Detroit Lion Fans: Can't We All Just Get Along?

I know writing this is going to open up opportunities for every one to sound off.  And just maybe that's what's needed.

There have been some articles written about the Lions that have generated some rather heated discussions— and that's cool.  Debates about sports have been around for as long as sports have.  And I really have no problem if someone disagrees with me or anything that I have written.

What I do have a problem with is people that go out of their way to internalize their discussions.  I may disagree with you but that doesn't mean I think you are an idiot.  And if I don't agree with your point of view, I'm not against you nor am I an idiot either.

There are writers who hope to turn this into a profession.  They work hard at what they do and if they have information, sources should be provided so that they can be verified.  Anytime I see "unnamed sources," I take the article with a grain of salt. 

But there are a lot of writers, like myself, who are just plain fans who happen to have a skill putting sentences together.  And I have written some articles that generated a lot of debate...and some that have had postings that were just down right nasty.

And I have to ask myself why?  What motivates people to take the time to find fault with every comma, period, and exclamation point?  I do my best to ensure I am grammatically correct.  I do my best to ensure my facts are as accurate as possible.  I take time to make sure that whatever stats I provide ring true.

This is a great forum for open and honest debate.  People can disagree with each other without being insulting.  We can point out discrepancies without calling the writer names.

I guess this is the fault of this day and age.  Because we can hide behind a monitor, we feel we can say things that we would never say to anyone's face.  Because the fear of retribution has been taken away.

We must police ourselves.  We must treat others the way we wish to be treated.  Spirited discussions can occur without degrading into name calling and threats.

My parents used to tell me that if I didn't have something nice to say about somebody, then don't say anything.  I bring that sentiment to the Bleacher Report environment.  If I don't like the article and find the basis of it to be way out of whack, I ignore it. 

But these articles are the ones that get the most reads and high number of posts.  Why?  Because everyone and their brother absolutely relishes the chance to call others out on it.  It's easy to fall to that level.

Show some class folks...act like you've been here before.