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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;kaparthy, post: 43388, member: 57463&quot;]<b>Hey look me over! Lend me an ear!</b></p><p><br /></p><p>Allow me to be the (n+1)th person to welcome you to the hobby.</p><p><br /></p><p>It is true that anonymity online allows people to be rude and I am as guilty of that as anyone.&nbsp; It is not that I am that way in person, but that in person, other modes of expression are going on, way beyond what you can do with&nbsp; <img src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie1" alt=":)" unselectable="on" unselectable="on" /> and&nbsp; <img src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie4" alt=":mad:" unselectable="on" unselectable="on" /> </p><p><br /></p><p>Sometimes the problem is just one of misperception.&nbsp; The comment is neutral or positive but is read negatively.</p><p><br /></p><p>There is also a deeper problem, perhaps.&nbsp; I have suggested that numismatics in particular and collecting in general appeals to people whose socialization skills are weak.&nbsp; So, you have to expect some roughness in communication.</p><p><br /></p><p>In line with that is the aggression that comes from defensiveness.&nbsp; There are a lot of newbies out there who de-newbiefy themselves by picking on the next newbie.&nbsp; Also, ignorance makes us feel uncomfortable and questions about grading and attribution will not come down to &quot;I don&#039;t know.&quot;</p><p><br /></p><p>On the upside, it seems that the longer someone participates in this hobby, the nicer they get.&nbsp; So, you can look forward to that.&nbsp; When I meet someone at a convention for the first time, my first question is, &quot;Have I ever flamed you?&quot;&nbsp;&nbsp; <img src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie8" alt=":D" unselectable="on" unselectable="on" /> </p><p><br /></p><p>As for how welcome newbies are generally, I assure you that the American Numismatic Association craves new members because they are new.&nbsp; New people have new ideas on what is interesting and how to collect it.&nbsp; New people are always welcome at the ANA (<a href="http://www.money.org)" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://www.money.org)" rel="nofollow">www.money.org)</a>.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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