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smokejaguar t1_j61vrzv wrote

Reply to comment by waninggib in Do you like living in Providence? by movingtori

It wasn't always this way. A decade ago both this and the state sub were much smaller, but, oddly enough, more reflective of the residents of RI, albeit skewing younger, college educated, and middle class.

I used to put together meetups on a regular basis, sometimes with up to 50 participants, and attendees had a great time. I'm not sure I could pull that off now.

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waninggib t1_j61w2cd wrote

I was posting here then under a different name. Left Reddit for a while and came back for a bit when COVID first hit and again recently. It had become alarmingly toxic around the COVID time, but seems to have settled down some now. Definitely not the same though.

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smokejaguar t1_j61y254 wrote

COVID really kicked the hostility into high gear. I've been a mod on the sister sub for nearly a decade, and prior to COVID, moderator actions could often be counted in the low double digits for an entire year. Needless to say, that is no longer the case.

I'm currently overseas, but I've had the thought of putting together another meet up upon my return. One of the reasons I did so in the first place (other than wanting an excuse to drink beer with new and interesting strangers) was to remind the community that there is a physical person behind each username. Of the dozens of gatherings I organized, I can't recall a single serious argument/fight, despite the fact that there were people of all race/class/sex/political affiliation attending. Disagreements, sure, but civil ones.

People think twice about saying nasty things when they recognize the humanity of the person behind the screen.

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