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The Great Mass Debater

Negativity on the forum

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In light of LDCs recent thread, the question is, IS this board TOO negative, or is this normal? The period from the end of the Grant regime through the Roeder era saw a period of real decline and negativity could only be expected, and justified as we whimpered out of the championship. The Lambert years were an extraordinary period of success and positivity, so negativity likely to be minimal. Over the past 5 years or so we''ve seen both ends of the spectrum.

Now, were hopefully in a period of stability, relegation a fear but not a certainty, unable to break into the top half. Expectations have plateaued along with the status of the club. So we have entered unrecognised territory, at least recently, or fresh in the mind.

So... Are we too negative on this board? A product of the natural end of the unsustainable wonder years?

Or, is the current mood of the board par for the course of being a mid-table Premier League club? I dont frequent other clubs message boards, but when I have seen snippets, the mood on other boards of similar clubs seems pretty similar to ours. You could probably lift some quotes from other clubs forums, remove the identifying features and not know they werent from our board.

So, too negative? Or normal compared with other clubs?

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=EF_xdvn52As

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Don''t think that this board is any more or less ''negative'' than others, GMD. My brother is a PNE fan and I look in on that from time to time. After years of spiralling downwards this season , under Grayson, they are nailed on for a play off spot, with a real shout of one of the Lge One automatic places. You''d have thought that everything in the garden would be rosy with the posters. But no, there''s plenty of criticism of the board, Grayson and the players.Personally I just don''t buy this ''negative'' label that is lazily attached to the group looking for a change. Basically, we are dissatisfied with the current status quo, and are in the business of offering suggestions as to how things could be improved. By changes. So, all in all a positive force, surely ?

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Negativity is comforting to some people, as is positivity.

If you act like everything is horrendous and it will never get better then if/when it does you can be extra happy. If it does go bad then you can just claim you were right all along.

Of course, this makes you an intensely horrendous person to be around in the mean time, these people aren''t dactyl the heart and soul of the party, they also have an intense desire to get everyone else on their level. It ends up as a big evangelical Christian phone in style pontification fest and that''s why I can''t sign up to it.

Extreme positivity has it''s down points too. Ignorance is bliss they say but if you have nothing to add in argument you just turn into a brick wall for ultra negatives to shout at. Negative people love the ldc''s of this world because it gives them a target.

Remaining in the middle, you will get accused of not picking a side and ring weak, but at least your a balanced human being.

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Negativity is a social disease these days.Its what comes from producing a society where few take responsibility for what they say and what they do...its always someone elses fault and everything can be fixed by throwing money at it.

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I''ve worked places where situations are totally handled in a way which is convenient for the management but makes doing particular jobs / tasks a logistical nightmare.

Any dissenting voices are not met with logical reasoning becaise logic of the situation contrasts with the management stance, the normal line trotted out is ''we must stop being so negative''

Sadly, there are a small number on this forum who see any dissenting voice regarding style of play, results, lack of goals, poor organization, as negativity.

I don''t hear them cheering on the team at carra, & I don''t hear them celebrating goals (because there ain''t being scored)

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[quote user="Number 9"]I''ve worked places where situations are totally handled in a way which is convenient for the management but makes doing particular jobs / tasks a logistical nightmare.

Any dissenting voices are not met with logical reasoning becaise logic of the situation contrasts with the management stance, the normal line trotted out is ''we must stop being so negative'' [/quote]

Sounds spookily like a place I worked at for a while where the managementspeak bo**ocks of the day was;"There''s no such thing as problems. Only opportunities".

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Sadly human nature is to be negative over positive, similarly human nature is to be considerably more negative when you are sat behind a keyboard and have complete anonymity. Just look at any club''s message board, except for a real minority of clubs that happen to be excelling at the time, everyone will have a similar outlook to the Pinkun

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As rule of thumb threads on most footie forums go off topic within 5 posts

No different on this one where just about every subject thread gets hijacked by the same CH in/out posters all the time

Just the thoughts of a newbie on here

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"Negativity is a social disease these days.Its what comes from producing a society where few take responsibility for what they say and what they do...its always someone elses fault and everything can be fixed by throwing money at it."

Couldnt agree more! Nothing happens by accident now, or is the natural course of something - its always somebody''s fault. We have developed a blame culture and a certain section of society that feels they are owed something. I blame the American litigation influence mainly and to some extent, benefits culture. This social move is so easy to breed, but almost impossible to remove once established. Bit like the weeds in my back garden!

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[quote user="Phil and Ted"]

As rule of thumb threads on most footie forums go off topic within 5 posts

No different on this one where just about every subject thread gets hijacked by the same CH in/out posters all the time

Just the thoughts of a newbie on here

[/quote]

Haha, I hadnt read this before my last post which took the thread off topic somewhat.

I dont feel the board is too negative at the moment, just a lot of unhappy supporters. You have to ask the question why are supporters unhappy? Are we unique because the unsustainable Lambert years have ended, or are we just normal. I suspect we''re normal. Any team which isnt excelling (and of course not every team can excel, its the few that are winning so by definition most teams could be doing better) will have fans who want more and arent happy.

I think unless your team is generally successful like Man Utd (though Im sure theyre not happy at the moment, but this is a special season for them), or you are treated to champagne football like at Man City on a regular basis, most boards will have a good amount of moaning on them.

I think the negativity we have at the moment is pretty proportionate as fans clearly arent enjoying the football. I think if the league position was such that we were in the relegation zone, the board wouldnt be considered ''too negative''. Think the accusation of negativity comes because our league position is satisfactory - even if the football does not inspire confidence this will remain so for many, and the football isnt being enjoyed.

I suppose its what matters to you. Plenty of people seem satisfied exclusively with our league position, even though we''re (I think) only 5 points off the bottom, so hardly comfortable. Other fans want more than a league position, which is essentially writing on a piece of paper. They want flair, excitement and to be entertained. I think plenty of fans would accept 17th position and exciting entertaining football with a few scalps, over 12th position watching uninspiring football and a season of few highlights.

Its not all about league position for me and Im sure Im not the only one. Iv been accused of ''copping out'' before by offering that above comparison, but personally, I dont feel the current way we play is the only way to stay in this league, and that to abandon it would end in relegation, which is the argument Im often countered with.

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Is the content of the board too negative or are the posters?

There is to be fair often a lot of overly negative posts, a lot of overeaction and an absolute sh@tstorm on here when we lose.

But this is often countered by almost relentless positivism so threads descend into unwinnable arguments that derail whatever the post was actually about.

I like to think the majority of posters sit frustratedly in the middle.

The problem being now anything remotely critical is jumped on by some as negative and rounded on by them and anything remotely positive is jumped on by those desperate for a managerial change. Then in both cases the opposite side gets involved and the unwinnnable argument begins its downward spiral destroying whatever the thread was actually about. Everything then certainly looks negative.

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There''s sensible and there''s negative. The vast majority of commentary re: what''s wrong with the team is sensible.

The ninnies interpret this as negativity and spew politically correct, kindergarten-mentality nonsense that ignores the issues. .

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[quote user="Reggie Strayshun"][quote user="Number 9"]I''ve worked places where situations are totally handled in a way which is convenient for the management but makes doing particular jobs / tasks a logistical nightmare. Any dissenting voices are not met with logical reasoning becaise logic of the situation contrasts with the management stance, the normal line trotted out is ''we must stop being so negative'' [/quote]


Sounds spookily like a place I worked at for a while where the managementspeak bo**ocks of the day was;

"There''s no such thing as problems. Only opportunities".
[/quote]

 

Apologies for going off topic, but this reminded me of a phrase once heard at work and never forgotten (owing to the sheer cringeworthyness of it, primarily because it was said in all seriousness) -

 

"Problems?  Lets stir fry some ideas in our mind woks"

 

Could well have come from The Thick Of It...  [:)]

 

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[quote user="Houston Canary"]There''s sensible and there''s negative. The vast majority of commentary re: what''s wrong with the team is sensible.

The ninnies interpret this as negativity and spew politically correct, kindergarten-mentality nonsense that ignores the issues. .[/quote]I am sure you see the irony in your second sentence..

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[quote user="Trent Canary"][quote user="Houston Canary"]There''s sensible and there''s negative. The vast majority of commentary re: what''s wrong with the team is sensible.

The ninnies interpret this as negativity and spew politically correct, kindergarten-mentality nonsense that ignores the issues. .[/quote]I am sure you see the irony in your second sentence..[/quote][:D]

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[quote user="Houston Canary"]Yes, TC, I do.

I wondered how many would pick it up and if anyone would appreciate it. Mission accomplished.[/quote]Well played sir. Sadly sarcasm can be tough to pick up on a message board!

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Having fun amusing myself and hopefully others, TC.

Paul, this thread is directed towards we commenters, not CH. Some of you CH-can-do-no-wrongers really are looking for reasons to be offended.

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Negative people are negative people, regardless of the football

It''s science

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Search "negative people" on google

First hit, "7 simple tips to deal with negative people"

Tip 7 is "drop them from your life"

Take note, most people will eventually do this. In the mean time they are humouring you.

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[quote user="lincoln canary"]Perhaps negative football breeds negative fans.[/quote]

A negative and a negative = a negative.   (as in even + even = even.....  2+2=4.  4+4=8 etc)A positive and a positive =  a negative     (as in odd + odd also = even...   1+1=2   3+3=6 etc)A positive and a negative = a positive     ( as in and odd + even =  an odd...   2+1=3  3+2= 5 etc)Two gays can''t conceive  (2 positives)Two lesbians can''t conceive (2 negatives)   A male and a female can conceive (positive + a negative)

Ergo if you want a positive outcome you need a combination of positive and negative.

This board has a lot of negativity.  If there were no positive contributors there would be no board. It would disintegrate into a place where no-one would want to go.    Thankfully there are a few who can see a positive side to things, thank goodness.

If the crowd at a football match are too negative and the team are feeling a bit negative or under confident they will struggle under the weight of too much negativity.   That is why the crowd needs to give the team some positivity.   The team needs to fight he negativity too, to fight their lack of confidence or fear. 

That may all seem a bit simplistic but the science of cause and effect is as true with football as in anything else.   Be too negative as a support base and you risk dragging the club down.  Ask Blackburn.  Its a viscious circle.   One we should imo be wary of at Norwich.  The team has struggled  for whatever reason - you can blame any number of things including the manager - but the underlying problem is getting over the negativity, whether it is in the fans or the team or the manager - but its usually a combination of the three. 

Imo it is incumbent of every supporter to try and be as positive as possible in their support.  That includes this board.  We are not yet firing on all cylinders as a team or as fans. Its been tough to watch at times and tough to support. But most of us do support positively when the chips are down and because we have a mentally strong manager and team - and they have demonstrated it many times this season - we should be ok and improve.  I fear for the club if we get too negative in our support - it could be a post Chase or a post Worthy scenario all over again.  

Lincoln is right.  Negativity breeds negativity.  But too much positivity is negative too (Blackpool?).   We need to fight the negative with positivity to achieve the outcome we want.

That''s my view and you can take it or leave it.

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Lakey, I think you''ve just about got it right.....you''re unable to come up with anything new that''s positive unless you dedicate your input  to reacting to those you consider negative. 

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[quote user="Buh"]Search "negative people" on google

First hit, "7 simple tips to deal with negative people"

Tip 7 is "drop them from your life"

Take note, most people will eventually do this. In the mean time they are humouring you.[/quote]

Ah well if Google says so then it must be fact. Did you find the scientific evidence to support this? Try Wikipedia maybe.....

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