Whose thread is this anyway?

The thread jack – Since the first internet forum was started the thread jack has been a part of the posting experience. Usually it’s an innocent turn from one subject to the next. After all, anyone whose ever played a word association game knows how easily one word or phrase can remind you of something totally different then the person next to you. A forum like 2o2p sees a substantially higher rate of this than other forums but that is to be expected I suppose. At AVS forums for instance, users are there for primarily one purpose, discussion of the latest A/V equipment and troubleshooting said equipment. At 2o2p, while we may have a common bond in video gaming, it’s become abundantly clear that that isn’t the only reason we troll these boards endlessly throughout the day. We are brought together not only by games and gaming systems but by other interests like movies, TV, our work lives, our kids, our spouses and yes even politics sometimes. This isn’t a place just for the latest info on games but a place where friends come to meet and hang out with each other.

So back to the title, “whose thread is this anyway?” Well, I would argue that it’s the site’s thread. Once you or I put up a post it becomes the site communities to do with as they feel compelled to. After all, aren’t we a bunch of buddies hangin’ out shootin’ the crap? Have you ever really paid attention to how conversations around a dinner table or golf course or even in a post game lobby really evolve? Conversations are “thread jacked” all the time. Your story reminds me of my story which reminds that girl of her story.

Sometimes I hear frustrated posters complaining about how they were trying to talk about “x” but by page 2 people were talking about “y”. Pay attention sometime. That’s how most casual conversations go. That’s how most 1 minute discussions turn into hour long chat fests. The only real way to get back to the topic at hand is to take the bull by the horns and do just that. If you were posting about the movie 300 and suddenly we’re talking about the price of gas, if you go back to the movie most people will remember “Oh yeah, that reminds me of this part of the film”. The internet forum is no different then real life in this regard. Also, if your post about how you are the father of Anna Nichole’s baby seems to have quickly derailed into the latest Michael Jackson “NAMBLA moment” without any hope of returning to poor baby Nichole; it may just be that no one cares who the father is. Just like real life, sometimes your topic just isn’t interesting. This happens to me all the time.

Now, there are rare occasions when someone will intentionally change the topic of a thread not because he is reminded of a similar topic but simply to be an ass, the thread jackass, if you will. This person isn’t interested in furthering the discussion or even bringing up a similar topic, he only wants to be heard….not for any reason, just be heard. In those cases a thread jack is not appropriate but I’ve rarely if ever have seen that take place here on these boards. Others may beg to differ. Other then those rare occasions though, I think that posting in a public forum becomes public domain to use and twist how ever the public sees fit. Enjoy it, watch how it develops and remember that it’s typically no different then your real life conversations, and don’t be a thread jackass.