Big announcement on the future of Orioles Hangout

[OsFanSinceThe80s]

2 hours ago, makoman said:

This is a different issue btw than whether I think we should talk about such things here. Heck no, no way should politics be discussed on this board, it’s one of the best things about this board and prevents it from being the cesspool that’s the rest of the internet. 

I come here to talk Orioles and baseball. To inject politics into this website would ruin the experience on OH. I care about your opinions on DJ Stewart and can he ever be 4th outfielder type who gets regular at bats. There are a million other places to discuss politics if that is what you're inclined to do. I come here to escape all that.

[drdelaware]

First, thanks to the higher ups who run this site for providing us a venue to talk about the BALTIMORE ORIOLES who I have been a fan of since 1974 when I could remember watching games on TV at age 5.

Baseball coming back for me has to be a diversion not shoving politics down our throats one way or another.  What the players and league don't understand is we need a diversion, not a reminder of how the world is right now.  Do that on your own time.  People are hurting and just want to enjoy themselves and escape this all while locked down basically.

They get to go back to their expensive homes.  If you want to put your money where your mouth is.  Ride with a police officer and see the mess they deal with.  Move to an inner city neighborhood and understand what THEY deal with.

I'll leave it at that.  Thanks to Tony OH, Weams and everyone involved with this site.  I'd prefer baseball only discussions.  I don't post that much but this is the best site to follow the Orioles bar none.  

Edited July 24, 2020 by drdelaware

[Tony-OH]

\

40 minutes ago, survivedc said:

I hope the OH persists and thrives. There is something beautiful about a sports site that is so explicitly apolitical in the midst of societal upheaval that demands everything be political. 

But that is exactly what MLB is trying to change. I wish it was that way. Supporting a group that has killed police officers and who's members specifically have made racist comments against white people is not about equality, but about bringing on a political climate that induces change to our American way of life.

I'm 100% about bringing everyone together and equality. We have zero racist policies or laws in the country. We are the least racist country in the world but yet BLM is spreading a narrative that we are a systemically racist country and that has not be true since the 60s. So many heroes have fought t change this country and now a political movement is using social justice as a means to attack our very way of life and MLB is contributing to that by their support.

[backwardsk]

25 minutes ago, Philip said:

I agree with everything you said, but how many people hate Curt Schilling because of his politics? LotznLotz.

And how many people love player X because his politics are “correct”?

I hate Barry Bonds because he’s a jerk. I don’t know a thing about his politics.And that’s the way it should be.

Bonds is a big 2A guy.  But also a Bernie Bro.   Go figure.  I kid, I kid.

But seriously though, I think Bonds’ reputation is shaped by the guys who covered him and didn’t like him.  You don’t hear bad things said about him from teammates.  I hated him when he played, but in hindsight, wished I was able  to enjoy his greatness.  Though I’m petty enough to be happy he’s ringless.

[ChosenOne21]

Tony, the world needs people like you who want to keep things de-politicized to take a stand and improve their reach, not to back away. If you make OH go away because you don't like their politics, they win. That's what they want. What they don't want is a hit to the wallet. Adjust your cable package and ad-block mlb.com. If doing that means Orioles Hangout is no longer worth maintaining for you, that's your prerogative but I'll miss this place.

[OFFNY]

o

 

Tony, whatever you decide, I want to thank you for taking me in here at the Hangout when I was a homeless refugee from the Baltimore Sun. ) 

o

[interloper]

 

6 minutes ago, Aristotelian said:

No offense, I think you are way off base about what BLM represents. I will not go further except to say that it is not about hating police. Regardless I don't see folding the site as the answer. Hope you reconsider and we can move on. 

Exactly. 

Just another white dude thinking he understands BLM better than the people actually suffering from the systemic racism. Please do explain how you're an expert on black lives and what the movement means Tony. I've seen enough unprovoked police brutality in the last 4 months to make me physically sick. I also have to laugh at people continuing to believe in some ANTIFA bogeyman that Fox news continues to push. Please. We lead the world in school shootings and COVID cases but god forbid we have a couple people throw a brick through a window. 

Wanting to rid the site of politics is in itself political, obviously. It's also just impossible unless you wanna bring out the ban hammer en masse. It's a historic time in our country so the best course is to let things breathe here. We were talking baseball just fine.

Whatever. Do whatever you have to do to. There's certainly more to worry about than the fate of this website. 

#BLM

[Aristotelian]

9 minutes ago, Tony-OH said:

I'm 100% about bringing everyone together and equality. We have zero racist policies or laws in the country. We are the least racist country in the world but yet BLM is spreading a narrative that we are a systemically racist country and that has not be true since the 60s. So many heroes have fought t change this country and now a political movement is using social justice as a means to attack our very way of life and MLB is contributing to that by their support.

BLM supporters would also say that they are 100% about bringing everyone together and equality, exactly as Frobby said. It's a controversial topic, MLB is trying to thread a delicate needle. Maybe they are overstepping but would be unfortunate if you punish the OH over it.

[weams]

8 minutes ago, interloper said:

 

Wanting to rid the site of politics is in itself political, obviously. It's also just impossible unless you wanna bring out the ban hammer en masse. It's a historic time in our country so the best course is to let things breathe here. We were talking baseball just fine.

Whatever. Do whatever you have to do to. There's certainly more to worry about than the fate of this website. 

 

I can guarantee that if Tony does decide to keep the site open it won’t require a ban hammer for me to keep the politics to an absolute minimum. Most folks here are respectful of what this site represents to others. As I always say, there are plenty of places to talk about the things you have detailed in your post. Bringing that discussion here is what is not tolerated no matter what a moderators personal views may be. Not the place. 

[interloper]

3 minutes ago, weams said:

I can guarantee that if Tony does decide to keep the site open it won’t require a ban hammer for me to keep the politics to an absolute minimum. Most folks here are respectful of what this site represents to others. As I always say, there are plenty of places to talk about the things you have detailed in your post. Bringing that discussion here is what is not tolerated no matter what a moderators personal views may be. Not the place. 

I totally get that, but politics were brought up in Tony's post. My point is that today I saw no real political posts in Orioles Talk. At worst, some folks upset at the lack of COVID progress which, it's just data at this point.

So... I think we're fine? The season is here, we're talking baseball. I don't see why Tony's personal issue with the MLB should affect everyone else. But it's his site and his right.

[billhatf]

Rare poster here ... just wanted to say that I have been checking the hangout for orioles and related discussions for many years.  I am very thankful for the hangout.  I sincerely hope that it continues, and continues to be non-political.  

[weams]

6 minutes ago, interloper said:

I totally get that, but politics were brought up in Tony's post. My point is that today I saw no real political posts in Orioles Talk. At worst, some folks upset at the lack of COVID progress which, it's just data at this point.

So... I think we're fine? The season is here, we're talking baseball. I don't see why Tony's personal issue with the MLB should affect everyone else. But it's his site and his right.

This is a one time thing. For Tony to tell you as the site operator. What his dilemma is. His son is a marvelous young man. And this is his site. So he does get to decide. But if he lets us all continue to play in his sandbox there will be no more of this discussed.  

[interloper]

Just now, billhatf said:

Rare poster here ... just wanted to say that I have been checking the hangout for orioles and related discussions for many years.  I am very thankful for the hangout.  I sincerely hope that it continues, and continues to be non-political.  

For the record, I do too. I really don't want to talk politics here at all. But when it does happen the mods do a good job of steering. So I'm not sure what the problem is. 

[Moose Milligan]

My mom (no jokes from you old timers) has a seriously hard time understanding what BLM means.  There's the official organization, run by Marxists and anti-capitalists who seem pretty radical...and then there are the people who support the idea of what BLM means, that a group of people who've had it pretty rough in this country for a long time want to be treated equally.  Not surprisingly, my mother who is a super-right winger, wants to focus on the Marxists and anti-capitalism aspect and assume that those people are the majority of the BLM movement.  Also not surprisingly, people are going to bring their preconceived notions to BLM and see what they want to see and refuse any evidence to the contrary.  People's perceptions are their realities. 

Personally, I don't really care who kneels, who stands, who makes social justice statements and whatever else.  Speaking as a middle aged white guy, I've never experienced any racism so I can't begin to imagine what some go through in this country.  But I recognize that others have different experiences and want to share them and address things that trouble them.  That doesn't bother me and I don't view it as an infringement on my life.

For me, it really comes down to how I treat people on a daily basis, I do my best to assume that anyone I come across in life is doing the best they can that day, no matter who they are.  That said, I'm not going to go to a rally, I'm not going to plant a sign in my front yard or put a sticker on my car.  I don't really feel the need to let people know where I stand on things because....well, I don't think anyone cares.  Sending out a tweet, an Instagram post, a bumper sticker, whatever...it's peeing in the ocean.

What happens in the few minutes before the game doesn't effect my enjoyment of someone like Trey Mancini hitting a home run, obsessing over draft picks and trades and hoping that this franchise can get back to respectability.  Baseball hasn't been ruined for me, just like the NFL wasn't ruined for me when Kaepernick took a knee.  Baseball hasn't had a lot of social/political agendas in the past 30 years which isn't surprising given the increasing demographics of the players and the fans.  

In my rambling here, I can't help but think of Adam Jones.  Admittedly, I haven't kept up with him on social media over the past few months ever since he announced he was going to play in Japan.  Jones was the last black star we had and one of a handful of black stars MLB has had over the past 20 years.  He is fiercely proud of who he is, he can be outspoken and I would imagine that he'd be taking a knee tomorrow night in Boston (where he was the target of racial epithets a few years ago) if he were still on the team.  And I wouldn't be upset with him for it.  I feel like it'd be disingenuous to root for a guy like that but say he crossed a line when he wanted to address injustice.  Would Adam Jones kneeling make him anti-police, anti capitalist?  Not to me.  

Anyway, I sincerely hope it's not the end of the OH.  Like many of the other posters here, this is where I come when I want to get away from everything else.  This board has been run very well over the years and I think it can continue to be a place where politics are left outside and we can talk sports.

 

 

 

 

[interloper]

1 minute ago, weams said:

This is a one time thing. For Tony to tell you as the site operator. What his dilemma is. His son is a marvelous young man. And this is his site. So he does get to decide. But if he lets us all continue to play in his sandbox there will be no more of this discussed.  

Absolutely, and I never said anything about his son, who I'm sure is a good person and good officer, nor would I.