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i don't know why, but i'm still feeling burned about what happened ages ago. sometimes i think back on it for a moment or two, but typically i quickly change the subject. tonight though it just keeps rolling around and around in my mind.
i'm speaking of course of the time that i received a scam PM and posted it as an example of what a scam looks like.
in quit a few cases people made remarks to the effect of "thanks for the public service announcement," but then one girl got it in her head that it qualified as spamming and that i should be reported. never mind telling me how to move the post or explaining why trying to spread the word/warning qualified as spaming.... to top it off, then a bunch of other pricks decide that's a great idea. let's rag on the guy trying to be nice. obviously he's a public menace. WTFing H3LL?!? I mean seriously, is that anyway to treat someone trying to do the world a favor?
the argument was that the message was posted in the wrong place, but i'd thought it through before i'd posted it there and it made the most sense to post the thing where people would be that might not have otherwise been warned about that sort of thing. i guess i was wrong.
the thing is no one could just say, ps you probably should have posted this in CB or something instead, even though yeah i get why you choose to post it in here. no, they have to come screaming about my being a spammer. very helpful.
and no one seemed to get my thinking at all. i really tried to figure the best way to share the info out. 1) put it where the traffic will be people who would most need it and 2) post an example, so people can actually see what one looks like, not just this semi vague "if anyone asks for your password and log in info it's a scam." i thought, why not show them so that they see how clever the scams can be about asking for that info.
some people got into it too. they started sharing they're own experiences. ones that were equally or even more sneaky. things that sounded so believable you wouldn't think to question it.
but no, even the admin was like "don't post examples of scams," but that's the freaking point!!! if you don't post and share examples of tricky setups and coy wording, then how will people understand the core message? you have to give most people examples in order for them to really be able to apply the information.
hell, there were a fair number of ppl who came and posted about how they'd fallen for something very similar because of the wording. obviously they didn't get it just as it was given to them the normal way. obviously they could have benefited from having seen an example. so why risk others the same fate? why not provide more thorough education? it doesn't make sense!
*sigh* i don't know, it just really frustrates me when something is so obvious to me and no matter how i try to explain it to someone else they just don't get it and don't seem to care enough to get it. they just brushed me off like "oh yeah, i know you THOUGHT you were doing some favor or nice thing or whatever, but silly you, you did it all wrong so just please don't try to do something like that again." for crying out loud, what am i supposed to just sit on my hands?!? i'm not that type of person. i like to share my experiences, i like to try and help people, i like to educate and protect, i just can't sit there and do nothing!
oh well... i mean i guess it's not really a big deal anymore. i just ... well, i guess maybe it's just that i don't feel like i ever got any closure out of the entire situation. i just got shut up and then ignored. and i've got all this still bottled up inside of me and ... it's eating away at me. it's really really really frustrating! and i feel completely cheated and disregarded. not to mention belittled. ... i'm not used to that and i don't like it, not one bit.
no one should have to feel like this. especially not if they were trying to do some sort of good deed. i just don't get it; some people understood, so why couldn't the others? what was so different in their understanding?
i remember one time i had a similar expereince, where someone who didn't understand the details of the situation tried to tell me what to do. the only thing is, once i explained it more fully, they realized i knew what i was talking about and listened. the situation was resolved through calm exchange, the other person learned something, and i got a chance to sort of review the information, thus reinforcing it in myself. in that case it was an issue with english 101 prof, who admitted to not knowing in what way or situation to use a semi colon. her advice to me: just don't use them at all, because their really tricky things that very few people understand. my response was to tell her i'd learned all about semi colons and their propper usage in high school. i explained to her their rules of usage (which i won't bore you with, but feel free to leave me a comment if you'd like to know them and i'll PM you all about it), then demonstrated how that situation fit those rules, and she was quite happy to have learned something new. from then on, she never doubted my use of the semi colon.
that situation turned out really good for everyone. there were no hard feelings. the misunderstanding was totally resolved. and we both walked away understanding a little more fully something not only about semicolons but also about levels of their understanding AND resolution of misunderstandings.
why couldn't this situation have been the same? i just don't like leaving it as it is. but at the same time, what more can i do? there's nothing really that would be appropriate. i already tried to explain myself several times before. what more is their to say? and would they even be ready to listen?
i guess all i can do is try and find a lesson in this for myself. walk away contented with that. ... *sigh*