www.CostaRicaTicas.com

With many recent negative posts or spats on this board and elsewhere about people, experiences, perceptions and moods...I have been thinking alot recently about this...and am making it a personal New Years resolution...

I wonder what the World...and this CRT board...would be like if there was a rule and everyone lived up to it...IF YOU CANT SAY (WRITE) ANYTHING NICE OR POSITIVE, DONT SAY (WRITE) IT. As I have gotten older, I have seen in myself and others the tendency towards "negativism". You know...the "crotchity old man" syndrome. I think sometimes we think we have lived and survived enough of lifes conflicts to become a righteous and knowledgable specialist on everything from women to alcohol, religion to politics. We start believing...and being affected by...anything and everything negative we have heard about a person, place or thing. And this starts showing up in our attitudes...and thereafter our conversations and actions. And over time, I truly believe it affects our health...both mentally and physically. And worst of all, we lose any hope of change and improvement in our lives and world at large.

Many of the original experienced participants of CRT have grown silent and distant. I think in some cases it is being tired of some of the same old content and complaints...or same questions from people who dont want to do their own homework. Others I think have just grown overly critical in reaction to being criticized. Regardless, I hope that we can rebuild a community here that is more positive and reinforcing. And by all means, if someone has an issue or problem with another person...you owe it to go to that person first to pursue resolution or verification. Otherwise, we just become another group of humans who act like gossiping, loose lipped old ladies (Not criticizing old ladies...just the gossipping, loose lipped type).

As I approach a New Year, my personal resolution is going to be to accentuate the positive and eliminate the negative. I will start here on CRT. WHether it is in regards to CRT members, women, governments, or religions...I will going forward try to make every comment a positive one...and leave out the criticisms and negatives that our world constantly bombards us with. There are plenty of negative people out there to take up my slack.

WHen it comes to trip reports etc...if I just post about the positives and where I enjoyed myself...isnt that all one really needs to know? If i DONT mention a place...well, that will just speak for itself. Why do I have to take 5-10 minutes of my short life lambasting some business or person who treated me bad. Just clean the dirt off my shoes and walk away, never to return or give them another thought. And if someone attacks me or doesnt agree with my opinion or experience, why should I have to defend myself? Is my ego that fragile that I have to try and get everyone to like and agree with me? And even though I have aired many criticisms about governments on this board, I am now going to attempt to only post positive things...in hopes that by supporting the positive, it will diminish and change over time the negative actions these politicians have taken. If I cant offer a positive suggestion or solution to a problem, why comment at all?

And more importantly, I'm thinking about how this can affect my personal relationships and love life...and professional life. If my theory is correct, selfishly speaking, it should lead to more love, happiness and profit to think and act this way.

Heres to a more positive and hopeful 2008...both here on CRT...and the world at large....starting with me and my own attitude.

(This is an experiment. Please try to keep any comments "positive" )

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All that a man achieves and all that he fails to achieve is the direct result of his own thoughts...

Tman some very good points that you bring up.The only problem is that there are some people that are negative by nature.Your probably not going to convince them that the petty things they gripe about are no big deal to the rest of the world.If i see a thread i don't like i ignore it.As for my new years resolutiion is to slow down and enjoy the ride a bit more.

DRForm...I understand your point. But again...I am trying to give people the benefit of the doubt...and personally believe that people are not born negative...but tend to grow up influenced that way by a negative environment or upbringing...or reactions to lifes sometimes harsh realities. We humans tend to immitate each other...and sometimes heredity is a bitch. So heres to those of us who can overcome negative traditions or influences. Wheres my champagne glass?

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All that a man achieves and all that he fails to achieve is the direct result of his own thoughts...

Criticism is healthy.Period. It leads to improvement and evolution. To make everything sunshine and roses gets us nowhere. Like a country run by Democrats. The problems come when there are so many blind defenders of this hotel, mp, or bar. They have built up such a bias that they cannot see any other point, resulting in wild defenses of things that are a reasonable concern. There have been concerns posted here recently regarding particular hotels and mp's that the bias defenders, like good old soldiers, immediately wrote off as trolls. Yet I have heard those concerns myself from several members. My wingman, a CR vet with 40 trips in the last 6 years under his belt, has heard the same concerns as well. Anybody dares to post it, they are dismissed, and the problems get worse. Something to think about.

Feliz Nuevo Ano.

All good points . I for one appreciate both views but i believe this board would be meaningless with only posotive content.

Talk about negative....

I still can't get laid in SJ.
Pitiful is as pitiful does.

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Damn if I'm going to repeat this shit again. I need a drink.
I've been drinking vodka every day for 45 years and I have certainly never found it to be habit forming.

Good post Tman-

But I also think it's healthy to have some banter of disagreements, ideas. One thing that can't really be argued is the fact that YMMV.

When discussing chicas so many factors come into play from one guy to the next...


Cujo

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"Pain is the fuel that fans the flames of my pyre. A battle plan is only as good as the general carrying it out on the field. This is my war son, and I have the biggest bombs and the smallest conscience"...

IMHO, it is more of how it is said, instead of what is said. Even if I don't agree with someone, I can state it without attacking the other person. When I choose not to attack, but state my position, my thoughts become much more powerful.

IMJ, calling others names is my ego wanting to make me feel more than, at a time that I feel less than. While there may be some instant gratification internally, in the end I will look less than to to others reading my verbal attack.

If I re-read my post, and it is something that I would not want to have said about me, it is very easy to revise, and choose words that are not personal in nature.

Happy holidays.........

Steve - Santas Bro

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It's not the size of the wand that put the rabbit in the hat, it's the magic in it!!!

Have been gone so long I lost my VIP status. Forgot to renew.

I resolve to renew my VIP for 2008

Okay I don't mind the disagreements but I notice from posting here if there is a different opinion some attack the poster instead of discussing the concerns. Turns into pissing contests which in turn creates that vibe while in CR. It sucks. Instead of acting like true gentlemen... some act like true bitch gringas and true bitch chicas. Sucks but like in every forum this happens.

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gone fishing

I am in agreement with your point of view SB.Ofcourse there is room for joking around once in a while but flaming another member is really childish!

...and it'll be great to have you back.

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You ALWAYS have an option ....... "NEXT" !!!

I stand firmly on both sides of the issue.

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Cigar smoking doesn’t reduce us, it elevates us; It makes us more content to be alone, or it helps us to enjoy our companions. It encourages us to dwell on the simple moments and celebrate the sublime.
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Hung like Einstein and smart as a mule.
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You're not drunk if you can lay on the floor without holding on.

TMan,

Nice sentiment and I agree with your aspiration even though I might not live up to it. I think I posted something a few months ago about how I would be more patient and understanding. Then some dickwad said something that pissed me off and I posted a clever, yet passively aggressive snipe. One thing I do know for sure is that I can attempt to control my own posts, but I will have little or no success in controlling the general tenor of the board.


I have paid close attention to this board for the last couple of years. Initially I tippy toed as to not incur the wrath of the board police. In doing so, I employed the search function a great deal and generally asked intelligent questions. I also saw the members as potential friends, and so I tried not to alienate anyone by insulting them or playing games.

After a couple of trips, I did meet many friends (as well as a couple of dicks) and tried to become a valued member of the board by relating my own experiences. (My true personality as a smart ass could not stay hidden forever, however.)

About a year ago, I noticed posts about how the board had changed, how there was less civility, etc. I attributed it, as does P55, to growing pains and maturation of the board. Perhaps moon phases are involved, as well.

A few months ago, there was cause for me to go deep back into the archives of CRT and read some old posts. I found out that the CRT of old, supposedly kindler and gentler, was being viewed by some veterans with rose colored glasses. Among the posts I read were the same sort of sniping and name calling that we see today. I had to laugh. There was drama, hyperbole, bruised egos run amok, young bucks who absolutely knew anything and everything and would tell you as much. Further, the vets of that era could be as blunt and direct as they are today.

These days, I gain or lose interest in the board roughly proportionate to the amount of time until my next trip. For me, there is absolutely no better source of information on Costa Rica than CRT. There is no better way of making and developing friendships with gentleman in Costa Rica than CRT.

So, while I would like to prune the board of the assholes and poisonous personalities, CRT remains as important to me as it did two years ago when I began lurking here. As long as I continue to travel to Costa Rica, I will be be a part of this site.

Ciaociao

Hello there handsome. Can I be your friend ?!?!?!

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You ALWAYS have an option ....... "NEXT" !!!