I've been participating on political discussion BBS's since around the early 90's, before the "Internet" connected us all, as it were. Somehow that long and winding road led me to FR, and from lurking here at first (for a few months) I kinda knew it would be a tough contentious crowd, that I'd have to really be on top of my posts, and that I'd be called on any BS, however minor they may be. I stuck it out too, making a mistake here, a mistake there ... and got completely roasted for some of 'em !! /chuckle
But once ya get the gist of it, FReeper's for the most part are a good bunch of people ... True Americans all of us :)
Or you could just keep BSing authoratively like me and ignore the naysayers.