In the forums you have several things mixed into one arena; strong opinions tied to strong personalities is just one, the other ingredients include Armchair Experts -- the clowns that speak with authority who've might do a couple of charity shows a year, if that. But the love to argue with the next group; Experienced Pros that have been on stage for over a decade or two working within and with the very areas the former is trying to come off as being the superior source on, most of whom couldn't tell you what move a real performer is using, where and when without a cue chart. Then you have the Hobbyist that feels like a kid in a candy store; they aren't certain what flavor they like most and want to dabble with all of it and loathe being told "NO, now make-up your mind."
I've been the catalyst to more arguments and thread lockings throughout the Magic side of the Internet than most anyone because I am impassioned, I've been doing this stuff for over three decades now in the real world and on the creative side, I've won my fair share of accolades. In other words, I've EARNED the right to be a stick-in-the-mud here and there. The irony being that most of what I share that creates these "problems" ultimately becomes a point of view that many wake-up to later and send me thank you as well as apology notes around. That's my pay-off and a trade-off I'm more than willing to accept; so what if I'm seen as a belligerent hot-head by a handful of people who THINK they are important, if I can excite a young mind and help them actually learn about Magic or Mentalism, that's all that matters to me. Besides, I end up winning out over the negative reputation in the long run.
It's been explained to me that one reason I up-set so many is "jealousy" -- I tend to know a wee bit more than the average bear and I freely share it (you ought to see the nasty notes I got so far this week on my latest FREE eBook because what I give away for FREE as a foundation for the novice, several seasoned pros are seeing as "advanced" stuff that I should be charging for.) Such material was given to me by old timers that had gone around the career circuit, so why should I hold back?
If I push your buttons, ask me what's up and maybe we can resolve the issue without creating a problem in a thread that affects everyone else, but understand that this old bear bites back and rarely backs down when poked. So, "sorry" in advance.