APS middle school boundary process

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So, I am one of the trolls on this thread. I don't have a dog in this particular fight, but I certainly do enjoy watching different liberal factions try to rip each others' throats out. I have tried to be as obnoxious with my prior posts as possible by calling arguments communist and fascistic as I deem appropriate. Let me present my observations:

First, I think that we can all agree that there will be winners and losers in any boundary definition exercise. This is inherently a zero sum game. People value different things, be they FARMS levels, walkability, time on the bus, perceived property value effects, etc. Furthermore, people put different weights on how important they view these attributes. A rational way to deal with these issues would be to discuss how important each of these things are and how affected each would be by the various plans. (At one point, someone asked what everyone valued in a middle school. I was the only one who answered the question.)

But instead of trying to discuss these thing rationally, you "all" decided to argue like a bunch of fucking children after breaking open the mid-morning bottle of wine. I actually find this quite amusing. For the most part, people just ignored what others were saying. Many refused to accept that other people value things in different ways. For example, some prefer their kids go to a "diverse" school, while others place more emphasis on overall school test performance. Some argued that, in essence, the opinions of some members of the community don't matter. For example, some said that if people in North Arlington didn't like being bused, they could just go private, as if those folks' preferences can just be ignored in the political equation. Some argued that they knew better what good for someone's kid than the parents themselves. For example, some said that Dominion Hills kids would be better off walking to Kenmore than Swanson. There was bogus virtue signaling throughout. There was gnashing of teeth and calling of names. It was the Arlington Way as we have all known and loved.

Here are some specific comments: Don't call people "poors": it is condescending. Don't tell people that they can just go private as if APS doesn't have an obligation to serve all kids: this is undemocratic and condescending. Don't tell people that you know what better for their kids than do the parents: this is even more condescending and obnoxious as hell. To people arguing geography and house values: don't make up shit when you don't know anything about it. To the DH parent who kept on pointing out that the walking distance to Swanson is much shorter than to Kenmore and was called a racist for stating this obvious fact: I don't know why you put up with this crap; I would have left exasperated, pulling my hair out, long before not. To the person calling DH a racist: You are truly a fucking piece of work. She explained her reasonable position and you refused to listen. Furthermore, you asked her to publicly identify herself and yet you refused to identify yourself when asked. That is fucking lame. (I use these expletives to shock and because you deserve it.)

Many who come to the Washington area are the "best and brightest," often working for the government. When I see the quality of argumentation surrounding local issues, I worry for the state of our country if that argumentation reflects that of our political leadership.

I don't get it. You admit you stir up shit, yet complain about the stink?

[Anonymous]

Trolling and then calling people out for not responding rationally is really, really rich.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So, I am one of the trolls on this thread. I don't have a dog in this particular fight, but I certainly do enjoy watching different liberal factions try to rip each others' throats out. I have tried to be as obnoxious with my prior posts as possible by calling arguments communist and fascistic as I deem appropriate. Let me present my observations:

First, I think that we can all agree that there will be winners and losers in any boundary definition exercise. This is inherently a zero sum game. People value different things, be they FARMS levels, walkability, time on the bus, perceived property value effects, etc. Furthermore, people put different weights on how important they view these attributes. A rational way to deal with these issues would be to discuss how important each of these things are and how affected each would be by the various plans. (At one point, someone asked what everyone valued in a middle school. I was the only one who answered the question.)

But instead of trying to discuss these thing rationally, you "all" decided to argue like a bunch of fucking children after breaking open the mid-morning bottle of wine. I actually find this quite amusing. For the most part, people just ignored what others were saying. Many refused to accept that other people value things in different ways. For example, some prefer their kids go to a "diverse" school, while others place more emphasis on overall school test performance. Some argued that, in essence, the opinions of some members of the community don't matter. For example, some said that if people in North Arlington didn't like being bused, they could just go private, as if those folks' preferences can just be ignored in the political equation. Some argued that they knew better what good for someone's kid than the parents themselves. For example, some said that Dominion Hills kids would be better off walking to Kenmore than Swanson. There was bogus virtue signaling throughout. There was gnashing of teeth and calling of names. It was the Arlington Way as we have all known and loved.

Here are some specific comments: Don't call people "poors": it is condescending. Don't tell people that they can just go private as if APS doesn't have an obligation to serve all kids: this is undemocratic and condescending. Don't tell people that you know what better for their kids than do the parents: this is even more condescending and obnoxious as hell. To people arguing geography and house values: don't make up shit when you don't know anything about it. To the DH parent who kept on pointing out that the walking distance to Swanson is much shorter than to Kenmore and was called a racist for stating this obvious fact: I don't know why you put up with this crap; I would have left exasperated, pulling my hair out, long before not. To the person calling DH a racist: You are truly a fucking piece of work. She explained her reasonable position and you refused to listen. Furthermore, you asked her to publicly identify herself and yet you refused to identify yourself when asked. That is fucking lame. (I use these expletives to shock and because you deserve it.)

Many who come to the Washington area are the "best and brightest," often working for the government. When I see the quality of argumentation surrounding local issues, I worry for the state of our country if that argumentation reflects that of our political leadership.

I think you just added, ever so slightly, to Arlington's well-deserved reputation as home to a lot of over-educated, under-employed dweebs.

[Anonymous]

Who does this a’hole think he is? Dont say the poors. Oh, ok, what should we say? The destitutes? The financially challenged?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Trolling and then calling people out for not responding rationally is really, really rich.

I was only trolling in argumentation style, not actual content. That people can't respond rationally says something about them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Trolling and then calling people out for not responding rationally is really, really rich.

I was only trolling in argumentation style, not actual content. That people can't respond rationally says something about them.

Which posts were yours?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So, I am one of the trolls on this thread. I don't have a dog in this particular fight, but I certainly do enjoy watching different liberal factions try to rip each others' throats out. I have tried to be as obnoxious with my prior posts as possible by calling arguments communist and fascistic as I deem appropriate. Let me present my observations:

First, I think that we can all agree that there will be winners and losers in any boundary definition exercise. This is inherently a zero sum game. People value different things, be they FARMS levels, walkability, time on the bus, perceived property value effects, etc. Furthermore, people put different weights on how important they view these attributes. A rational way to deal with these issues would be to discuss how important each of these things are and how affected each would be by the various plans. (At one point, someone asked what everyone valued in a middle school. I was the only one who answered the question.)

But instead of trying to discuss these thing rationally, you "all" decided to argue like a bunch of fucking children after breaking open the mid-morning bottle of wine. I actually find this quite amusing. For the most part, people just ignored what others were saying. Many refused to accept that other people value things in different ways. For example, some prefer their kids go to a "diverse" school, while others place more emphasis on overall school test performance. Some argued that, in essence, the opinions of some members of the community don't matter. For example, some said that if people in North Arlington didn't like being bused, they could just go private, as if those folks' preferences can just be ignored in the political equation. Some argued that they knew better what good for someone's kid than the parents themselves. For example, some said that Dominion Hills kids would be better off walking to Kenmore than Swanson. There was bogus virtue signaling throughout. There was gnashing of teeth and calling of names. It was the Arlington Way as we have all known and loved.

Here are some specific comments: Don't call people "poors": it is condescending. Don't tell people that they can just go private as if APS doesn't have an obligation to serve all kids: this is undemocratic and condescending. Don't tell people that you know what better for their kids than do the parents: this is even more condescending and obnoxious as hell. To people arguing geography and house values: don't make up shit when you don't know anything about it. To the DH parent who kept on pointing out that the walking distance to Swanson is much shorter than to Kenmore and was called a racist for stating this obvious fact: I don't know why you put up with this crap; I would have left exasperated, pulling my hair out, long before not. To the person calling DH a racist: You are truly a fucking piece of work. She explained her reasonable position and you refused to listen. Furthermore, you asked her to publicly identify herself and yet you refused to identify yourself when asked. That is fucking lame. (I use these expletives to shock and because you deserve it.)

Many who come to the Washington area are the "best and brightest," often working for the government. When I see the quality of argumentation surrounding local issues, I worry for the state of our country if that argumentation reflects that of our political leadership.

I've followed this thread pretty closely. Where did somebody ask for public identification and refuse to listen?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So, I am one of the trolls on this thread. I don't have a dog in this particular fight, but I certainly do enjoy watching different liberal factions try to rip each others' throats out. I have tried to be as obnoxious with my prior posts as possible by calling arguments communist and fascistic as I deem appropriate. Let me present my observations:

First, I think that we can all agree that there will be winners and losers in any boundary definition exercise. This is inherently a zero sum game. People value different things, be they FARMS levels, walkability, time on the bus, perceived property value effects, etc. Furthermore, people put different weights on how important they view these attributes. A rational way to deal with these issues would be to discuss how important each of these things are and how affected each would be by the various plans. (At one point, someone asked what everyone valued in a middle school. I was the only one who answered the question.)

But instead of trying to discuss these thing rationally, you "all" decided to argue like a bunch of fucking children after breaking open the mid-morning bottle of wine. I actually find this quite amusing. For the most part, people just ignored what others were saying. Many refused to accept that other people value things in different ways. For example, some prefer their kids go to a "diverse" school, while others place more emphasis on overall school test performance. Some argued that, in essence, the opinions of some members of the community don't matter. For example, some said that if people in North Arlington didn't like being bused, they could just go private, as if those folks' preferences can just be ignored in the political equation. Some argued that they knew better what good for someone's kid than the parents themselves. For example, some said that Dominion Hills kids would be better off walking to Kenmore than Swanson. There was bogus virtue signaling throughout. There was gnashing of teeth and calling of names. It was the Arlington Way as we have all known and loved.

Here are some specific comments: Don't call people "poors": it is condescending. Don't tell people that they can just go private as if APS doesn't have an obligation to serve all kids: this is undemocratic and condescending. Don't tell people that you know what better for their kids than do the parents: this is even more condescending and obnoxious as hell. To people arguing geography and house values: don't make up shit when you don't know anything about it. To the DH parent who kept on pointing out that the walking distance to Swanson is much shorter than to Kenmore and was called a racist for stating this obvious fact: I don't know why you put up with this crap; I would have left exasperated, pulling my hair out, long before not. To the person calling DH a racist: You are truly a fucking piece of work. She explained her reasonable position and you refused to listen. Furthermore, you asked her to publicly identify herself and yet you refused to identify yourself when asked. That is fucking lame. (I use these expletives to shock and because you deserve it.)

Many who come to the Washington area are the "best and brightest," often working for the government. When I see the quality of argumentation surrounding local issues, I worry for the state of our country if that argumentation reflects that of our political leadership.

I've followed this thread pretty closely. Where did somebody ask for public identification and refuse to listen?

I think the above poster is trolling multiple threads and can’t keep them straight. I imagine they get confused a lot.

[Anonymous]

It was on the disaffected with APS thread and it was obviously the same poster.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It was on the disaffected with APS thread and it was obviously the same poster.

Yes. Bright side, I think the obvious head case has perhaps killed this thread. It stopped be productive about 48 pages ago.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Trolling and then calling people out for not responding rationally is really, really rich.

I was only trolling in argumentation style, not actual content. That people can't respond rationally says something about them.

Which posts were yours?

My posts started saying my youngest kids were in eighth grade and I explicitly wanted to see friction between liberals with different viewpoints. I have not advocated any particular view on any of the alternative plans. I have commented at various times on how I viewed the arguments. I have not called anyone any names ( although I have characterized their arguments harshly) with the exception of calling someone an idiot after they characterized me as a dipshit and that last long rant. As I said before, I was the only who responded when someone politely asked what everyone valued in a middle school.

I've found this thread quite informative as to how my neighbors must think.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Trolling and then calling people out for not responding rationally is really, really rich.

I was only trolling in argumentation style, not actual content. That people can't respond rationally says something about them.

Which posts were yours?

My posts started saying my youngest kids were in eighth grade and I explicitly wanted to see friction between liberals with different viewpoints. I have not advocated any particular view on any of the alternative plans. I have commented at various times on how I viewed the arguments. I have not called anyone any names ( although I have characterized their arguments harshly) with the exception of calling someone an idiot after they characterized me as a dipshit and that last long rant. As I said before, I was the only who responded when someone politely asked what everyone valued in a middle school.

I've found this thread quite informative as to how my neighbors must think.

Calling you a dipshit might be the most accurate post on this thread.

[Anonymous]

To the self-proclaimed troll: I've read every page of this thread but largely stopped posting 20-30 pages ago (back during the somewhat productive discussion) because it became apparent tempers were being lost and trolls were being fed. Turns out, you can get people worked up about issues they care deeply about that, to boot, involve their children's futures, by deliberately being provocative. What a surprise. Any lesson you think you're teaching is probably lost, since all you did was add your stridency, lack of nuance, and condescension to the vast online echo chamber that has too much of all that already.

[Anonymous]

That's interesting. My biggest problem with posters is their complete lack of empathy for the interests of parents who disagree with the posters.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:To the self-proclaimed troll: I've read every page of this thread but largely stopped posting 20-30 pages ago (back during the somewhat productive discussion) because it became apparent tempers were being lost and trolls were being fed. Turns out, you can get people worked up about issues they care deeply about that, to boot, involve their children's futures, by deliberately being provocative. What a surprise. Any lesson you think you're teaching is probably lost, since all you did was add your stridency, lack of nuance, and condescension to the vast online echo chamber that has too much of all that already.

Why are you being so dramatic? Are you actually outraged that a candy#ss troll outed himself? Get yourself together.