Robert, thanks for a thoughtful post, and I'm glad you voiced your concerns. I share some of them, find others to be worrisome, and believe there are matters which are relevant and left out.

(Notice - I believe this can be read 'straight'. It is defensive, though I'm not trying to be snide or sarcastic.)

Let's look at how this particular thread developed. Read the first post. It is a Flame directed at me over a post which Rob misread. Over something I didn't do. Rob imputed to my post a meaning which wasn't there. The object of the post took it in the spirit in which it was intended, didn't seem to find it objectionable.

I replied on Flame, in the thread, that his understanding wasn't what was meant but that I could understand how that was possible to misread, apologized and volunteered I'd try to eliminate that behavior.

(Please find another post where someone said they would try to alter their behavior. I can think of a number of people who are more crudely vile than I. Please find another post where someone has apologized for their behavior. I don't recall either of those though their may have been a few. I haven't seen them. I believe I've done so a few times. I believe I even apologized to FrankC a while back. That wasn't fun, it was due.)

I plead guilty but not as charged, and then come several people saying they don't like my brand of sarcasm. And a couple of defenders. I will admit, though, that on the whole the sense of the Boards is that I'm an unpleasant personality here.

There is the mention of FrankC. You are correct, I've never forgiven him for saying that third-world people get used to having their friends and relatives killed, especially if there is a payment afterward. That attitude still steams me.

However, I was thinking about FrankC when I made the remark about being able to needle people effectively and apologized for it. I will not do that in the future. I am aware, too, that FrankC watches my posts very carefully, looking for any excuse to delete them, and does so on the thinnest reason. Especially late at night. He gets away with it, I believe, because I've irritated most people at one time or another while FrankC goes out of his way to be less controversial.

I negotiated contracts and handled disputes for a labor organization. (There IS another side of me.) In heavy construction circles there are some interesting terms. A "crummy", for instance, is a legal term for a vehicle which is serviceable around a job site, usually to haul workers from a parking area to the work site. There is another term, "run him off", as in "The superintendent run him off". That refers to someone who couldn't be fired for cause. Management would simply make working conditions unpleasant enough that person left anyway.

I'm unwilling to have someone unilaterally judge my posts for offensive content who regards me as a "fuking alcoholic" even though I wear the term proudly. That person is not able to be objective, and I don't understand how anyone could believe he could. The animosity toward him for his belief for which I am criticized is returned by hate of what I am. Even though I'm one of the few who have owned up to our illness and are recovering.

That's the long way, and hopefully the last time, I'm going to explain why I will not post on the new boards. The decision has been made. I'll know that I will have been "run off", that conditions were imposed which would be intolerable to a reasonable person. Others, not sensitive to the history, will believe I chose to leave. I'm sure I'll lurk over there, at least for a while.

I think there is a bit of the flock picking on the chicken who shows a weakness. The entre' was my apology even though the particular post for which I was attacked was not an example of that to which there was an objection. And in spite of that, the feedback is appropriate, warranted and if not welcome at least appreciated.

Alcaray is right, I sound like I'm complaining. And I am. And he's wrong. I'm not trying to be charming - that doesn't seem to be one of my attributes.

Arf