[PSA] Your weekly reminder to be respectful of other cryptocoin communities, particularly Bitcoinhttp://www.reddit.com/r/dogecoin/comments/1xhpj5/psa_your_weekly_reminder_to_be_respectful_of/Bitcoin paved the way for us. There would be no dogecoin community without bitcoin. No fun, no dogesled olympics, no tipping, no charities, none of it.
If you want to know why some (not all) come across as bitter, or elitist, or srs bsns, or even angry sometimes, consider this. For years what they were doing was ridiculed, called illegal, called ridiculous, but they kept going with it anyway, motivated by being part of something they thought was big, something exciting, something special. After working and developing infrastructure for years, and fighting for more mainstream acceptance and finally getting momentum, the tide started to change again, from people thinking of them as a joke to people angry with them, jealous that they didn't get in early, calling it a fad, calling it a bubble, calling everyone involved stupid and lucky at the same time. All just for being involved in something they believed in.
And all the negativity they get has fueled, in some, a bit of an "us vs them" mentality. It's not needed - in many ways it's quite counterproductive to their goals - but it's understandable. It's where we can help, by providing a bit of levity to the cause.
There are plenty of people who support cryptocurrency, whether it be dogecoin or bitcoin or primecoin or whatever. I am one of those people. I believe this is all a fascinating experiment and that we're all in it together. I believe that is the healthiest way to view it, and that wars between the different cryptocurrencies is, to put it bluntly, juvenile. They're all the same with some different parameters, and sometimes with pictures of furry animals on them. There's no need to ever act superior for being part of a different cryptocurrency community. And no, "they did it first" is not a reason, it's just an excuse to justify bad behavior.
Maybe some members have a political or financial ideology that isn't your cup of tea. That's fine. I am personally not particularly political, and sometimes people say or believe things that I think sound a bit on the extreme side. That doesn't mean they don't have a point, that they aren't smart, that ridiculing them accomplishes anything except make us and our whole community look bad. You can have some fascinating discussions with those who have ideals different than yours. Ridiculing those different than you is beneath you. Don't fall for it.
I encourage the community to continue to be accepting. Our message shouldn't be "only people who believe in fun and giving can enjoy dogecoin, no one with different views than me is allowed!" It should be "Hey everyone, cryptocurrency is cool for many reasons. You don't have to care about all the reasons, and you can get out of it whatever you want. But here, play around with some dogecoin and see what all the fuss is about!"
This isn't about anything except being respectful. Bitcoiners as a whole have worked hard to get cryptocurrency where it is, and we benefit from that. Try to understand where they are coming from. Taking two steps backwards, their cause is the same as ours - spreading the awesomeness that is cryptocurrency - just a different spin on it. Let's be supportive.
*thumbsup*