Seahawks Fans: Why The Hostility?

[scutterhawk]

I'm a relatively new member of this forum, but it's something that I've wanted to address for a little while now. I'm also a member of numerous other forums, from sports teams to different hobbies and such. Before I even begin my post, I'll probably get a few "If you don't like it, leave" replies, so let's just get that out of the way lol.

Something that I've noticed, and a question I've been wanting to ask is: Why are Seahawks fans (especially on this forum) so divisive and hostile towards each other? I've never seen a fan forum, where members constantly attack each other for their opinions, or being a little less knowledgeable about the team. Even the silliest little things like mis-spellings, or mis-quotes, people are so quick to jump on a fellow member. Browsing other teams' boards, there just seems to be much more camaraderie, and more of an "us against the world" attitude, than we seem to have here. It may seem silly, but on an NFL team forum, isn't it us against the world (so to speak)?

Even on the new members area, I've never seen a forum with so little welcoming. Has anyone noticed the amount of new members who have one or two posts, and then are never heard from again? This area on other forums that I've been on (not just sports teams) are usually full of welcome parties, making new members feel well... "welcomed" :mrgreen:. Reading a lot of the threads on this forum, it's easy to speculate on why they don't want to stick out their head and post again.

People spend so much of their time and energy antagonizing each other here, that I just wanted to remind everyone, that in the end, we're ALL Seahawks fans. We're all on the same side, pulling for one team. From all around the world, we have this in common, and it is something special. Let's not forget that.

TypeSly, from Canada.

LOLOL, Actually, it's like I told my grouchy old neighbor (2 doors down) "You can try and be a smart-a$$ with me all you want, I'm just going to turn it into a complement" :mrgreen:
Like water off a ducks back.
AND I only come here for the free beer. :irishdrinkers:

Wait what? Free beer? Where?

OOPS, Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain. :th104:

 

[Jerhawk]

I'm quite sure that I am one of the more disliked people on this board. I get frustrated because I want to enjoy a 5-0 start without reading why this team sucks...

It's the job of the fans to critique this team on a fan message board...

I apologize for making statements like "about half you guys don't know what you are talking about" although I believe this to be true in some cases, it was not my intention to prevent people from making posts...

I do not think that I know everything... in fact I'm quite sure there are many who would say I dont know what I am talking about and Im ok with that.... I think i just have a vastly different perspective than most... I will make an effort to be more considerate as hard as that is sometimes...


LTH

I find you to be one of the best posters on this forum. I usually agree with what you say.

Can we all just have a group hug and remember to be respectful of each other and say "Go Hawks"?

 

[SoulfishHawk]

I like to think that more often than not, many of us are just intense about the team and/or messing with each other.
It's not personal, it never has been imo. Anyway, hopefully everyone has a great turkey day and we are celebrating a big win next week. On a side note, LTH is a solid poster w/out a doubt.

 

[TestMo1337]

Message boards like this also breed a different kind of poster.

The forum encourages people to be more long-winded and that allow for more creative thought and expression. This also opens it up for more people to dissect what is posted and examine things line by line.

When compared to more current Social Media formats which are much more image/video intensive, it does not require you to add much thought or respond. There's no "like" functionality so if you want to tell someone you enjoyed their post or if you want to critique, you have to write a response. There's no easy quick reply feature with a bunch of canned responses either; this type of medium requires more thought to respond and therefore it will cater to those on the farther ends of the spectrum of Seahawks fandom when compared to Instagram, Twitter, FB, etc.

With that being said, the end goal is that every fan wants the Seahawks to win but strongly disagree with how they do win. Pete Carroll is highly divisive because he's been our coach for so long but some fans are not satisfied that we have someone like Russell and yet we haven't made it to an NFC Championship game since the 2014 season. That weighs on people based upon their expectations (reasonable or not).

 

[SoulfishHawk]

Well said. Every one of us probably has things that drive us crazy on a message board.
It's no secret, I can't stand all the negativity. But, I'm working on it...…….
That's really all you can do. There's SO many more important things than arguing on a message board.
It's 2020, we are in the middle of a massive pandemic, sometimes it's good to step back and appreciate what we have. Not what we DON'T have.

 

[Ramfan128]

Outsider opinion:

I've been a member here since the Fisher days - I think I found the site around 2013. I lurk more than post - I like the site because there's a ton of traffic - there has been a Rams fan that used to post a lot, several Niners fans, and a Cards fan that posted a ton when Arians and Palmer had them going.

There's a lot of Seahawks fans with differing opinions. There are some that have been overtly hostile to me, which used to bother me, until I realized that some people are just like that. There are Rams fans on my home message board that would be hostile toward Seahawks fans, so while I really don't like those posters, I can't hold it against the site.

You have a very diverse group of fans here - you have long term Seahawks fans, and you have newer fans as well, which happens everytime a team wins the Super Bowl and has a dynamic QB.

The main reason I come here is because I DESPISE group think on message boards - I think they were created for discussion of all sorts and I despise site-wide player loyalty. Individuals that have a player bias are awesome because it often is super entertaining. You always know that poster who, when driving home from work (or walking downstairs, these days), is making up excuses for Goff or reasons why Wilson shouldn't get that huge contract - but it becomes a problem to me when, as an example, 90% of the site defends Wilson no matter what happens in the game.

So in case anyone was wondering why I personally spend time here, that's why. Of all the NFL message boards I've been to, this one does the best with group think.

 

[TwistedHusky]

But is it that hostile?

Conflicting viewpoints do just that, conflict. But not in a personal way. Even though it might seem like it.

Perfect example, there was a guy (I think named Siouxhawk) that I used to go round and round with. We were firmly opposed to the stance of the other and it showed. He was a big give Bevell a chance guy and I considered Bevell to be an issue the team had to resolve.

But I privately messaged him when it seemed that a post could have been taken personally. He completely understood and we discussed our own personal experiences with the team. He had a very different viewpoint that I disagreed vehemently with. But I respected he was a fan of the team and the players. We would occasionally talk football and how it impacted us personally from then on out.

I think when we got rid of Bevell he vanished, maybe he was embarrassed to come back because of all the piling on. Hope not.

Another person I disagree with often, if not regularly is Soulfish. But Soulfish is one of my favorite posters. He has a very optimistic outlook on this team that is often needed. And even then you can tell he wears his heart on his sleeve with this team.

You have to look at the motivations for people, not just the conflict.

Still, I don't think I have ever literally witnessed someone just hating on a poster, even when they disagreed with them, for some time. The last was some people piling on SiouxHawk back when the Bevell fire was raging, but since then ?

 

[chris98251]

But is it that hostile?

Conflicting viewpoints do just that, conflict. But not in a personal way. Even though it might seem like it.

Perfect example, there was a guy (I think named Siouxhawk) that I used to go round and round with. We were firmly opposed to the stance of the other and it showed. He was a big give Bevell a chance guy and I considered Bevell to be an issue the team had to resolve.

But I privately messaged him when it seemed that a post could have been taken personally. He completely understood and we discussed our own personal experiences with the team. He had a very different viewpoint that I disagreed vehemently with. But I respected he was a fan of the team and the players. We would occasionally talk football and how it impacted us personally from then on out.

I think when we got rid of Bevell he vanished, maybe he was embarrassed to come back because of all the piling on. Hope not.

Another person I disagree with often, if not regularly is Soulfish. But Soulfish is one of my favorite posters. He has a very optimistic outlook on this team that is often needed. And even then you can tell he wears his heart on his sleeve with this team.

You have to look at the motivations for people, not just the conflict.

Still, I don't think I have ever literally witnessed someone just hating on a poster, even when they disagreed with them, for some time. The last was some people piling on SiouxHawk back when the Bevell fire was raging, but since then ?

We had to stop piling on though, when Pehawk unzipped his pants doing it in the Shack it changed the whole dynamic.


Sorry I get tomorrow off and am feeling a bit of the Gremlin coming out.

 

[FPD]

As someone who was away from the site for some time, I can definitely say the feel of it has changed over time. But that's not a bad thing. Time changes us all.

As to the negativity - I'll just say this - Don't let a few people's rudeness tell you what .NET is all about. I get it, emotions run high during (and after) a game. So when I see posts like that, I usually just scroll on by. Replying just gives it more air time.

But if you do reply, always remember: Attack the post, not the poster! An old friend taught me that! :les:

In closing, Happy Thanksgiving and Go Hawks!

:229031_thewave:

 

[fenderbender123]

It doesn't surprise me that the loudest fans in the NFL are also very emotionally attached to their team. Personally, I wouldn't have it any other way.

 

[olyfan63]

First, I'll have to grant the OP's premise that sometimes things can seem divisive and hostile on here. Speaking only for myself, I've learned to not get overly attached to any difference of opinion, or seemingly hostile line of questioning others might have. Different posters definitely have a "posting personality", and their own unique viewpoint. Sometimes there are posters who abuse the same themes over and over and over, same old second-guessing complaints. Overall, the board makes up for it by having so many terrific posters who share interesting information. As someone else pointed out, sometimes a PM exchange can clear up misunderstandings and get things onto a friendly track.

I really appreciate posters who offer a different spin, make me think about things I was unaware of, or share unique insights. For example, BigSkyDoc seems to be a real doc, who can break down injuries and surgeries and recovery prognoses, in a concise, authoritative, and useful way. I love the info and analysis Fade puts into his posts. I PM'ed JerHawk not that long ago to compliment him on how well he set up a survey thread. I've enjoyed the posts of RamFan128 in the NFL forum, which I only truly discovered a year ago. We have an abundance of terrific other-team posters on this board. Heck, I can say positive things about interactions with pretty much everyone who's posted in this thread.

Before this board, it was hard to know the truth about players, coaches, and schemes, because the traditional media just didn't cover the negatives and shortcoming accurately, trying to be "nice" or whatever. For example, which offensive linemen are good, which ones truly suck, and what are their actual strengths and weaknesses, and why would you play one over the other, against a particular opponent? This board can provide answers to that question, and yes, sorting through opinions, but overall with a lot of good, high quality and often in-depth information being shared. Does DC KNJ really suck horribly, or are there other factors handicapping him? That one's still an open question, but this is the best place to get unfiltered and sometimes even accurate info. (I think it's been over a week since the latest "Fire Norton!" thread) Anyway, this place is great for getting answers to those many questions inquiring minds want to know.

 

[AubHawk71]

Baby Boomers + Social media/forums = angry shizz talk. It's cognitive dissonance.

 

[Seahwkgal]

The culture has absolutely shifted in recent years. This site used to have an unbelievable family vibe, and like any family, it wasn't always perfect but in the end the respect and friendship we felt for one another was obvious. There's natural attrition with any forum community over time and this site has lost, through either death or just moving on, some unbelievable posters, characters and wickedly smart football minds.

However, there's still plenty of quality folks here that I enjoy reading their posts.

I used to host .NET get togethers back when I still owned the site. So we weren't just characters typing on a keyboard, we were faces to the names, and it was always terrific fun to get to know the personalities in person, it always offered a whole new dynamic when reading their posts. For instance, someone who might have been a bit more cantankerous online, would make a lot of sense when you would meet them in person. Perhaps it was part of their "Schtick" and they were actually really cool in person, and so forth.

Since I sold the site years ago there have been two owners. In that time, the community has changed. Not because of the ownership necessarily, it's just life. One of the finest members of this community, Les Norton returned Home a few months after our Super Bowl victory in 2014. Some call me The Godfather of .NET but Les was the Grandfather, the kind every grandkid adored. Losing him was a massive blow to the site.

It's easy to be keyboard warriors but I've always believed in the importance of not changing who you are, either behind a keyboard or in person. Kindness is in short supply when it comes to something we are all so passionate about. Sometimes anger and being a jerk is really some other misplaced feelings being externalized. Without the indicators of body language, voice inflection, etc, it's easy to misconstrue the intent behind the words.

Refreshing post TypeSly. It behooves us all to be reminded from time to time that it's okay to be kind.

So spot on about losing Les. This board has not recovered from his passing. I feel so fortunate to have met him and his wife in person.
I honestly don’t think this site will ever get that greatness back. No offense to the current mods.

 

[SantaClaraHawk]

Before I joined or shortly after, Les passed and some people from here bought him a seat to the Seattle-Chargers away game. They tried to give the seat away to Boys and Girls Club but it was on short notice so they took pictures of it.

 

[SoulfishHawk]

And on a side note, you can be a homer and STILL be plenty aware of what work needs to be done.
This is a good team that can get a lot better. I'm not so blind that I think they can do no wrong. This team has had some incredibly brutal defensive performances, and clunkers in their 3 losses.
I believe in the team, but I'm not w/out frustration or anger like anyone else. The Defense is slowly improving, so there is reason for hope. Let's just see what they do tonight, one week at a time. This team is CAPABLE of doing some damage in the playoffs. Like many teams in the NFC, they have their weaknesses.
The NFC is wide open imo.