pica_nuttalli
don't be a twit
ooooo topic resurrection!! 
lets start by saying that the number one all time most irritating thing is when someone posts without reading all of the previous posts. i say this in order to explain why i'm only now posting my own opinion.
i like to think that i fall somewhere in between "straight-shooting" and "huggy". but one thing that i always try to do when explaining why things should be done a certain way is point out how proper fishkeeping benefits the fishkeeper.
fish that are well kept generally look better, with more defined markings and brighter colors. healthy fish also show off their fins better. good maintenance keeps algae under control and generally makes a tank look better. understocking reduces the need for rigorous maintenance. overfiltering allows for overstocking. respecting a fish's territorial needs means that its tankmates are less likely to lose an eye or suffer other unattractive wounds. keeping predators with prey fish is overall expensive. feeding store-bought feeders risks the life of your expensive predator; feeding goldfish shortens its lifespan. breeding VT mutts and other dirt-common fish makes the fry hard to sell and not worth much money. keeping a fish in an undersized tank makes it hard to keep things clean and risks stunting. stunting will deform your fish.
if you put things in terms of how they benefit the fishkeeper instead of the fish, then you pretty well sidestep the expected differences in ethical values between being a fish owner and being a fishkeeper. since ethics is often the most "flammable" of issues, putting things in very shallow and people-oriented terms helps keep the discussion at a less volatile level while still communicating information vital to the well-being of the fish. if the person that i'm speaking to is someone that i'm familiar with and seems harbor a sense of ethical obligation to the fish, then i start to put things in terms of "right and wrong". otherwise i don't bother. (except when horomonal, already tweaked at someone else, or just generally moody)
however, i am not afraid to call someone out about poor forum conduct nor do i hestitate in identifying bad advice-giving habits. bad advice, i frequently leave alone unless i'm pretty confident.
--EDIT--
i agree with paulMTS (who i kinda miss) that this isn't the same forum that i joined. i'm not certain that i would call it better or worse, but it is not the same. its a lot more mellow and it seems like there's not as many "serious" fishkeepers having serious discussions. the mods also don't post as much as they used to do. i'm not certain whether that's a result of climate change or just the increased number of posts-per-day, but it still makes a difference. there's also an increased interest among the membership with the emotions of how people should be treated but a decreased interest in the philosophy of how information should be communicated. in case you couldn't guess, i'm more interested in pedagogy
lets start by saying that the number one all time most irritating thing is when someone posts without reading all of the previous posts. i say this in order to explain why i'm only now posting my own opinion.
i like to think that i fall somewhere in between "straight-shooting" and "huggy". but one thing that i always try to do when explaining why things should be done a certain way is point out how proper fishkeeping benefits the fishkeeper.
fish that are well kept generally look better, with more defined markings and brighter colors. healthy fish also show off their fins better. good maintenance keeps algae under control and generally makes a tank look better. understocking reduces the need for rigorous maintenance. overfiltering allows for overstocking. respecting a fish's territorial needs means that its tankmates are less likely to lose an eye or suffer other unattractive wounds. keeping predators with prey fish is overall expensive. feeding store-bought feeders risks the life of your expensive predator; feeding goldfish shortens its lifespan. breeding VT mutts and other dirt-common fish makes the fry hard to sell and not worth much money. keeping a fish in an undersized tank makes it hard to keep things clean and risks stunting. stunting will deform your fish.
if you put things in terms of how they benefit the fishkeeper instead of the fish, then you pretty well sidestep the expected differences in ethical values between being a fish owner and being a fishkeeper. since ethics is often the most "flammable" of issues, putting things in very shallow and people-oriented terms helps keep the discussion at a less volatile level while still communicating information vital to the well-being of the fish. if the person that i'm speaking to is someone that i'm familiar with and seems harbor a sense of ethical obligation to the fish, then i start to put things in terms of "right and wrong". otherwise i don't bother. (except when horomonal, already tweaked at someone else, or just generally moody
)however, i am not afraid to call someone out about poor forum conduct nor do i hestitate in identifying bad advice-giving habits. bad advice, i frequently leave alone unless i'm pretty confident.
--EDIT--
i agree with paulMTS (who i kinda miss) that this isn't the same forum that i joined. i'm not certain that i would call it better or worse, but it is not the same. its a lot more mellow and it seems like there's not as many "serious" fishkeepers having serious discussions. the mods also don't post as much as they used to do. i'm not certain whether that's a result of climate change or just the increased number of posts-per-day, but it still makes a difference. there's also an increased interest among the membership with the emotions of how people should be treated but a decreased interest in the philosophy of how information should be communicated. in case you couldn't guess, i'm more interested in pedagogy
