Opinions Obliterated?

[D'Snowth]

Ah yes, I believe Sgt Floyd did a thread not too long ago about the ridiculousness over un-necessary debates over those who just happen to be posh and own blu-ray players and such, and those who don't because it's not like DVDs are completely out-dated and obsolete just yet.

 

[RedPiggy]

Hopefully our point is CRYSTAL clear by now.

Wanna see pessimism? Head on over and read threads about the future of Fraggle Rock, Labyrinth, or Dark Crystal. Your silly little hesitations PALE in comparison.

LOL, j/k.

It's getting to the point where I'M pessimistic about my Henson fantasy franchises ... and yet I'll be a Rocket and Pokeshipper 'til the day I die, reality be darned.

 

[D'Snowth]

Wanna see pessimism? Head on over and read threads about the future of Fraggle Rock, Labyrinth, or Dark Crystal. Your silly little hesitations PALE in comparison.

LOL, j/k.

It's getting to the point where I'M pessimistic about my Henson fantasy franchises ... and yet I'll be a Rocket and Pokeshipper 'til the day I die, reality be darned.

Indeed, like I said before, it hurts to say so, but I basically have no more respect for JHC right now... they just simply don't seem to care anymore, and to think that basically all that Jim ever worked for and built up through his vision has basically been sold off and handed over to other parties who may or may not even intend on doing anything with them. I remember in an old interview, Caroll Spinney seemed irked at how the Henson family sold the Classic Muppets to EM.TV, and then of course, the re-sell to Disney in 2004 was described in Street Gang as, "The d a m ndest thing."

 

[RedPiggy]

Well, as much as I dislike the early treatment of Disney, the reality is SST and FR and such aren't exactly having a renaissance anytime soon. It's kinda like what Kermit said in that video of a radio interview: I like to be employed.

 

[Muppet fan 123]

Well, as much as I dislike the early treatment of Disney, the reality is SST and FR and such aren't exactly having a renaissance anytime soon. It's kinda like what Kermit said in that video of a radio interview: I like to be employed.

Yeah, well Fraggle Rock is going nowhere. Apprently there's a new movie coming out since like seven years ago. And a Dark Crystal sequel, that's definatley NOT happening.
And whatever Henson announces, NEVER happens. They just talk and talk, but they never actually do anything of the stuff they talk about.

 

[frogboy4]

Differences of opinions are great and I've voiced many harsh critiques of everything from Kermit's Swamp Years and Muppets From Space to the graphic art being used in promotional materials and the gentrified state of Sesame Street. However, I try to balance these criticisms with something positive.

Forums are a great place to fanatically dissect everything and that's the way it should always be! I have never nor will ever state otherwise.

However, there seem to be some members who use this opportunity to vent their life's problems here and focus all this angst on something Muppet related. They approach nearly every issue with a lopsided amount of unmuppety pessimism.That's why I and others have expressed having one leg out of this place. It's not a simple point of view difference. It's a poisonous tone. There's a trap of negative thinking that some people seem to fall into and that makes this place unbearable at times.

Muppet Central is a place to celebrate and discuss the Muppets. This sometimes means critique, but attacking and disparaging the Muppets, the puppeteers, the Henson Company or Walt Disney the way it's been happening really is not okay and much of it does violate guidelines that other staff members and I formed many years ago. The Muppets create too much joy for the disproportionate amount of negativity on here lately.

For the record:

• No one is getting "screwed over" for having to pay extra to get extras on a home video release. They're called extras for a reason. And the extras we're getting look to be fantastic!
• It is now clear that everyone involved with the 2011 film tried to honor the Muppets and their history.
• It is much easier to find current Muppet related items in many retail stores than it has been in years.
• All of the above could have been done better, but what we have is pretty great!

Muppet Central is not a place to spout just anything we please. It must be a much more thoughtful place. That's getting missed.

 

[Sgt Floyd]

Still though, attacking people for being "pessimistic" is just as wrong, and I think thats what Snowthy is trying to get at. I'm not saying anyone in particular is guilty of it.

In fact, telling people to stop being pessimistic is doing the opposite of what you are trying to stop. Telling people they are being pessimistic is going to cause them to lash out at you even more.

 

[D'Snowth]

Well again, my bottom line is this: do we need to be lashing out at anybody all because of a difference of opinion?

Some see it as pessimism, but in most cases, it genuinely isn't, it's just a difference of opinion.

I mean I'm all for a completely peaceful community about celebrating the Muppets, that's what MC's all about, but there really ISN'T a "disproportionate amount of negativity" around here, maybe a very small handful of people casting doubt, a little moreso now since the sudden news of a potential sequel may seem like "too good to be true" or "too soon, too quickly", whatever. A VERY small handful, maybe what, three or four people at best? If that much? Yet there seems to be an entire coalition of people who get into a tizzy over "pessimists trying to bring the whole community down", and like heralde says, it does draw un-necessary lines in the sand, and is causing a bit of a an un-necessary divide in the community.

It takes all kinds of people to make up the world, right? Let alone a Muppetational world, right? Well, all kinds of people are going to have all kinds of different opinions, but just because the opinions aren't like everybody elses, "Oh goody, goody, goody, I just know for a fact that this is true, and nothing wrong could possibly go wrong, because this is definitely going to happen no matter what", is really no cause for a passive aggressive backlash. I mean, you don't see all of the residents of Sesame Street rebuking Oscar the Grouch for saying something like, "Eh, the weather's been too sunny for too long, we could use a couple of drops of rain", do you?

 

[CensoredAlso]

I mean, you don't see all of the residents of Sesame Street rebuking Oscar the Grouch for saying something like, "Eh, the weather's been too sunny for too long, we could use a couple of drops of rain", do you?

Well you do, but after that they say, "Oh Oscar, there's no one quite like you!" Lol

 

[frogboy4]

Still though, attacking people for being "pessimistic" is just as wrong, and I think thats what Snowthy is trying to get at. I'm not saying anyone in particular is guilty of it.

In fact, telling people to stop being pessimistic is doing the opposite of what you are trying to stop. Telling people they are being pessimistic is going to cause them to lash out at you even more.

I can certainly agree with the spirit of that statement.

I just think there's a difference in having an unpopular opinion and habitually approaching every topic with a "glass-half-empty" perspective. There are too many members now (not just one) who come here to gripe rather than to share. It's like they're just waiting in the wings to hear someone complain about something, anything so they can jump right in and harness their frustrations. That element has always been here. It's in every community, but it seems to have taken over Muppet Central and that's what I find sad. It's a tone. Not a constructively critical tone. It's a poisonous tone.

During my twelve or so years here I've made many great friends and invested countless hours creating many of MC's trademark elements, but there is little reason to come here much anymore considering how much alternatives like Facebook, Mindset and ToughPigs are thriving. That's why I get passionate about forum issues. It isn't just some petty perspective due to one disagreement. This community should be respected more than I've been seeing lately. We could all do better by one another. Me included, of course. I just think there is more interest in creating drama than mending fences.

As a creative person I look at ways to build rather than just to chip away. I'm sure you, as an artist, can understand that perspective. To turn something unfortunate into a chuckle or at least slap a fresh coat of paint on it. Things could always be worse.