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So, what with all the commotion recently, and (from what I can see) an absence of a thread like this one, I figured now would be a wonderful time to whip this up (incidentally, I'm sure I saw a thread by Dras somewhere that basically said "Always assume you are wrong", which I thought was neat. It's posted below). I think I'm well within my jurisdiction to make this thread since I am, all things considered, fairly antagonistic at the best of times. Perhaps not as bad as some folk, but I definitely could benefit from being less aggressive sometimes. So, y'know, bear that in mind before you tear my lungs out for not practising what I preach. I'm trying to exorcise some personal demons here, as well as a couple of yours, too.

This is the Magick and Psionic Research Institute and Learning Center, not the Magick and Psionic Argument Institute and Bickering Center. Despite that, there's a lot of bickering, and a lot of confrontation with one another within the guild. I'm a stunning example of that; whenever I reply to someone I dislike, there's always something really snide and pointed in there to make them remember that I despise them. That really acheives ******** all, when you think about it, except for breeding further contempt.
As well as that, there's a whole lot of arguments cropping up because of things in magick that supposedly can't be done, shouldn't be done, or aren't classified correctly. I'm going to address that too.

Loaded Phrases, Antagonistic Speech, and Snide Remarks
Don't jump into a conversation just so you can whip out a snide remark at someone for something they said in order to a) show them up, and b) prove them wrong.
We're here to learn, not show off how much more we know than someone. If you find flaw in someone's argument, don't immediately try to make it into some huge affair with comparisons to nazism, fluffy/moonbeamishness, Christianity and the like. Just say "I disagree", and say why. That's all you really can say. Remember folks, there's never one set way to do anything in magick and psionics, and if you'll permit me to use a phrase that I don't mean strictly literally - the world works differently for everyone. I'll get on that in a second.
More or less, all I'm saying is we should quit saying s**t just to make ourselves seem more adept than others. None of this "that's stupid", or "obviously you're not good enough at psionics to know about it", or "you're all blind morons!" and such. A little snide remark now and again, sure; every sentence containing some loaded phrase pertaining to another person's idiocy, no, thank you. It's giving us a bad rep.

"That's impossible/based on a lie!" remarks
Like I said, the world works differently for everyone. I can't divine the future with runes - that does not mean runes are an ineffective means of divination, it means I'm runically inept. Odin pats me on the back and offers me his sincerest apologies as he weeps from his one eye for me. Likewise, you may not believe in the christian God. That does not mean he doesn't exist. It also doesn't mean anything remotely related to christianity is a lie and thus worthless or ineffective in magick and so on (cf. the goetia, for example). So, before you jump into someone's argument to argue against one of the premises that isn't actually being disputed - stop. A perfect example of this is [BlkCat]'s thread on Soul Magick. He asked folk if they could teach him anything about soul magick - instead, there was a whole lot of answers pertaining to "it can't be done!". BlkCat would, no doubt, welcome these answers if they were mere asides, rather than entire posts. Instead of getting information on soul magick, he got folk telling him not to try, and that defeats the purpose of a research institute. If you believe it's impossible, say so, but help them out anyway.

"That's immoral!" remarks
You can decide someone's morality on the day you stop believing that fairies exist. Again, if you think something shouldn't be attempted, say so, but help anyway.

"Actually, that's..."
"Actually" is one of those words that always makes air raid sirens go off in my head. Once I've defeated the boss and escaped the nightmare world, I then go on and read the rest of the sentence, and nine times outta ten, it ends up of the form "Actually, that's not fire magick, that's djinn magick.", or "actually, the bible states such and such", or "Actually, you weren't on the astral plane, you were on the 14th Indigo Elf plane, obviously." Magick, Psionics and Religion are incredibly open to interpretation. There is no 'actually'. There is 'maybe', but no 'actually'. As such, don't treat your classifications as if they were the be-all-end-all of magick and psionics. Remember, the world works differently for everyone, and rarely is anything set in stone that way. 'Actually' is one of those loaded phrases that's often used to mean "Well, you're wrong, and I'm right, so let me teach you what I think." Different folk have different ideas about the way magick works, and how it's classified. Yes, a spell to summon dryads may be "Green Magick", but that's just a classification you've adopted to help you understand better. It doesn't mean that the world/universe as a whole classifies it that way. The Numinous ain't so neat like that.
Obviously, there's something a tad fallacious in my argument here; "Actually, Christians believe in Jesus" is true and not open to interpretation, so dismissing sentences that start with "actually" is a terrible idea. Instead, look at them with a hint of scepticism, and if you aren't sure about what the person is claiming, ask for evidence. If none can be provided, it's probably an arbitary/made-up classification. That's not to say it's worthless, but hey, I'm throwing that out there.

Of course, all of this flies out the window if someone belligerently verbally attacks you, in which case, flame their arse to hell. Or, continue to be nice. Your choice.

ADDED BY LOBO... IN THE NEAR FUTURE!

"Speak softly and carry a big stick." - African Proverb

This is vaguely related, but if there are members here that have a personal vendetta against another person or another guild, it might be in everyone's best interests if it isn't brought over into this guild, as that only seems to complicate things.

I think this will speak to those that it's meant for. wink

Actually...
xd

This is good. Really, really good. Mitsh, you get legions of bonus points for writing something so good, informative, and mature. I said sticky, and I asked the boss man, and he said no, I should make it an announcement instead. And I hereby declare everyone should read this, and become smarter thereby.

Must say, I ********' love that quotation, despite the avenues of Awful Things it might lead to. |D

In all honesty, when I first heard about you, I thought you were a c**t. But then, that was in Mysteric Realms; while you've been here, you seem a whole lot more zen and less crush-kill-destroy. Sorry for that misleading judgement there. XD;

I think the guild would be pretty dry and boring if there were no witty insults being thrown out every once in a while, so by all means, be a douche, but be a slightly deflated, half-empty douche and still contribute if possible. If every post in every thread became a remark at someone, eventually, everyone'll get incredibly pissed and someone would snap and the guild would go flump. More or less.

As for Pingu... I dunno. I think anger would be justified against him, but he does post topics with some serious discussion points (albeit often prefaced by a paragraph illuminating his hubris). The second he starts going on about how magick "really" works though, he breaks one of the guidelines above, and you can pretty much tear out his chakras for all I care. XD

I think the Original Poster has a great disposition, a convincing argument, and sizzlingly good looks. Let's all worship him.