to learn. I'm not running a blue-ribbon panel. If someone irritates me, I am under no obligation to engage with them.

Maybe I'm missing an occasional insight from the dozen or so active posters on my ignore list, but using a filter saves me time. If someone I ignore makes an interesting point, it usually prompts further discussion. Yes, I could skim past those posts, but I find it easier to dispense with them altogether. Between books, blogs, and journal articles, I don't have enough time to read everything that I want to read, so I prioritize.

Furthermore - and probably more importantly - I don't want to waste my time on pointless arguments with willfully ignorant posters. If I don't even see their posts, I'm not tempted to respond. Even if I read their posts anyway, the "show post" button functions like a big flashing sign reminding me not to get worked up.

If I'm missing quality posts, by all means, let me know. Except for Storebought, I'm skeptical.

I don't really think of Atlas as "educational", TBF- while I do think it's edifying to interact with folks who have wildly divergent views, priors, and/or attitudes (and I guess I do take that seriously as a general principle), I'd actually agree with classifying this place as "entertainment" more than anything else, and I do get my serious news elsewhere for the most part.  Perhaps I actually take certain forms of ignorance and irritation less seriously, insofar as just for example I don't really find it any burden to just scroll past, say just for example, Messrs. Arrogant and Catdrugs without there being much of a threat of getting worked up.

Anyway, I see you unignored Clarko, and that's good because he was probably the single most baffling entry on your list- I can't for the life of me imagine why anyone would feel the need to ignore him.  I'd also give Storebought, IceSpear, IndyTexas, and ChairmanSanchez another chance.  I've never seen anything egregiously bad from Storebought, and the other three have said some dumb things in the past but are on balance certainly worthwhile these days.  There are other folks you have on ignore who are pretty damn anodyne but those probably have the highest signal/noise ratio.

And there is all the serious crowd ever needs to know.