Why are the LetsRun forums so toxic?

Using my real name hasn’t changed anything.

While the brojos dont show up in controversial court cases like the homicidal Ethan Couch they are three in the same with regard to affluenza.

They cant moderate because they don't know any better.

The brothers are some of the earliest sufferers of the disease and symptoms date back to the mid 1980s when the lived on the oil ranch.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Affluenza

livinkingstons wrote:

I come from a running family, so I grew up spending time around my local running community at road races and club events. I have always found that runners, on average, are kinder and more intelligent than most other hobby groups.

So why are the discussion forums on the largest competitive running website so ridiculously toxic? Every thread is filled with hateful, cynical rhetoric, and I honestly can't think of a worse place on the internet. Does anyone have some insight?

1. They're anonymous

2. The forum is full of young losers jealous of runners better than they are and better looking than they are and women too good looking to give them any attention if they ever ventured out of their bedrooms for something other than a run.

You're a troublemaker.

Starting a provocative thread like this.

The amount of trolls has significantly increased recently. Most of the threads are pure garbage and click bait. Misleading titles. Many try to be clever and witty, but they come off as even more racist or misogynistic because they’re trying to copy someone else’s sense of humor. I think the kids call it “sh!t posting.” It’s obnoxious. Registered names might help. But someone just needs to clean up the boards and delete obviously stupid posts. Start banning members.

Disko Eric wrote:

The amount of trolls has significantly increased recently. Most of the threads are pure garbage and click bait. Misleading titles. Many try to be clever and witty, but they come off as even more racist or misogynistic because they’re trying to copy someone else’s sense of humor. I think the kids call it “sh!t posting.” It’s obnoxious. Registered names might help. But someone just needs to clean up the boards and delete obviously stupid posts. Start banning members.

this is a societal issue and your band-aid solution isn't going to work in the long run.

fgndfkvns wrote:

Disko Eric wrote:

The amount of trolls has significantly increased recently. Most of the threads are pure garbage and click bait. Misleading titles. Many try to be clever and witty, but they come off as even more racist or misogynistic because they’re trying to copy someone else’s sense of humor. I think the kids call it “sh!t posting.” It’s obnoxious. Registered names might help. But someone just needs to clean up the boards and delete obviously stupid posts. Start banning members.

this is a societal issue and your band-aid solution isn't going to work in the long run.

Sh!t post #1 ^^^^^

It's not lets run. People are toxic AF.

Seriously you can anonymously post the first thought that comes to your mind.

Good question! I've felt the same way.

Some comments within this very thread support your observation.

livinkingstons wrote:

I come from a running family, so I grew up spending time around my local running community at road races and club events. I have always found that runners, on average, are kinder and more intelligent than most other hobby groups.

So why are the discussion forums on the largest competitive running website so ridiculously toxic? Every thread is filled with hateful, cynical rhetoric, and I honestly can't think of a worse place on the internet. Does anyone have some insight?

Once, long long ago, someone posted something about running 8 minute pace for 5k.

Someone sitting at their keyboard who'd run in the 14's told them they needed to retire.

That's how it all started. True story.

Let's run=sociopaths npd playground. Look at the stats. Way more sociopaths in the world than we thought. Same with narcissistic personality disorder. NPD has the same growth rate in America as obesity.

This is a big part of it I think. Not only do you not have to register, you can post multiple times as different users, so nobody even knows if you're the same person. So you look and see 10 comments from 10 different people, but 8 of them are actually the same person. I know you could do the same here and create multiple accounts, but I think it's just easier there to quickly post and hide behind any username you want.

https://9apps.ooo

https://solitaire.onl/

I love all of you.

I think the anonymity is the biggest factor. While I won't argue there is a fair amount here, it's far from the worst place on the internet, unfortunately. And I agree that it's just not online that people are toxic. We see it in real life on the news every day.

Report every thread or post that you think is out of line.

Be honest please wrote:

There is nothing toxic on Letsrun.

It's a welcoming forum with non politically correct discussions and languages, people who make jokes, brag, argue, talk about training, results, and other topics all in a good atmosphere.

It's not bland and boring like most of online forums so it is very good.

Thank you. The OP's post reminds me of the Outside magazin article on the controversial nature of this place . Yet it didn't provide a single example of a post that is currently up that should be deleted.. Same thing here. Talks about toxic culture but no concrete example.

I'm not saying there aren't bad posts on here - there are. But I just don't think this place is overall toxic or sexist. The reality is people in the year 2020 are used to only surrounding themselves around people who think exactly like they do. The liberals all live together in the coastal cities and the reverse is true in rural America. And look at the Congrssional districts, they are a joke the way they are drawn.

It's sad that in the year 2020 if someone says, "Transgender athlete x is a role model and modern day Jackie Robinson" and someone else says "Are you kidding? It's a joke they are allowed to compete" that people think that's toxic. The reality is both are valid view points. People just don't like to admit that anymore.

livinkingstons wrote:

I come from a running family, so I grew up spending time around my local running community at road races and club events. I have always found that runners, on average, are kinder and more intelligent than most other hobby groups.

So why are the discussion forums on the largest competitive running website so ridiculously toxic? Every thread is filled with hateful, cynical rhetoric, and I honestly can't think of a worse place on the internet. Does anyone have some insight?

I'm here to throw 'bows.

B-Rabbit wrote:

Spasja wrote:

Spoken with unacknowledged privilege. I've had to regularly submit antisemitic threads and posts to the mods. There are ongoing problems with comments about women (i.e. Mary Cain's body, Jordon Hasay's body, any woman runner's body- see thread today about Sara Hall, who did nothing more than not qualify and run a bad race). Fat shaming is common. Left v. right fights are daily, mainly egged on by either rojo or his doppleganger the430miler or bartholemew_maxwell. It is an embarrassment that can at time become a nightmare- marathon runner suicide, anyone?

Great points! Too bad they will be ignored

I thought about having a new rule to quiet people like you. "You can't discuss a women's body in any way - period." But I think it's scary in society to allow certain topics to be off limits.

I mean basically ZERO people have a problem with a thread saying Bekele looks pudgy and needs to lose weight.

What is wrong with the Sara Hall thread? It looks fine to me. Yes, some idiots were posting about Trump in there but those posts have been deleted.

Spasja wrote:

Spoken with unacknowledged privilege. I've had to regularly submit antisemitic threads and posts to the mods. There are ongoing problems with comments about women (i.e. Mary Cain's body, Jordon Hasay's body, any woman runner's body- see thread today about Sara Hall, who did nothing more than not qualify and run a bad race). Fat shaming is common. Left v. right fights are daily, mainly egged on by either rojo or his doppleganger the430miler or bartholemew_maxwell. It is an embarrassment that can at time become a nightmare- marathon runner suicide, anyone?

Oh jeez.... Seriously, if you are this thin skinned, and don't enjoy offensive humor, then this place is not for you. Or maybe there are just some threads that you would deem offensive - so don't go to those ones. As far as internet forums go, this is pretty mild compared to what I've seen out there - you act like this is a 4chan forum, where the idea is to be as offensive and shocking as possible, and it's not.

Believe it not, some people would actually like to get away from the censorship of overzealous mods and downvote brigades that punish anyone that says anything that could be perceived as offensive or contains an opinion or harsh truth that's outside the forum's collective group-think.

bogsnobend wrote:

Paraglidingforum.com

There are advantages to using real names. People are more civil and can actual organise and meet in real life for some flying.

Take a look at their thread “climate change and paragliding”. It begins to have the feel of a typical letsrun thread with strong differences of opinion, but minus the letsrun trolls who appear in every thread here.