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Damn.
I do owe you an apology. It was shortsightedness.
I don't recall the other conversation. You were perhaps posting under a different name? I don't recall the name Arrogant Basturd from the past.
I didn't mean to ignore any thanks you may've sent my way. It wasn't intentional. Maybe I was too embarrassed by your high opinion of me. Maybe this was around the time I had to disappear from Cranky's and I never even read it (I was gone for about eight months recently). I honestly don't recall the conversation.
What forum did we previously talk in? And about how long ago?
In this thread I thought I was dealing with a new poster who just came here to piss people off. You know, a basic troll. And who picked me because he saw an easy mark.
I am sorry.
No, I'm not always nice. Yes, I am more than a little uncivilized underneath my veneer. There's a vileness there, for sure. And sometimes I have to fight myself to control it.
My general attitude is more than a screen, though. I do like most people I meet here. I'm just not too fond of the trolls, and have less patience with them than perhaps I should. So most people get my 'nice' face and a small number get a rasher of shit from me. Both attitudes are real.
I also don't like to see other people getting picked on. Especially when for the jerk doing the picking it is just a small meaningless encounter and for the pickee it might be somewhat more. Which is almost certainly why I had the other conversation with you. There is no reason to belittle another person who is just sharing some private thoughts.
I don't turn out my negative charm for people who don't seem to deserve it. Again, I'm sorry I mis-identified you and struck out at you.
I really did think when you said "Another one of those bores who has ten million facts in his head but doesn't know how to think" that that was our first encounter. I didn't realize from your perspective that this was kidding between people who had already met.
If it's any consolation, I don't think I deserve to be anyone's god. And if this takes me out of that status, then it's deserved. I am your equal. Everyone else is too.
Your disillusionment should be genuine. I don't think I could live up to such an image. I'm not sure anyone could. Please continue to label me as less than holy and unsaintly. I'm not likely to re-earn that kind of an image. Again, I am your equal and don't expect to be treated better or worse.
That said, though, please do not let my mistake here overshadow the good I've done you in the past. And it was a mistake.
I do think you underestimate the niceness of some of the people around here. I've found most of the ones who pretend to be nice really aren't pretending. Perhaps a little defensive, but that's to be expected.
Some who are too nice for their own good, in fact and they overreact in an opposite direction when pushed. In some of the cases you've encountered, it is entirely possible they're reacting to your chosen name. Which is actually a misnomer, since given your last post you are far from being an arrogant bastard. Or they may be mis-reading your sarcasm as genuine criticism.
I hope my explanation of my behavior suffices and you accept my apology. If you don't, I'll understand. Obviously your previous experiences of being burned are extreme.
Either way, this conversation has definitely taught me a lesson. You may walk away satisfied knowing that your words sunk home.
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