Author Topic: My response to more 'binge drinking' idiocy  (Read 4295 times)

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Offline Sal Atticum

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My response to more 'binge drinking' idiocy
« on: October 20, 2006, 02:05:44 PM »
I posted this on the Dakota Student comments for the article--it even made it through the moderators.

Quote
Try using some proper grammar next time--you write for a newspaper.

You know why people want to stop teen binge drinking?  Because people die.  Drinking alcohol is not a problem, people like you who glamorize getting wasted just because there's "nothing better to do" are.  You make me sick just because, since YOU couldn't think of anything worthwhile to do with your life, you insist on marketing a similar lifestyle to everyone around you.  If people took responsibility for their actions (e.g., not driving when they have been drinking, not drinking just because they are bored), we would be a lot better off as a culture.

So, Jake, where's your rebuttal?  Defend your idiocy.
JUST EXTRA POLISH. I DO SOME WORK WITH EXCELL SO I KEEP THE CAPS LOCK ON :-P

Offline jake_22

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Re: My response to more 'binge drinking' idiocy
« Reply #1 on: October 20, 2006, 03:22:29 PM »
Whoa, whoa there buddy.  Did you actually read my article?  Or did you just get to the part about binge drinking and then proceed to get your panties all twisted.  I don't know if you noticed but I never said that teen binge drinking is a good thing.  I just said that's the way things are.  I'm sorry if you can't take the truth about how things are in rural N.D.  I actually said that the anti-teen binge drinking people were fighting a noble cause.  However, from my own experience I don't think they will make an impact, at least any time in the near future.  I don't know where you grew up, but if you're so upset by this it obiously wasn't a small town.  The teen cultures in towns like Drake are vastly different from not only cities like Minneapolis, but also places like Minot and Grand Forks.  If you don't come from a small town then you probably wouldn't understand, which is why I wrote the article in the first place.  I was trying to get people from more densly populated areas to see what life was like for those of us who didn't have a mall or a McDonalds to go to.  If telling it like it is is glamorizing then I'm sorry.  To paraphrase Jack Nicholson, some people can't handle the truth, and you my friend, must be one of them.


Offline Sal Atticum

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Re: My response to more 'binge drinking' idiocy
« Reply #2 on: October 20, 2006, 03:33:38 PM »
:'(
You make me cry so much Jake.  Where did the love go?

Part of the reason I am "so upset" was so you would actually read my comment.  I didn't actually think it would drive you to reply, and I support you in that.  I hope you stick around.  I shall respond to your volley:

For an article about the difference between the city and the country, you sure talk up drinking a lot as a form of entertainment.  In case you didn't realize, people drink everywhere, whether it's a small town or a big city.  The question is, who is worse off, those who binge drink because they can't think of anything better to do, or those who binge drink in spite of having a whole city to entertain them?  (I don't have an opinion on it, actually.  It's an interesting question.)

I understand the truth, but the difference between us is that you can only see the world how it is, and I can see it how it can be.  I know that's a broad statement to make, and wrong in more ways than one, but I thought it sounded cool.

By the way, I did grow up in a small town.  My issue with what you said is not about underage drinking, it's about irresponsible drinking, which is a much better fight in the long run.
JUST EXTRA POLISH. I DO SOME WORK WITH EXCELL SO I KEEP THE CAPS LOCK ON :-P

Offline dseditor

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Re: My response to more 'binge drinking' idiocy
« Reply #3 on: October 20, 2006, 03:36:35 PM »
I just wanted to clarify something ? the DS Web site is not moderated for the most part. Posts do not need to be approved before they go up, but we have removed posts after the fact if and only if they are considered to be offensive or they are used to advertise (this second point being where mburtonk's posts have been removed). If a post tells people that (and I'm paraphrasing here) "Hey, come check out my thoughts on this topic at my Web site," as mburtonk has done in the past, it will be removed. The reason for this is that the DS Web site can be used for any discussion, so advertising for another Web site to post opinions is unnecesary. Attach your thoughts on the article or column directly on that work itself next time, where it belongs.

Offline Sal Atticum

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Re: My response to more 'binge drinking' idiocy
« Reply #4 on: October 20, 2006, 03:47:19 PM »
Yeah, that was kind of a dick move on my part, but I thought it had only been the one time.  My apologies. 

However, Jake could have replied to me on the DS site: his choice to post here was his own, as was your choice to register as a new user and make a post rather than sending me an email.  I won't spam the DS site anymore if you accept that it's not the only place to talk about the DS.
JUST EXTRA POLISH. I DO SOME WORK WITH EXCELL SO I KEEP THE CAPS LOCK ON :-P

Offline martinr

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Re: My response to more 'binge drinking' idiocy
« Reply #5 on: October 22, 2006, 10:03:31 PM »
Another DS columnist here jumping on the bandwagon.

For clarification, the DS policy on article comments is that columnists are not allowed to respond on the site. While I may not agree with the policy as I would love to respond to some of them, I see where the "higher ups" are coming from.

In Jake's defense there are many occasions where errors make it past my eyes as well as the editors'. Can't you give us credit for being human and making a mistake? In addition, there are occasions where our articles need to be edited due to space constraints. The editors try their best to make what was edited sound alright but I have found a few places in my own work where even I couldn't have helped out. 

Offline Sal Atticum

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Re: My response to more 'binge drinking' idiocy
« Reply #6 on: October 23, 2006, 12:07:58 PM »
Are all these policies on using your comment feature published somewhere?  It might be useful to know that no one is going to be able to respond to a direct attack.

To clarify, my grammar critique was on the title.  "Stop hating on GF" is probably the dumbest title I've ever seen in a newspaper.

Feel free to use this site to respond to your comments.  No one at Dakota Roar is going to censor you like the DS editors.
JUST EXTRA POLISH. I DO SOME WORK WITH EXCELL SO I KEEP THE CAPS LOCK ON :-P

Offline lynsey

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Re: My response to more 'binge drinking' idiocy
« Reply #7 on: October 23, 2006, 09:22:50 PM »
This is the DS opinion editor here....

The reason we don't allow our writers to reply to comments on the website is because we believe that they've had their chance to speak, and now it's the readers' turn to speak. It's not about censorship -- it's about showing respect to our readers.

I'm really quite saddened that this seems to have become a DS bashing website. It had a lot of great potential, but I'm not sure I'll keep up my presence here if this is what we're going to talk about. I doubt any of us would enjoy coming to a website for recreational purposes only to find themselves constantly defending their job and coworkers. It just kind of sucks, so until the subject matter in Roar starts to diversify, I'm not posting.

Offline red hibiscus

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Re: My response to more 'binge drinking' idiocy
« Reply #8 on: October 24, 2006, 09:56:26 AM »
i agree that there should be more diversity in posts and that they shouldn't focus on just the DS (even though i don't think they always do).  however, maybe mburtonk posts about the DS articles in hopes of others posting responses...the articles could potentially spark good discussion.

also, i think we could see more diversity in the topics in Roar if there was more diversity in those who post...

Offline Sal Atticum

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Re: My response to more 'binge drinking' idiocy
« Reply #9 on: October 30, 2006, 05:38:17 PM »
It just kind of sucks, so until the subject matter in Roar starts to diversify, I'm not posting.

I'm not sure what you hope to accomplish by this . . . wouldn't the best way for the subject matter to diversify be for people other than myself to start threads?  You do have that option.  I don't want to have to be the one who is always looking for topics--I started this site in hopes that others would bring ideas/thoughts/opinions of their own, and start their own threads.

It's just not going to work if there is only one person starting threads, just like it won't work if everyone treats every post as their last word on the subject.  You don't need to think about what you write so much!  I know I don't.  In everything you say, there is usually something that will spark someone else to comment, so just let fly.  If you don't want to talk about serious issues, then don't.  Post something fun!  Post a funny video you found, or a cool website, then you don't even have to say anything about it.

lynsey, I am sorry that you and the other DS writers/editors are unhappy with some of the threads here.  There are any number of threads that do not have anything to do with the Dakota Student, and I invite you to post in those.  I don't intend to bash the DS--what I did here was, granted, over the top in hopes that I would get a response, but my issue was with his ideas and my opinion would not be different were he a writer for the New York Times.

JUST EXTRA POLISH. I DO SOME WORK WITH EXCELL SO I KEEP THE CAPS LOCK ON :-P

 

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