Could we amend the no politics rule to include...

[Cereal_killer]

I've been having some email discussions with a few folks about a subject that bothers me and I believe it could be covered/grouped into the no politics rule-

The issue is members who come into threads to make a blanket statement along the lines of "I don't buy Chinese crap" or "that knife sucks because it isn't USA made".

Now let me elaborate, country of origin (COI) is a hot topic and I feel as it can be discussed civilly, if someone asks for a recommendation and lists USA made as a spec that's more than cool, I have zero issue with wanting to buy American but I find it offensive when a few specific members repeatedly go into a thread in which COI isn't even being discussed and simply post "I wouldn't consider the knife cause its from China/Taiwan". Not only is it off topic and out of line but it derails the thread because there is almost always someone else who replies "look at your cell phone/clothes/car..." and the back-n-forth banter starts.

What I would like to propose is that if the topic of COI isn't somehow related to the thread topic it not be aloud to just start talking trash and start an argument, because that's where it ends up.

Thoughts/ideas/suggestions?

Example: Post #'s 285-289 in the utilitac thread

There are many more examples, this is just the most recent I've seen and one that really pushed me over the edge. It's totally off topic and not at all helpful to the thread.

 

[Morrow]

You're assuming every statement made about country of manufacture is political in nature. This is what the ignore function is for.

 

[RevDevil]

Also, not every reply post in a thread contributes something useful. Some folks like to push buttons, some people are very serious about their hobby, other folks mildly troll or want to joke around, and some people are painfully ignorant. This is the worst part, but you just have to know who is playing around, who is ignorant, who is serious, etc.

 

[Cereal_killer]

You're assuming every statement made about country of manufacture is political in nature. This is what the ignore function is for.

Actually I'm not, COI can be a hot topic and is commonly discussed civilly, it's all about context, the example I posted is clearly trolling but more often than not it's an important issue which can be taken seriously and people can agree to disagree and get along.

Cards has been on my ignore list for months but the other guys who got sucked in are some of my friends and the others I usually don't have an issue with. If I ignored everyone I've ever had a disagreement with 1/2 of the regular posters would be on my list, that's the beauty of an open discussion forum with mature members who are so passionate about the subject.

I didn't necessarily mean its a political issue, it could be stand alone.

But I see my idea has no support, well less than no support, it has high ranking opponents...