Trade for the 1st pick? Yakupov?

[SwampD]

B*tching about the team is one thing. Allowing it to shape everything you perceive is a whole different story. My statement was not generalizable, but I don't think you can argue it doesn't have its merits. There are a lot of fans who are angry and don't understand why others are not, simply because the length of their fan-hood has led them to that point. How could one with that perspective possibly derive maximum enjoyment from the penultimate moment of their teams success? If everything prior was negative why would anything after be any different?

 

Not everything needs to be seen in a tragic and negative light. It's a choice.

I completely understand why I am angry and others are not,.. they are idiots. :)

 

 

..and don't you mean "ultimate".

[TrueBlueGED]

You *think* that the team shapes folks like DeLuca's perceptions of everything. I *think* guys like DeLuca get entertained by the convos they have with you. Internet forums are washed up debate team wannabe hangouts. I'm betting he's not too different from you in front of a big screen at a bar with the game on and if you didn't know who the other was you'd have a great conversation about the game.

Exactly! A great example is Nix and Gailey with the Bills. I have more faith in their ability to bring a Championship to Buffalo than I do in Ruff and Regier. After 15 years I have no trust, faith, respect or whatever you want to call it , in Sabres management.

 

Admittedly, I don't know DeLuca outside of these forums. Maybe watching a game with him is different. But there absolutely are people who cannot watch a game and enjoy it in a vacuum if they truly have a passionate dislike/hatred/lack of faith in Ruff and Regier. I have friends like this, I've met random people at bars like this. They do exist, and they simply don't get the same enjoyment out of the game as I do because they can't get beyond their negative predispositions. I've had some literally tell me they cannot get super excited about wins as long as Ruff is the coach. It's really no different than in politics, where a Republican simply doesn't get as excited about a good jobs report as a Democrat, or vice versa for a Democrat if a Republican is currently in the white house.

 

Statements from DeLuca such as the one I quoted make me inclined to believe he's so set in his views that he is psychologically incapable of being as happy about a given game or series of games compared to somebody who supports current management or at least has an open mind about it. This doesn't mean he's cheering against the team, or wants them to lose, just that potential enthusiasm is naturally tempered by his lack of faith things will ever get better without management changes. It doesn't make him any less of a fan, or a bad fan, but it's just how the human psyche works.

[Weave]

Admittedly, I don't know DeLuca outside of these forums. Maybe watching a game with him is different. But there absolutely are people who cannot watch a game and enjoy it in a vacuum if they truly have a passionate dislike/hatred/lack of faith in Ruff and Regier. I have friends like this, I've met random people at bars like this. They do exist, and they simply don't get the same enjoyment out of the game as I do because they can't get beyond their negative predispositions. I've had some literally tell me they cannot get super excited about wins as long as Ruff is the coach. It's really no different than in politics, where a Republican simply doesn't get as excited about a good jobs report as a Democrat, or vice versa for a Democrat if a Republican is currently in the white house.

 

Statements from DeLuca such as the one I quoted make me inclined to believe he's so set in his views that he is psychologically incapable of being as happy about a given game or series of games compared to somebody who supports current management or at least has an open mind about it. This doesn't mean he's cheering against the team, or wants them to lose, just that potential enthusiasm is naturally tempered by his lack of faith things will ever get better without management changes. It doesn't make him any less of a fan, or a bad fan, but it's just how the human psyche works.

 

 

Two words. Internet. Persona.

[Derrico]

B*tching about the team is one thing. Allowing it to shape everything you perceive is a whole different story. My statement was not generalizable, but I don't think you can argue it doesn't have its merits. There are a lot of fans who are angry and don't understand why others are not, simply because the length of their fan-hood has led them to that point. How could one with that perspective possibly derive maximum enjoyment from the penultimate moment of their teams success? If everything prior was negative why would anything after be any different?

 

Not everything needs to be seen in a tragic and negative light. It's a choice.

 

:worthy:

[IKnowPhysics]

[bunomatic]

Touching points one at a time......

 

You *think* that the team shapes folks like DeLuca's perceptions of everything. I *think* guys like DeLuca get entertained by the convos they have with you. Internet forums are washed up debate team wannabe hangouts. I'm betting he's not too different from you in front of a big screen at a bar with the game on and if you didn't know who the other was you'd have a great conversation about the game.

 

You say the statement I reacted to is not generalizable yet you made a very general statement. Either your choice of wording was poor or you are backpedaling. Whatever. it's a minor point at the end of the day.

 

Yes, there are lots of fans who are angry and don't understand why others are not. You are marginalizing their most likely well thought out and logically obtained points of view when you chalk it up to "length of their fandom". Again, whatever. If it makes you feel better about your POV and your rationale for it then have at it. I'm just here to say that I doubt that yours is any less rational than the next guys, regardless of his/her length of service or satisfaction with the current team. Your mind is set but I'll say it anyway, my first memory of the Sabres was pre-1975 and involved a fuzzy rabbit eared reception from a new subdivision on the eastern border of Cheektowaga. From the time I was about 12 I read the Hockey News every week. Looked forward to every draft day. Managed to see a few training camp sessions every season at SabreLand. Waited with great anticipation for every opening day. Got excited over every all star game roster announcement, every trade deadline day, and every post season. I breathed heavy while waiting for the next savior of the team be he named Virta, Cyr, Tucker, Priestlay, Anderson, Greg Brown, Curtis Brown, Brad Brown, Brad May, Phillipe Boucher, David Cooper, or David Snuggerud. Do you really think that guys like me (and I am rather certain DeLuca is more like me in this respect that you'll want to acknowledge) aren't going to get the biggest frickin woodie they've ever experienced if they ever watch a Sabre hoisting the Stanley CUp at center ice? I didn't go on that little diatribe in an attempt to prove to you or anyone else that I am a better or more *right* fan than anyone else. I went through the effort just now to show you that us "older fans" have our experiences, none of which we want to give up, and have valid points of views for the sides we take. Even if you don;t agree with them. Your perspective is no more correct, and no more able to lend you a maximum enjoyment experience should a Cup come to town than mine. Or DeLuca's. Or ThatAudSmell's. Or LGR4GM's for that matter. That horse you are sitting on is a tad too high.

 

Personally, I think the issues you (and the DeLuca's of this teams fans from the opposite end of the spectrum) have come down to hyperbole. Neither of you guys seem willing to read into the details of the others POV and distill the other side down into an exaggerated version of what each other is really saying. Viewing this board gets to be like watching Fox News for 30 minutes at prime time and then switching over to MSNBC for the next 30. Rush Limbaugh vs. Keith Olbermann.

 

Once again Weave a great post. My memories are much like yours. Fell in love with this team in 75. I'm not angry. I am at times tired of the way things are done by Buffalo management but If and when that championship comes whether it is Regiers work or someone elses I'm just as entitled to celebrate and share in the joy of the moment as any other fan be they wearing the rose coloured glasses or the woebegone eyes. The fact that I consider Regiers tenure well past its best before date doesn't make me less of a fan. Just a fan with a different opinion.

[K-9]

 

Can't stop laughing. Well done.

 

Now, if there's any way you can elongate Gerbe and shorten Myers, we'll be closer to what we'll actually see now that Myers has been cured of his Marfan's Syndrome thanks to Gerbe's bone marrow donations.

 

GO SABRES!!!

[darksabre]

Touching points one at a time......

 

You *think* that the team shapes folks like DeLuca's perceptions of everything. I *think* guys like DeLuca get entertained by the convos they have with you. Internet forums are washed up debate team wannabe hangouts. I'm betting he's not too different from you in front of a big screen at a bar with the game on and if you didn't know who the other was you'd have a great conversation about the game.

 

You say the statement I reacted to is not generalizable yet you made a very general statement. Either your choice of wording was poor or you are backpedaling. Whatever. it's a minor point at the end of the day.

 

Yes, there are lots of fans who are angry and don't understand why others are not. You are marginalizing their most likely well thought out and logically obtained points of view when you chalk it up to "length of their fandom". Again, whatever. If it makes you feel better about your POV and your rationale for it then have at it. I'm just here to say that I doubt that yours is any less rational than the next guys, regardless of his/her length of service or satisfaction with the current team. Your mind is set but I'll say it anyway, my first memory of the Sabres was pre-1975 and involved a fuzzy rabbit eared reception from a new subdivision on the eastern border of Cheektowaga. From the time I was about 12 I read the Hockey News every week. Looked forward to every draft day. Managed to see a few training camp sessions every season at SabreLand. Waited with great anticipation for every opening day. Got excited over every all star game roster announcement, every trade deadline day, and every post season. I breathed heavy while waiting for the next savior of the team be he named Virta, Cyr, Tucker, Priestlay, Anderson, Greg Brown, Curtis Brown, Brad Brown, Brad May, Phillipe Boucher, David Cooper, or David Snuggerud. Do you really think that guys like me (and I am rather certain DeLuca is more like me in this respect that you'll want to acknowledge) aren't going to get the biggest frickin woodie they've ever experienced if they ever watch a Sabre hoisting the Stanley CUp at center ice? I didn't go on that little diatribe in an attempt to prove to you or anyone else that I am a better or more *right* fan than anyone else. I went through the effort just now to show you that us "older fans" have our experiences, none of which we want to give up, and have valid points of views for the sides we take. Even if you don;t agree with them. Your perspective is no more correct, and no more able to lend you a maximum enjoyment experience should a Cup come to town than mine. Or DeLuca's. Or ThatAudSmell's. Or LGR4GM's for that matter. That horse you are sitting on is a tad too high.

 

Personally, I think the issues you (and the DeLuca's of this teams fans from the opposite end of the spectrum) have come down to hyperbole. Neither of you guys seem willing to read into the details of the others POV and distill the other side down into an exaggerated version of what each other is really saying. Viewing this board gets to be like watching Fox News for 30 minutes at prime time and then switching over to MSNBC for the next 30. Rush Limbaugh vs. Keith Olbermann.

 

First, "internet persona" is a cop out.

 

I don't think the team shapes Deluca's perceptions, I think who he is shapes his perception of the team. He's clearly angry about being a fan for many years and having not been rewarded for that devotion. That is understandable. He's disappointed. He wants his team to win. Who doesn't? But because of this, not a single thing is cast in a positive light by him. Tyler Myers is a 3 year veteran and a first round draft pick with a ton of potential, but since he's "regressed" then it must be time to swing the axe. Has he? Probably not, but Deluca sure seems to hope he has to keep things nice and negative.

 

It all starts out innocently. You want your team to win. You spend a lot of time and money following your team. But as the decades pass you become a little disappointed, then scared, then angry. That's when everything comes off the rails. Everyone on your team sucks, everyone on every other team is better. The grass is greener, don't you see!

 

But the grass isn't always greener is it? One of life's most important lessons, no doubt.

 

We're all allowed to support our team in whatever way we want. There's no right way. But life is about balance. Balance is natural. Deluca channels imbalance. His rationale is not wrong, it's simply unforgiving. Of course he can weigh positives and negatives, but his negatives have value added in the manner of looking for any way to indict anyone involved with the Sabres.

 

As far as my claim that longevity breeds a disposition towards the negative, it's not a fact. It's simply an observation. Neither of us is right or wrong on the subject. But that it is reasonable assertion cannot be ignored. I suppose it's easier to follow but hate your team, than abandon it completely.

 

I'm giving you older fans the benefit of the doubt that maybe someday I'll be cranky and disappointed just like you if I have 20 more years under my belt without a Cup. But I ask you to see it from my perspective as well. I'm young and filled with hope.

 

Things ain't so bad. Why hope for things to be worse?

[K-9]

First, "internet persona" is a cop out.

 

I don't think the team shapes Deluca's perceptions, I think who he is shapes his perception of the team. He's clearly angry about being a fan for many years and having not been rewarded for that devotion. That is understandable. He's disappointed. He wants his team to win. Who doesn't? But because of this, not a single thing is cast in a positive light by him. Tyler Myers is a 3 year veteran and a first round draft pick with a ton of potential, but since he's "regressed" then it must be time to swing the axe. Has he? Probably not, but Deluca sure seems to hope he has to keep things nice and negative.

 

It all starts out innocently. You want your team to win. You spend a lot of time and money following your team. But as the decades pass you become a little disappointed, then scared, then angry. That's when everything comes off the rails. Everyone on your team sucks, everyone on every other team is better. The grass is greener, don't you see!

 

But the grass isn't always greener is it? One of life's most important lessons, no doubt.

 

We're all allowed to support our team in whatever way we want. There's no right way. But life is about balance. Balance is natural. Deluca channels imbalance. His rationale is not wrong, it's simply unforgiving. Of course he can weigh positives and negatives, but his negatives have value added in the manner of looking for any way to indict anyone involved with the Sabres.

 

As far as my claim that longevity breeds a disposition towards the negative, it's not a fact. It's simply an observation. Neither of us is right or wrong on the subject. But that it is reasonable assertion cannot be ignored. I suppose it's easier to follow but hate your team, than abandon it completely.

 

I'm giving you older fans the benefit of the doubt that maybe someday I'll be cranky and disappointed just like you if I have 20 more years under my belt without a Cup. But I ask you to see it from my perspective as well. I'm young and filled with hope.

 

Things ain't so bad. Why hope for things to be worse?

 

I've been a fan since the first puck drop and I see it your way. Not necessarily about DeLuca, but I don't see the value in not hoping for the best every game. Psychologically, it's easier to be pessimistic.

 

But it takes absolutely no balls at all.

 

GO SABRES!!!

[bunomatic]

I've been a fan since the first puck drop and I see it your way. Not necessarily about DeLuca, but I don't see the value in not hoping for the best every game. Psychologically, it's easier to be pessimistic.

 

But it takes absolutely no balls at all.

 

GO SABRES!!!

 

I would argue that it takes balls to hold an opinion that others continually attack and belittle. Also, one can be pessimistic about the current situation but still have hope things will get better.

[K-9]

I would argue that it takes balls to hold an opinion that others continually attack and belittle. Also, one can be pessimistic about the current situation but still have hope things will get better.

 

Attack and belittle? I'd have more sympathy if I didn't know that certain posters absolutely enjoy getting people riled up.

 

Pessimism and hope are mutually exclusive concepts. The pessimist has nothing to lose with a negative outcome. It's the safe play every time. It's the hedge against losing.

 

GO SABRES!!!

[Weave]

First, "internet persona" is a cop out.

 

Right. Like you don't have one either. :rolleyes: We all do. Some are closer to what we are in real life than others but I'm betting you interact a good bit differently on here than you would if this convo was in person.

 

Tyler Myers is a 3 year veteran and a first round draft pick with a ton of potential, but since he's "regressed" then it must be time to swing the axe.

 

And this is a beautiful example of the hyperbole in play here. There was no pronouncement that it was time to give up on Myers. What was said was that Myers may not turn out to be a franchise guy and therefore moving him for a #1 overall makes sense. So why do you distill that sentiment down to "DeLuca wants to give up on Myers"? I suspect it is because you have an agenda too my friend. Same pane of glass, looking out a different side.

 

 

-pointless blather-

 

 

Let me guess, you are idealistic when it comes to politics too?

[SwampD]

 

<snip>

 

I'm giving you older fans the benefit of the doubt that maybe someday I'll be cranky and disappointed just like you if I have 20 more years under my belt without a Cup. But I ask you to see it from my perspective as well. I'm young and filled with hope.

 

Things ain't so bad. Why hope for things to be worse?

 

It's not the fact that we haven't won a Cup that makes me angry. It's seeing the direction the team has been going to try and win that Cup not work, there being no changes made to that direction, and then being told, "Hey, this time it'll work!"

 

Right. Like you don't have one either. :rolleyes: We all do. Some are closer to what we are in real life than others but I'm betting you interact a good bit differently on here than you would if this convo was in person.

 

 

And this is a beautiful example of the hyperbole in play here. There was no pronouncement that it was time to give up on Myers. What was said was that Myers may not turn out to be a franchise guy and therefore moving him for a #1 overall makes sense. So why do you distill that sentiment down to "DeLuca wants to give up on Myers"? I suspect it is because you have an agenda too my friend. Same pane of glass, looking out a different side.

 

 

Let me guess, you are idealistic when it comes to politics too?

 

The post, not the poster. We are all idealistic when it comes to politics, just about different things.

[deluca67]

First, "internet persona" is a cop out.

 

I don't think the team shapes Deluca's perceptions, I think who he is shapes his perception of the team. He's clearly angry about being a fan for many years and having not been rewarded for that devotion. That is understandable. He's disappointed. He wants his team to win. Who doesn't? But because of this, not a single thing is cast in a positive light by him. Tyler Myers is a 3 year veteran and a first round draft pick with a ton of potential, but since he's "regressed" then it must be time to swing the axe. Has he? Probably not, but Deluca sure seems to hope he has to keep things nice and negative.

 

It all starts out innocently. You want your team to win. You spend a lot of time and money following your team. But as the decades pass you become a little disappointed, then scared, then angry. That's when everything comes off the rails. Everyone on your team sucks, everyone on every other team is better. The grass is greener, don't you see!

 

But the grass isn't always greener is it? One of life's most important lessons, no doubt.

 

We're all allowed to support our team in whatever way we want. There's no right way. But life is about balance. Balance is natural. Deluca channels imbalance. His rationale is not wrong, it's simply unforgiving. Of course he can weigh positives and negatives, but his negatives have value added in the manner of looking for any way to indict anyone involved with the Sabres.

 

As far as my claim that longevity breeds a disposition towards the negative, it's not a fact. It's simply an observation. Neither of us is right or wrong on the subject. But that it is reasonable assertion cannot be ignored. I suppose it's easier to follow but hate your team, than abandon it completely.

 

I'm giving you older fans the benefit of the doubt that maybe someday I'll be cranky and disappointed just like you if I have 20 more years under my belt without a Cup. But I ask you to see it from my perspective as well. I'm young and filled with hope.

 

Things ain't so bad. Why hope for things to be worse?

I make no apologies for my opinions of Ruff and Regier, but you are wrong on so many levels.

 

First of all I don't "hope for things to be worse." IMO, as long as Ruff and Regier remain, things can't possibly be worse. The Sabres are a lower echelon team that needs to catch lighting in a bottle just to make the playoffs, far from being a legit Stanley Cup contender.

 

My opinion of the franchise's current situation is based on 15 years of data. After 15 years, enough is enough.

 

Myers is a popular player and any critique which does not put him in the positive light is going to meet great resistance. That doesn't change my opinion that Myers as a player has not lived up to even the most modest of expectations over the past two seasons, It becomes a great concern considering the player and potential involved.

[Weave]

The post, not the poster.

 

Yeah. Thanks. I need reminders of this as well.

[LastPommerFan]

A few observations:

 

Internet Persona: I find that in many cases internet persona is more closely alligned with the simplest desires of our character than our "real life" personas. The anonymity of the internet and the ability to simply reset our persona should we need to (Right PA?) allow us to be a little less reserved. That is not to say that our internet personas are a close reflection of our true selves, because our true selves consist of our simpler desires tempered by our ability to look to the future and attempt to realize a longer term benefit by adjusting and supplementing those desires with other actions.

 

The "Gots to Go" Mentality re: LR/DR: Why is the conversation always about about getting rid of these guys. I'll make a golf analogy now. The Lindy/Darcy combo is a lot like Tiger Woods. At the start and again out of the lockout, they were world beaters: EC Champs, Presidents Trophy, deep playoff runs, etc. You wouldn't say "Tiger needs to replace himself with a better Golfer." The conversation is about what tiger needs to do to get better. I don't understand why, especially given the reality of the situation with ownership's commitment, we don't have more conversations about the things LR and DR could improve in their respective games to make themselves better for the team. For instance, Darcy needs to be a little less tight on the trade trigger, and I think he admitted as much at the end of the season when asked why a trade wasn't made earlier in the year. LR needs to build a little more stability into the lines and allow the creative players a little more latitude to occasionally just go out and play. Those conversations would be outstanding.

 

Loser Fatigue: This is a real thing, and it is more a factor of expirience than age. I will readily admit to loser fatigue about the Bills, I was 9-12 years old when they went on an amazing streak of building me up to leave me crying on the late night ride back to my house. I can't bring myself, even right now, to believe that they might be putting together a winner. Notre Dame, on the other hand, has never in my memory contended for a championship. Somehow, every September, I can convince myself that this is the year they go 11-1 and play for the title. The Sabres have me somewhere in between.

 

Sports as Entertainment: I think the variety of perspectives on a board like this is just as entertaining as the games themselves. Weaves pious derision of D4rk's high-horsedness is great stuff. It helps pass the time while I wait for a 3D model to render or a painfully old web app to load. But to think that anyone who has been a Sabres fan for any length of time won't get full marks for enjoyment when Bettman hands Pommer the Cup is absolute lunacy.

[Weave]

Sports as Entertainment: I think the variety of perspectives on a board like this is just as entertaining as the games themselves. Weaves pious derision of D4rk's high-horsedness is great stuff. It helps pass the time while I wait for a 3D model to render or a painfully old web app to load. But to think that anyone who has been a Sabres fan for any length of time won't get full marks for enjoyment when Bettman hands Pommer the Cup is absolute lunacy.

 

I aim to please? :unsure:

[shrader]

So there's a draft coming up?

[dEnnis the Menace]

So there's a draft coming up?

 

inconceivable!

[LastPommerFan]

I aim to please? :unsure:

 

Don't be unsure. It was classic.I may be the only one here who enjoys these salvos, but I enjoy them quite thoroughly.

 

So there's a draft coming up?

 

You and your occasional germane-ness!

[dudacek]

And this is a beautiful example of the hyperbole in play here. There was no pronouncement that it was time to give up on Myers. What was said was that Myers may not turn out to be a franchise guy and therefore moving him for a #1 overall makes sense. So why do you distill that sentiment down to "DeLuca wants to give up on Myers"?

 

Not to stop you when you're on a roll, but I think the statement that sent d4rk off this time was when DeLuca said he'd rather have McNabb than Myers.

While its not quite "giving up on him," I would be stunned if there's a GM in the NHL who would agree with that position, and many observers would think it's ludicrous.

 

A few observations:

The "Gots to Go" Mentality re: LR/DR: Why is the conversation always about about getting rid of these guys. I'll make a golf analogy now. The Lindy/Darcy combo is a lot like Tiger Woods. At the start and again out of the lockout, they were world beaters: EC Champs, Presidents Trophy, deep playoff runs, etc. You wouldn't say "Tiger needs to replace himself with a better Golfer." The conversation is about what tiger needs to do to get better. I don't understand why, especially given the reality of the situation with ownership's commitment, we don't have more conversations about the things LR and DR could improve in their respective games to make themselves better for the team. For instance, Darcy needs to be a little less tight on the trade trigger, and I think he admitted as much at the end of the season when asked why a trade wasn't made earlier in the year. LR needs to build a little more stability into the lines and allow the creative players a little more latitude to occasionally just go out and play. Those conversations would be outstanding.

 

This I like. Sounds like Darcy realizes he needs to do something. The question is "can he?"

[bunomatic]

Attack and belittle? I'd have more sympathy if I didn't know that certain posters absolutely enjoy getting people riled up.

 

Pessimism and hope are mutually exclusive concepts. The pessimist has nothing to lose with a negative outcome. It's the safe play every time. It's the hedge against losing.

 

GO SABRES!!!

 

And 'certain' posters fall for it every single time. If you don't want to get riled up don't play the game. The fact that someone else's opinion riles you up ( not necessarily you personally ) says something. I can understand when it comes to politics or religion or family but an opinion on sport or hockey. It is just a game.

[LaFontaineToMogilny]

 

Sports as Entertainment: I think the variety of perspectives on a board like this is just as entertaining as the games themselves. Weaves pious derision of D4rk's high-horsedness is great stuff. It helps pass the time while I wait for a 3D model to render or a painfully old web app to load. But to think that anyone who has been a Sabres fan for any length of time won't get full marks for enjoyment when Bettman hands Pommer the Cup is absolute lunacy.

 

This mental image has made my week!

[TrueBlueGED]

And this is a beautiful example of the hyperbole in play here. There was no pronouncement that it was time to give up on Myers. What was said was that Myers may not turn out to be a franchise guy and therefore moving him for a #1 overall makes sense. So why do you distill that sentiment down to "DeLuca wants to give up on Myers"? I suspect it is because you have an agenda too my friend. Same pane of glass, looking out a different side.

 

He never literally said it, but every time a trade comes up and Myers is mentioned, DeLuca supports it. In fact, I don't remember a single time he's rejected the idea of trading Myers. It wouldn't surprise me at all if he'd literally trade him for a bag of pucks with the reasoning "I'd rather have more pucks than a regressing defenseman at $5.5 million". If that's not giving up on someone, it's damn close. As for the internet persona thing...of course it could be an internet persona. But neither of us knows how closely that resembles his actual self. And I'm not even concerned how representative it is....I deal with his internet persona, not his real life self, so my judgment of him and the content of his posts are based on the internet persona, since that's the only thing I know.

 

And before anyone says it, of course it should be the post that matters not the poster. But that's just not realistic. Our assessment of a given post is influenced by who posted it and their history, it's just the reality of human psychology, and nobody is really above this happening whether it's a conscious or subconscious process. The only difference is some of us are able or willing to acknowledge and accept we're doing it, while others like to pretend it doesn't happen to them.

 

I would argue that it takes balls to hold an opinion that others continually attack and belittle. Also, one can be pessimistic about the current situation but still have hope things will get better.

 

Unless that opinion is just an internet persona at play, then no, it really doesn't take any balls at all. And frankly. both sides here attack and belittle the other side's opinion, so I guess everybody has balls because no matter what they'll be attacked by somebody.

 

 

So there's a draft coming up?

 

Trade up for Galchenyuk!

[shrader]

Trade up for Galchenyuk!

 

But he's Russian! (and yes, I know his background)

 

Did he ever actually come back at any point this year?