When you log in, you're taken to the page with the four little icons on it and it says how many messages you have in your inbox near the bottom (I think this is the "My Account" page or something like it...). On that page, it says how many messages you have in your inbox, total (read or unread). When you click on "Discussions" and go into the forums, you can see at the top of the page where it says if you have new messages, and it will only tell you if you have new messages. Is this what you are talking about? If this is what you are talking about, it's normal. Otherwise, might be a bug.
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I don't do small talk.