Are we plateauing?

[nisaba]

From the Missing In Action thread:

Lets keep it on topic folks, what is being said in the last couple of posts is worth discussing, Is it tarot itself, are we plateauing, a recycle of old information, bell curving idea's? I would ask it done in a new thread please.

I thought it was just me. I thought that I was getting sick of new people turning up and asking all the old questions that I and others have answered a couple of dozens of times already.

Is Tarot limited?

Are there no new questions to ask?

 

[Grizabella]

I think it just goes in cycles as we get new crops of members. One crop asks all the questions, we answer them, and then they settle in, and then the next wave comes along and asks those same questions, we answer them and get them settled in---and so on and on. We get tired of it and we tell them "look it up by doing a search" and they go off and resurrect hundred year old threads and we post on those and then when we notice how old the threads are, we feel foolish----it happens time and again. You just get used to it. Or at least, I have. I just don't post on threads with questions that have gotten old. Once in awhile something catches my eye and I'll post but usually I leave it to a newer wave of folks who aren't so tired of the same old questions.

 

[The crowned one]

I am sure when I joined many people rolled their eyes at my "original idea's" and my old questions

We are plateauing, many of us. I hope some of the new blood will give us an idea that falls outside the box I have created with all my learning. I have to be careful not to be too narrow in my sights as I am a "system" person first and believe intuition is built off of a strong foundation of knowledge of the subject and not divine in nature.

Cyclic is what it is and I think we are on the cusp of a explosion of new insights

 

[Grizabella]

Even though it seems like the same old questions, it really isn't the same old people. Not that I consider anyone "same old", but maybe you know what I mean. I look forward to meeting the newcomers and making new friends among them, even if they might ask questions we've heard quite a few times. They all represent new faces and new insights as well as the old "stuff" that we all asked when we were new, even if we only asked it of ourselves because we hadn't found AT yet.

 

[euripides]

I think there does come a point where you can outgrow a forum; I've noticed this in many topics that interest me - always the same questions, the same answers, after a while. It's inevitable. The level of discussion that progresses is always going to be small.

It used to bother me a lot, but now not so much, at least on Aeclectic. It's kind of nice to share what I know, or at least my thoughts and ideas, for what they are worth. I do sometimes worry that I'm repeating myself, but hopefully I add some value here and there.

Moderation is good but occasionally can stifle conversation, because discussion naturally tends to progress here and there. Perhaps we need a couple more 'general' threads that are allowed to meander a bit more. I find that discussion of any idea for me can wander across many domains and disciplines.

There's a health forum I visit where it's incredibly frustrating - people take quite extreme stances depending on their personal issues, and there's constant flaming going on. Even with divergent views on spirituality, system and intuition, it rarely gets that bad here. At least we mostly seem to accept that there are various ways of doing things.

 

[euripides]

also to add, even if it's the 'same old' question, sometimes it's just a way of starting a conversation, you know? It's always nicer to talk with people about things than just look it up on wikipedia or whatever. It's a conversation, not lonely research.

 

[le_charior]

May I, as a very new member, say something? I have been thinking about this a lot lately, how this forum works (or any forum) and what the best way would be to deal with it as a new member.

I started reading a lot of old and very fascination threads, mostly in the Historic section. Now I feel I am at a point where I could start to join discussions, I have a few decks, I started to know them, I do daily draws, I start spreads and readings for myself and a little for others... I feel I am at a point where I would profit to put my ideas and concerns and questions out there. And maybe others would profit from it, too?

So what do do? Start new threads on questions that have been delt with already one or several times? That will most likely get you the "this has been answered here and here already" comment, if the "old" people bother at all.

Revive the old threads? A lot of the people from the peak of activity in the Historic Forum, 2003 - 2006 or so, don't seem to be around any more, so they won't answer or discuss with you. Grizabella, I thought it was interesting you wrote you feel "foolish" when you post in old threads, why is that so? Just so I understand? Anyway, I have the feeling it passes more or less unnoticed when you revive old threads.

And, on a side note, it is also hard to understand the history of the forum itself for a newcomer, with it's friendships, rivalries, conflicts, groups etc... I feel like Sherlock Holmes sometimes trying to reconstruct why the hell (for example) one member erased nearly all of her posts at one moment (which doesn't help when you try to read an old thread and half of the discussion is replaced only by the word "edited"... ).

So if you have an opinion or advice how new member should deal with this, or if there is a constructive way of dealing with it at all?

EDITED to add: I wanted to say what an incredibly friendly and nice forum this is. I think it is truly exceptional, so many forums are dominated by people trying to only get their point across, guarding their territory.. and here I found a spirit of sharing and kindness and openness that truly amazes me. Just to state the very positive, too!

 

[euripides]

Le Charior, I think you'll probably get some varying thoughts on this. In some forums, reviving old threads is called 'necroposting' and to be honest, I often find it a bit offputting - sometimes I don't read really long threads, and if it's already long before I see it, I might not join in the conversation (because it's a bit rude to not read a thread before posting).

I'd suggest doing a search, and if there's no quite recent thread, I'd probably start a new convo. If you see a thread with good information, link to it in your thread.

"it depends" though and where a thread has a lot of good research, maybe it'd be better to resurrect it.

As for personal stuff or 'damaged' threads, definitelt leave them alone and don't worry about it too much.

That's just my 2c though and I expect some of the moderators might have views on it - there's probably a policy or guideline in place that they use as a point of reference.

I think one thing people need to learn when they participate in forums, is that it's an open space. It's a virtual table where anyone may draw up a chair. It's inevitable that some of us just won't see eye to eye, and sometimes we'll just "rub each other the wrong way". Learning to deal with that, by not reacting agressively or being territorial can be difficult for some. I know I'm very opinionated, and it's taken me a very long time to learn it!

 

[Grizabella]

Well, I've felt foolish in the past when I post to a thread that's several years old, chatting away as though the one who posted were still with us, only to find that they've not been here in a very long time. I do have a chatty way about doing it, so it has made me feel foolish to be "interacting" with someone who hasn't been a member here for months or years. Recently I've been making more note of the dates posted on threads so I don't find myself doing that quite so much.

 

[le_charior]

necroposting, that's a good word for it

I'd suggest doing a search, and if there's no quite recent thread, I'd probably start a new convo. If you see a thread with good information, link to it in your thread.

That's a good idea, I think I'll do that. Thanks!

And thanks Grizabella for explaining. Since I don't know most of the people, the old thread are often more about pure information to me and not so much about interaction, but I get that from this point of view it is weird to interact in a "dead" thread.