doggie
- 2004-07-16
> Boots 43, why the name change?
> There are people who will attack you for not being young, and there
> are probably people who will attack them for not being older.
> There are people who attack me for not being Mexican (I'm currently
> in Mexico) and I in return attack them for being Mexican.
> However, at the end of the day I or they don't really give a (insert
> suitable word here) about nationality, age, or marital status, we are
> just disagreeing about something and both refusing to give ground, so
> we throw in a few irrelevancies to make us feel better.
> I will say some people here are more than a little nasty about you,
> but as long as you are happy with who you are etc, I don't think you
> should let their words affect you too much.
> PS I married a Guatemalan lady 12 years younger and she is the one
> who wants to stay put, so the assumption she married me for a ticket
> out would be very wide of the mark.
Wow, people!
I just spent 15 minutes following this thread. Which was a little like coming upon a car accident whereby people just gawk with their mouths open.
I realize that this (my following the thread) was of my own free will and I could be attacked for doing so...but it was the closest thing to a soap opera (not that I would know) that I've come across in some time.
I came upon this site,,,as a "newby" and had hoped to see some serious advice, help, etc., and it felt more like an on line game chat room full of pre-teens.
Thank you for letting me say that. I guess I'll have to steel myself for a few "quips" headed in my direction. There is no reason I should expect to escape the wrath of some of you.
Now....anyone been to Honduras? I think I have a fairly good situation considering all of the variables involved, but just wondered if anyone had advice on San Pedro Sula as a community.
Thanks all.....doggie
boots43
- 2004-06-23
I know you weren't apologizing to me, but I will accept it anyways. You did give an opposite impression than that, but, truth is, there was no need to mention my wife - if you have a complaint against what I say, address it to me,please. and please, address just the point- no need to call me names.
Peace be with you.
sperlingintus
- 2004-06-23
hello mike,
i have to admit you have a point and i appreciate the manner in which you expressed it....
and you are correct that bootsy really does p***** me off with the arrogant nature of his posts, and the way he attacks for no real reason.
but what i said was in no way an attack against his wife...the post was definitely angled at him ....if i gave the opposite impression i apologise...
boots43
- 2004-06-23
Sperlingitus, your attacks are sad. You really need to learn a few things.
One, what the age of a child is. My wife was 22 when we got married. There is no place in the world where someone who is 22 is considered a child. So, she is definitely not my child-bride. Although I am so happy that she is my bride. We treat each other with love and respect and we really don't care about the age difference. It's not really anyone else's business, is it?
Second, your ad hominem attacks have reached a new low. It was bad enough when you attacked me personally. Now, you attack my wife. I do feel sorry for your seeming need to do this.
Third,you will never gain any respect from anyone simply by name-calling. Perhaps, you don't care to gain any respect from anyone.
Finally, as far as other people having my number and my spending too much time here is concerned, if you read what I write here you will know that I have not sunken to the personal attack level. My time is, of course, mine to spend as I wish. if you are offended by what I write and do not respond except by name-calling, then it seems to me that you are wasting your time no matter how much time you are spending. And, as long as I keep the level of debate above the personal attack level, I must say that your personal attacks on me and my family(and those of anyone else who does the same) are simply sad and unfortunate and definitely a waste of your time and the space at this forum.
I want to thank Mike B for his nice response to your name-calling. For you, Mr. S, I say - please try and respond to what is said and do not resort to name-calling.
I do believe there is a certain level of jealousy in what you are writing, but perhaps you believe the best way to respond is simply by name-calling.
That method of response is non-productive and serves no real purpose.
boots43
- 2004-06-23
So, you have written this in attempting to goad me into a response. You complained that my writings were not a serious use of this forum space. If that is so, how are your responses - which you admit are an attempt to goad me - any different? You'll get that response as surely as you wish - and of course, you keep responding though you say you won't.
Difference between us - I don't stop responding because I never said I would. You said you would, but you don't. In my way of thinking if you say you'll do one thing and you do another, then you lied. Someone who lied would thus be a liar. This is not name-calling - it is simply stating a comparison between your words and your actions- a comparison easy to make simply by reading what you said you'd do and what you actually did.
Is anyone actually surprised that I respond to attacks upon my person and my family? I would expect anyone in the same situation to do the same.
Mike B
- 2004-06-22
Even if Michael really ****s you off I don't think it is fair to make nasty attacks against his wife.
So what if he spends hours on this board, it's good to see some people making posts or else the place would be very dead and boring.
Be nice, or as my old grandma used to say, if you don't have something nice to say, say nothing at all. Not that I follow her advice, but I think criticizing the age/race/sex of somebody's partner is very below the belt.
Cheers
Mike (No relation to Boots43 Mike)
sperlingintus
- 2004-06-20
...so funny that you're attacking qualities have not diminished over time MJB!!
nice to know others have your number too!
sad sad man....how many hours a week do you devote to this website, and how many hours do you avoid your child bride?
...or does she avoid you..............................................?
boots43
- 2004-06-17
You needn't feel sorry for my wife, but,perhaps, she should feel sorry for you. I have had people tell me they like what I write here - are you calling them nobody? You still haven't gotten past the name-calling stage and, if you are a great debater, you certainly have not shown it here. but then you weren't going to enter a debate with me, were you?
And you have kept your word- what youw rote hardly qualifies as a debate.
and as for the wisdom of simplicity, you do have the simplicity part down, anyways.
boots43
- 2004-06-16
You haven't read all my replies or you wouldn't have made those statements. Judging by what you wrote you are incapable of getting into a debate with anyone. Every one of my retorts(as you call them) came about as a result of someone's ad hominem attack to what was my attempt to answer a question or meet an issue they had raised. Tim, you are exactly what this forum was intended to avoid- simplistic, nasty attacks made by people who are unwilling or are incapable of having a reasoned debate. I would feel sorry for you except that you are doing too good a job of that for yourself.
Anything taken out of context can be represented anyway you want it to. Noone asks for or deserves ad hominem attacks. I will never get through to you because you are not doing your homework before making unfounded, unsupported statements.
As far as responding to unknown strangers, you have said you don't know me or my wife. Therefore, we are strangers to you and, if you believe one should not respond to strangers, why did you respond to me?
I have a life,Tim. Please, if you want to simply insult people, at least come up with some new phrases!
Tim
- 2004-06-15
Michael, I don't know you or your wife or your life or past or whatever, but I've been reading serious posts on this site for about two weeks now. Posts like questions about living abroad, jobs, salaries, the ins and outs etc. Every time I run into a post from you however, it is either a retort, a defense, a come back or just something inanely stupid. Don't you have a Chinese wife to attend to, or something better to do than waste your time writing to phantoms who don't know you??? Since when did defending yourself to strangers ever get anyone anywhere in life? I wish the editorial staff at this site would start screening responses like on DavesEslCafe - cause I stopped viewing that ESL forum two years ago precisely because of idiots like you who use the forum to spout B.S., and they DID screen some responses. If you like debate, join a debating club cause you're scaring people with real questions away. Get off and get a life.
Tim
P.S. If you think I'm going to enter into a debate with you, you're not as fast as the cockroach I just killed.
boots43
- 2004-06-13
That last question is interesting - is calling a name-caller a name-caller name-calling? If someone calls another person an idiot, then they better offer a great deal of proof that the person is indeed an idiot - not just call them that.
I have no objection to arriving at a conclusion based on facts and thought, but just simply to name-call because you disagree with someone- that is not called for - so to speak.
Thanks for the Hypothetically! :)
Steve
- 2004-06-13
I hate to point out the painfully obvious and cut to the quick here... But, if the shoe fits,... I mean, HYPOTHETICALLY, if the person being called an idiot IS, in fact, an idiot, it is not really fair to call the name-caller a name-caller. And, well, isn't calling a name-caller a name-caller name-calling too? ;op
Mike B
- 2004-06-12
Boots 43, why the name change?
There are people who will attack you for not being young, and there are probably people who will attack them for not being older.
There are people who attack me for not being Mexican (I'm currently in Mexico) and I in return attack them for being Mexican.
However, at the end of the day I or they don't really give a (insert suitable word here) about nationality, age, or marital status, we are just disagreeing about something and both refusing to give ground, so we throw in a few irrelevancies to make us feel better.
I will say some people here are more than a little nasty about you, but as long as you are happy with who you are etc, I don't think you should let their words affect you too much.
PS I married a Guatemalan lady 12 years younger and she is the one who wants to stay put, so the assumption she married me for a ticket out would be very wide of the mark.
boots43
- 2004-06-12
good points. we disagree on what those qualifiers qualify, i guess.
but please re-read the posts that I was responding to - those posts definitely were ad hominem attacks directed towards me. There could be no disagreement on that.
An observer
- 2004-06-12
Michael
" ..... I said both most and I believe. These are sufficient qualifications - in my opinion - to make the reply one of merit and not an ad hominem attack. "
Most people who criticise, most people who drink coffee, most people who ride motorcycles, most Americans who travel overseas,.....
Certainly, use of the words 'most + group name' disqualifies the commentary as being directed at one person in particular, but it does stereotype, does it not?
Which is the lesser of 2 evils; ad hominem attacks or stereotyping?
"I believe". I don't agree with your opinion that use of these words disqualifies a remark as being an ad hominem attack.
For example, I believe that Joe Blow is the ugliest man who ever walked the surface of Earth, I believe she is an idiot, etc. Ad hominen, or not?
Using both "most" & "I believe" in the one remark doesn't, in my view, make any difference.
Cheers
boots43
- 2004-06-12
Good points,observer. I don't believe what I said to Isobel was an ad hominem attack. I do believe that most people who criticize the importance of experience and education don't have as much experience and education as those they criticize. Notice I said both most and I believe. These are sufficient qualifications - in my opinion - to make the reply one of merit and not an ad hominem attack.
As far as your question is concerned, I think a person has a right to critique anything, but the better their qualifications in that field, the higher the quality of the critique.
When I asked respondents to address the psot, I simply meant let's stay on the same topic. Which you did and I appreciate that.
Thanks. As we say in China, " Gomba!" (If I didn't error in the pinyin, that is Chinese for " Cheers!")
boots43
- 2004-06-12
Well, that was certainly an ad hominem attack! It has been the only kind of response that I have gotten from the responder. I don't think that my personal life is a topic of discussion for this forum.
Now, if I wanted to discuss a personal life, I could say something like the respondent appears to be jealous of my situation in which Ive been fortunate enough to have found(and she to have found me) the only woman in the world I wanted to be my wife and she the only man in the world she wanted to be her husband. let's discuss if you think he is jealous of me!
and in length!
But neither discussion really has any place in this forum.
sperlingintus
- 2004-06-11
MJB often mentions his age...as in very old?
and he often mentions his chinese wife...as in very young, maybe???
i mention this fact in relation to my previous "2 Cents" korean post.
....when unattractive western men end up in asia they often acquire an asian girlfriend...these quickly turn into an asian wife (if the girls play their hand right...and a plane ticket is definitely on the cards!)
now during this process, these socially inept men develop an arrogance and superiority complex that is quite frightening (if it wasn't so funny...or sad...depending on your viewpoint)
i would throw into this forum the OPINION that our dear michael is one of these men.....what do you all think?????????
PLEASE DISCUSS................AT LENGTH!!
An observer
- 2004-06-11
Michael, here is one definition of ad hominem:-
"Ad hominem is a general category of fallacies in which a claim or argument is rejected on the basis of some irrelevant fact about the author of, or the person presenting, the claim or argument, as in an attack against the character of person making the claim or his/her circumstances "
When you wrote of Isobel:-
"I find that most of the people who belittle experience are those that don't have any and that belittle advanced degrees are those that don't have any."
... was that not a personal attack, an attack against her circumstances?
Also, and notwithstanding your 'instruction', "And, please, in responding. let's only hear responses that address the post.", do you believe that it would be inappropriate for a person that has no culinary qualifications or experience to judge a meal prepared by a qualified and experienced chef? Or perhaps a patient who has no medical training whatsoever judging the effectiveness of treatment rendered him/her by a doctor?
Cheers
I have a serious question to ask - why do so many people resort to ad hominem attacks?
Is it that they are incapable of arguing the merits of something?
Is it that they are unwilling to do so?
Is it that they just like to provoke people?
What is the explanation(s)?
And, please, in responding. let's only hear responses that address the post.