Are you alluding to an “as applied” ethos as opposed to a “process” ethos? If so, I think you may be onto something. In MY profession, process IS the product. It literally does not exist without I-dotting, T-crossing “process”. And I spent nearly 30 years of my life SEEKING to gain entry into this field. My ability to adopt their ethos is just as IMPOSSIBLE as their appreciating mine.
If in the sense of factual information being paramount, I most certainly am a purist. In any collecting sense though, no. This is really very simple, Prez: facts matter. If the individual in question (again who knows better) simply presented facts in his videos I'd have no problem with them or with him, but this simply isn't the case. Still, perhaps it would be best to ask him to clarify his intent.
Hoo boy! High risk here. There is, as far as I know, ONE issue in numismatics in which Mr. @BooksB4Coins here and I are on diametrically opposite sides of the issue. I won't even describe what it is here because a) we will NEVER see eye-to-eye on it, and b) we've EACH read each other's writings on the subject ad nauseam and we have each been unsuccessful at moving the other's opinion one iota on that one particular highly controversial topic. So I stopped bringing it up with him. I avoid it. Discussing it with him serves no purpose, and I respect "Books" so much on what might be LITERALLY every other numismatic topic as far as I am aware, that it is not worth damaging that relationship with that one issue. Yes, I discuss it with others on occasion, as I did with some at Philly last week, but I have decided to NOT bug "Books" with it any more. I like him too much. Full disclosure: I once put "Books" on "ignore" over it, and I decided I was missing out on too much, so I changed my mind about him. Not about that one issue, about HIM. Whether he knows it or not, EVEN that vociferous argument has led to my changing MY opinion of MY responsibility into the future should I choose to collect these highly controversial pieces, and even that has value.
This is why I voted for the tar & feathering. That and the fact I never have seen one and it's on my bucket list. mostly tongue in cheek
Okay. I appreciate the response and that's that. Facts though I contend are points or subject matter mutually agree to (in general). Voiding someone else's perspective entirely akin to creating your own facts in my opinion. I appreciate many points of view when I'm seeking information about a particular topic and yes I would say that I alone determine what those 'facts' actually are all is said and done, whether or not it is agreed with or not. You've tried to explain yourself towards this particular point and I do appreciate it, along with any counterpoints. Determining what facts are and what they aren't seems like some kind of game we all play these days and it's not hard to figure out why that is. I just think information from any source is worth considering and I do so here and accept their information even though I may not like it or disagree with their particular point of view. Accepting it doesn't mean I call it fact though and this is where it gets muddy, that is who determines the facts in the first place? You differ greatly from the one in question here and yet I extract information from both sides considering them valid for what they are or what they represent that they are. So, to me the whole 'purists' thing seemingly equates to 'old school' versus new. I think both views are valid in their own right. I love information so keep throwing your views at me. I imagine it all would shake out eventually and the true 'facts' would show themselves to whomever is interpreting the facts. I like your version of the facts and also some of his views. I guess in the future I need to qualify my questions with something like 'popular facts' versus 'indisputable facts' versus 'facts based on opinion'. It's a shame there seem to be no universal facts when it comes to what is universally accepted as fact. I just want to know the facts and they escape me more and more these days. Appreciate it and keep 'em coming!
I was tempted to go with 'very valuable' but instead voted 'some value' for the simple reason that forums (all forums, not just this one) have a fair share of wasted space. There’s also too much CT bandwidth consumed by treasure hunters looking for Lincoln cent errors, and too many discussions that devolve into bickering — neither of which add value. That said, this site has certainly been of some value to me personally. I’m better at grading, for instance, as a result of time spent here, and I’m more cognizant of counterfeiting issues. I also think spending time here has helped me become less of an accumulator and more of a collector. I no longer keep coins that merely fill a space; every coin I own now has to stand on its own merit or it’s outta here. Whether that’s cause-and-effect or coincidental, I’m not sure. But I have to believe that simply spending time on CT (almost) daily has in turn led me to spend more time contemplating what I want out of this hobby and what’s most important to me as a coin collector.