Too sickened by coronavirus to continue

[Aerides]

The admins should change the name of the site from "Early Retirement dot org" to "All Covid chat all the time dot org".

Sorry you feel that way. The mods created a sub-forum to "contain" the covid discussions, and to allow members to decide if they wanted to go in there or not. Sure, other "new" topics are fewer and further between these days, but I don't think the mods can force other discussion.

Covid is what most people wish to discuss, as it unfortunately impacts almost every impact of everyone's daily life, retirees, planners, and dreamers alike. Health, travel, finances - always integral ER topics.

So NOT allowing it would probably turn away 75% of our members vs. the few who would rather see none of it here.

 

[athena53]

We're all doing what we have to do to keep sane right now with so much fear and uncertainty compounded by varying degrees of isolation. The discussions on this Board are generally more reasoned and less hysterical than what I see elsewhere so I follow some, but I don't watch the news and ignore a lot of the Bad COVID-19 math on FB and elsewhere. If some people find that they feel better staying off ER-org for awhile, so be it.

I hope that some happy day (soon) the posts in the COVID-19 Containment area dwindle to nothing!

 

[Alan]

Looks like Alan has answered the question above! I just confirmed that it works. I ignored the whole forum and all of the posts disappeared. I then unignored the forum and they returned. This was on a W7 laptop in Chrome. Thanks

Thanks for checking that it works as it should. As an Admin/Moderator it doesn't work for me, I'm compelled to see everything...

 

[Dawg52]

I skip over the threads of Covid often. I have some on ignore. I'll try ignoring the entirety for awhile.
Good day mdlerth...

Think I will try that too. If the virus doesn't kill me first..... the topic(not just here) is going to drive me insane. Or maybe I'm already insane...insane...insane...insane....

 

[MRG]

Thanks for your contributions.
Come back soon!

+1

Exactly what I came to say. I always enjoyed your posts.

 

[Bigdawg]

I'm with the OP on this one.

I have enjoyed the different view points on SS, mortgages, car loans, etc... The "blow the dough" comments were awesome. I respected so many of you on how you became FI. The passion and drive and chances some of you took. Now all I see is a bunch of cowering scared folks afraid to open your curtains. Seriously, are all of you elderly with compomised immune systems? At 54 and no cormorbities I will go out right now to a movie theater, restaurant or other public place w/out a mask and not be worried in the least. I have not built up my immune system all these years, worked hard, served my country in combat mutiple times just to sit in my house afraid of the next germ, bug, virus, etc... that may come along. There are risks we face every day. I took normal precautions daily long before COVID-19. I eat well, go to the doctor, take care of my teeth, clean my house, stay away from those who are sick, etc... I will continue to do that and will not so easily give up my rights. Good luck to you all. I'm sure I will not be missed on these boards. Oh well.

 

[Aerides]

Now all I see is a bunch of cowering scared folks afraid to open your curtains. Seriously, are all of you elderly with compomised immune systems? At 54 and no cormorbities I will go out right now to a movie theater, restaurant or other public place w/out a mask and not be worried in the least.

I'm younger than you with no co-morbidities. Not cowering or scared, but not going to a movie either. Not for me, for um... everyone else? I don't want to be a carrier or a spreader. I'd like to visit my parents again. My inlaws. My younger, healthier, sister-in-law with lupus. My friend who has a daughter undergoing leukemia treatments.

Enjoying my life includes enjoying the people in it, more than the shops I can go to.

And wear a mask for others, not yourself - if that message hasn't reached you yet I don't know...

 

[Markola]

It’s only smart and healthy to regulate one’s digital consumption. I ditched Facebook cold turkey 3 years ago when I realized that it made me feel worse every time I was on it. I’d like to never look at LinkedIn again with all its forced happiness about work. Alas, I’m a working stiff for a bit longer and need to pinch my nose and go there occasionally. I enjoy ER Forum, thanks to the mods, so I’ll stick around here. To each their own though, for sure.

 

[Markola]

I'm with the OP on this one.



I have enjoyed the different view points on SS, mortgages, car loans, etc... The "blow the dough" comments were awesome. I respected so many of you on how you became FI. The passion and drive and chances some of you took. Now all I see is a bunch of cowering scared folks afraid to open your curtains. Seriously, are all of you elderly with compomised immune systems? At 54 and no cormorbities I will go out right now to a movie theater, restaurant or other public place w/out a mask and not be worried in the least. I have not built up my immune system all these years, worked hard, served my country in combat mutiple times just to sit in my house afraid of the next germ, bug, virus, etc... that may come along. There are risks we face every day. I took normal precautions daily long before COVID-19. I eat well, go to the doctor, take care of my teeth, clean my house, stay away from those who are sick, etc... I will continue to do that and will not so easily give up my rights. Good luck to you all. I'm sure I will not be missed on these boards. Oh well.

You seem to have it all figured out for yourself and your “rights” but you have completely missed the half of the equation about how any of us could easily be an asymptomatic spreader who gets other vulnerable people sick. What about others’ rights to not be infected by you? One might also call it having manners.

 

[SmallCityDave]

I've been a member of this forum for 3+ years, and had followed it for two or three years prior. It presented lots of (mostly) pleasant discussions about a variety of topics related to preparing for and enjoying retirement.

Unfortunately, 99% of threads now are about the coronavirus. Overplaying it, underplaying it, fearmongering, dismissal, speculations, inconclusive data... I can't take any more of it.

As far as I know, I haven't yet contracted the disease. But it doesn't matter. I may not be sick from it, but I'm sick of it. I no longer care about it. I don't want to talk about it, hear about it, read about it or think about it.

Oh, for the days when the controversy was about when to take SS, optimizing one's AA, Medicare Advantage vs Medigap, the 4% rule or, of course, the wisdom or foolishness of annuities.

I was saddened when one of the members whose perspectives I highly valued departed the forum a year or two ago. Danmar said there didn't seem to be anything new here any more. I'm now where he is (other than he's got 100 times as much $$ and is about to enjoy summer in the cool Canadian climate).

It's the same every day. The admins should change the name of the site from "Early Retirement dot org" to "All Covid chat all the time dot org".

It's too bad. I've learned a lot here, shared some personal stories, and received a few thanks. I've also probably been put on "Ignore" a fair number of times, but that's okay; I bear no grudges. Reasonable people can disagree vehemently and still be decent people.

Anyway, I'm gonna sign off for a while. I'll probably check in again in a month or so. If I don't, it's because the discussions haven't changed or maybe the virus took me out. Either way I won't have to hear about it. Au revoir.

A lot of good points, thanks for your contribution to this site.

 

[Amethyst]

Sometimes, a person just gets weary of the topic du jour. Reminds me of when the forum seemed to be about all gluten, all the time...I got so tired of being told how eating a slice of wheat bread was going to destroy my organs and turn me into a zombie. And how gluten, not overeating/overcomputersitting, is why people are fatter now. And how "they" (the Unnamed Ones) told us to eat one thing, and now "they" tell us something else.

 

[ER Eddie]

Mdlerth, I've enjoyed your contributions to the forum and do hope you'll come back. The entire media (not just this forum) is coronavirus talk 24/7. It'll pass. Come on back in a few months, and things should be back to semi-normal.

I don't read 99% of the CV threads. I have enough information from the regular media (too much, really). I come here to relax and talk about other things, so I just ignore most of the virus talk. It doesn't help me to hear scores of conflicting perspectives; that just clutters my mind and gives me tension over things I have no control over, so I don't see the point.

Anyhow, take a break if it's annoying you. I get it.

 

[Gumby]

I would note that in the first twelve pages of my local Sunday paper today, every article but one had a connection to COVID-19. It is everywhere, not just here. I understand the feeling; if I were not an administrator, I would put that forum on ignore. So take a break and come back when the dust settles.

 

[copyright1997reloaded]

Mdlerth, I hope you don't stay away too long.

Of all the on-line forums that I've followed over the years, ER dot org has been the most enjoyable and educational for me. I too have found myself "irritated" lately with the tone of posting in the CV threads, and in fact have commented in a few of them about that tone (and privately to the mods). OTOH, I too have likely contributed to that tone.

I think it is the nature of the beast, that something like this brings out our fears and heightens our responses. That instinctual thing can help us, but it also hurts us. Like a moth drawn to a flame, I look at these posts while at the same time missing more normal times. I miss discussions about places to live and places to visit. (Even the thread on NM came close to being closed down. Even on this very thread, just a small number of posts before this people started arguing.

So to all of you - not just Mdlerth, while I might disagree with what you are saying, I do appreciate your participation in these forums, and I appreciate the so many things I've learned over the years. (While this includes some financial kinds of things, it is the other areas where the impact has been the best/most important.)

 

[Dtail]

Mdlerth, I hope you don't stay away too long.

Of all the on-line forums that I've followed over the years, ER dot org has been the most enjoyable and educational for me. I too have found myself "irritated" lately with the tone of posting in the CV threads, and in fact have commented in a few of them about that tone (and privately to the mods). OTOH, I too have likely contributed to that tone.

I think it is the nature of the beast, that something like this brings out our fears and heightens our responses. That instinctual thing can help us, but it also hurts us. Like a moth drawn to a flame, I look at these posts while at the same time missing more normal times. I miss discussions about places to live and places to visit. (Even the thread on NM came close to being closed down. Even on this very thread, just a small number of posts before this people started arguing.

So to all of you - not just Mdlerth, while I might disagree with what you are saying, I do appreciate your participation in these forums, and I appreciate the so many things I've learned over the years. (While this includes some financial kinds of things, it is the other areas where the impact has been the best/most important.)

+1
You and I have disagreed on many Covid posts, but in the end that is okay with me and I do appreciate other points of view.
I have been guilty of snarky comments disguised as humor and have stopped those particular comments.

This forum has been great overall and I discovered it just as I was freaking out over not being able to find another job, but it allowed me to discover I could early retire at 57.

I will continue to post here and it helps fill some extra time and I enjoy most of the overall topics.

 

[eytonxav]

Seems like Covid derangement syndrome is setting in. Whether you stay or go, I hope everyone can smile and get some enjoyment about being alive.

 

[Ronstar]

At first I was disappointed by the number of Covid threads/posts here. And upset by watching constant Covid on tv news. But then I started watching less tv and reading less Covid posts on this forum. I'm now at a comfortable level of Covid news intake.

We can all throttle the content and amount of information that we take in. We just need to take in what we are comfortable with.

 

[Fermion]

^

I must have missed the sticky that required members to read every thread

 

[MuirWannabe]

Enjoy your break Mdlerth. I understand your sentiments.
Do come back.

 

[target2019]

I ignored the forum as mentioned above. The landscape appears much different, in a positive way.

If you've subscribed to specific threads, these still appear in your subscribed area, so easy to access if you want.

The problem OP mentions arise from a growing amount of noise (repetition, arguing, etc.) in the containment area. The signal is difficult to find.

Carry on, it's all good.

 

[REWahoo]

I ignored the forum as mentioned above. The landscape appears much different, in a positive way.

Amazing what technology can do to improve your outlook on life, isn't it!

 

[Ian S]

You seem to have it all figured out for yourself and your “rights” but you have completely missed the half of the equation about how any of us could easily be an asymptomatic spreader who gets other vulnerable people sick. What about others’ rights to not be infected by you? One might also call it having manners.

+1 My thoughts too. Folks whining about all the COVID stuff can easily opt not to see any and if there aren't enough interesting topics left then maybe try posting some of your own. COVID combines aspects of finance, health, the future, and interpersonal/familial relationships, all important topics that have always been explored on this forum. And frankly, for many contemplating early retirement and/or financial independence, COVID is a huge elephant in the room that one can't really ignore now and for the foreseeable future.

 

[ivinsfan]

I ignored the forum as mentioned above. The landscape appears much different, in a positive way.

If you've subscribed to specific threads, these still appear in your subscribed area, so easy to access if you want.

The problem OP mentions arise from a growing amount of noise (repetition, arguing, etc.) in the containment area. The signal is difficult to find.

Carry on, it's all good.

So do you just check into the COVID forum once a day to catchup and then go back to ignore? Kind of regulate...? I might do this as I have several posters I like to keep up with and value the grocery and supply threads..

Cause this thread in actually on the COVID forum

 

[ivinsfan]

+1 My thoughts too. Folks whining about all the COVID stuff can easily opt not to see any and if there aren't enough interesting topics left then maybe try posting some of your own. COVID combines aspects of finance, health, the future, and interpersonal/familial relationships, all important topics that have always been explored on this forum. And frankly, for many contemplating early retirement and/or financial independence, COVID is a huge elephant in the room that one can't really ignore now and for the foreseeable future.

Here's the problem, people saying they are stressed out over the predominance of COVID threads here aren't "whining" they are saying how it affects them personally and now to you they are whiners.

 

[mystang52]

I'm at a point where I severely limit TV news regarding COVID. And, here at ER-org I likewise read very few threads on the topic. I understand OP's "burnout" but for me I still like to check in and read other threads not on this subject.