
(07-22-2017, 01:30 AM)Lydia Lightfoot Wrote: Allow me to present something for you all to think about.
Why did each of you respond to this forum thread? Is it because the OP posted a message in a public space, one which was directed specifically to you, inviting you personally, individually, to respond? Or did the OP post a message in a public space and you chose to respond to it even though it wasn't meant precisely for you?
Now consider: If, following your response, she reacted with offense toward you, stating plainly that you weren't meant to reply to it and she didn't want your opinion and you should butt out... would you consider that an amicable and acceptable reaction by her? Or would you be inclined to respond, "Why did you write the message here, where inherently anyone can respond to it, if you only wanted a response from a specific subset of people and would be offended by a reply from anyone else?"
Food for thought.
Something akin to this scenario has happened to me more than once. Â Heck, it's happened in open forum RP, which is a more direct comparison.
Someone posted a thread where their character from Faction A accidentally wound up in Faction B territory, where the setting was a PVP-heavy game. Â They didn't specify what they were looking for OOCly, so I posted that my character (a member of Faction B) was showing up to fight.
Turned out the OP was looking for a star-crossed friendship. Â I pointed out that they really should have disclosed that from the start (which was right) and then insisted on continuing my RP posts (which was, at minimum, unhelpful and didn't make me any new friends).
People can and will flake. Â People can and will duck IC responsiblity. Â People can and will be hypocritical. Â I think these are important things to accept, and I don't think that trying to fix others' flaws is a constructive use of my time.
You can, of course, hold them to account in the form of not interacting with them/inviting them to your FC. Â That's about it.