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I've just had a "toxic" epiphany <3

Buttered Butter·11/7/2015, 9:02:46 AM·7 votes·705 views

Earlier tonight, something happened. This ranked business is a little new to me and I'm not used to seeing people get toxic or salty too often, but I have been kinda toxic in the past myself. Tonight, I changed. I don't know what clicked, maybe some would call it a "come to Jesus" moment, but I decided to turn the other cheek so to speak.

Recently I have witnessed a lot of loss in my own life and others around me. A distant example is the guy that wanted to see Star Wars early, because he was going to die before it came out on the big screen. I started thinking, what if that guy is so toxic, because something is going on in his life that makes it hard for him or her to control their candor with others.

I know I'm being a "carebear" here, but I think people that are toxic are just people. Something has caused them to be toxic and it's not just the game. I think maybe it's actually rarely the game. So, when I've been salty to toxic people and made it worse, it's made ME more toxic, because that is ar eal life thing.

When we're kids, we're told that "sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me." But, the truth is, words can last forever. Something we say in this game could affect someone in their real life.... forever. What makes a person "good" or "bad" is how they treat other living things. How "humane" they are. This may be "just a game" but it has REAL people in it with REAL emotions and REAL problems.

So, this is basically an apology to anyone I've ever been salty or toxic to. From now on, I'm going to do my best to be a "good" personality in this game and in life, because it's short ya know what I mean?

Anyway, that's it.

8 Comments

Azteryz11/7/2015, 4:24:43 PM4 votes

wow this has a very beautiful message good for you brother ^__^

RUNAAANS HYDRAA11/7/2015, 4:45:33 PM3 votes

Bravo sir! Braum It is difficult to remember sometimes that the 9 other entities in your matches are living, breathing, FEELING humans, just like you are. When you begin to view other people as mirrors for the purpose of gaining insight into your own shortcomings, you can't help but approach people with more compassion and less judgment. Whenever someone does something, in game or IRL, that bothers me, I mentally stop to ask myself, "What is it about that person/behavior that causing me to suffer so?", and then try to find examples where I myself embody or take part in those habits/behaviors. It totally changes the way you experience life! I'm very proud of your epiphany :) Keep fighting the good fight my man!!!

Archon X11/7/2015, 9:10:31 AM1 votes

yes it is "just a game" but it is also 4 other people dedicating a portion of their life to playing it.

let me use my basketball analogy.

There are two types of fouls in basketball - personal and technical. If a player gets 6 personal fouls, they're out, while just 2 technicals will have the same effect.

Making a tactical error, such as getting caught out, foolishly dueling the enemy laner and getting killed, or really not getting all your skills out in a teamfight, is a personal foul. In a game, you can make about 5 such mistakes and still win, but with 6 then your team will probably lose.

It is certainly inconsiderate and counterproductive to be "toxic" to an ally that has made a couple of personal fouls, because that's just part of the game - it's very physical, and as such these types of fouls will occur by one side or another.

However, a technical foul is a mental mistake, in basketball it's a rather flagrant personal foul or poor sportsmanship. In League, this is something like really having no idea how to build your champion, either to maximize its usefulness and/or to respond to the enemy team composition and performance. There is simply no excuse for it. It can also encompass severe positioning errors, like a splitpush botlane while the enemy team gets Baron. You make two of those mistakes and your team is probably going to lose.

If you are able to remove the technicals from your game, you stand a vastly higher chance of winning. You are no longer leaving to chance whether you will have an incompetent on your team, and are increasingly greatly the margin for error to still win.

What makes a person good or bad is how they perform in objective-based, team games. If they have not done rudimentary research to best know how to contribute to the team, they are wasting 4 other people's time, which is far worse than being a dick.