Poec54
Arachnoemperor
- Joined
- Mar 26, 2013
- Messages
- 4,745
It's not condescending or close-minded at all. We're trying to keep tarantulas from being banned (which is a very real possibility), so we can all still enjoy them, which is why we were horrified at the pic of a guy with a Poecilotheria in his mouth. We also do not like their bites being sensationalized, as it creates fear and gets more fools trying dare devil stunts for attention. Had we just not had the same topic a week prior it would have been different, but the same thing week after week gets old. We don't need to continually play up the 'dangerous spider' thing here. People think 'public health concern.' Members should pay some attention when starting a thread, especially with a sensitive topic like this, dwelling on a side of the animals that gets too much negative attention as it is. It fuels the fire; we're trying to put the fires out. I repeatedly asked Bob to 'Please stop' and a number of members agreed with me. There aren't many bites to begin with, and most of those could be eliminated if people stopped handling their spiders, so let's stop fixating on bites; that's not why we have the animals. So before you put down us experienced collector as arrogant snobs, look at the big picture. We're trying to keep the hobby going, without regulations and bans, so guys like you can still own these animals decades down the road. You do not do that with threads like this.People are unnecessarily condescending about this topic and it is sort of understandable if they have seen it rehashed a million times...If these guys do not have the patience to continue to help hobbyists understand possible ramifications of their words, or to stay open minded enough to see the other person's opinion, they should say nothing. I think we should be smart enough to realize that certain topics bring the worst from people and just choose to not talk about it, or talk about it with others in a private setting.