you'll never believe it

but the same damn thing has happened to me elsewhere again

a thanks as an aside to tptb, didn't think some of the language perceived lately was conducive to civilized discussion

 

Would these be the latest episodes that have been going on over the last few days, because something crazy happened last night on this forum?

 

as part reference but I was involved in my own dramas tbh, yeah I think we had a reality wobble

 

The walls and pillars of the city came crashing down last night and I must have just been watching from the side lines, although I was dragged in a little. Shame as it was a good debating chamber for such a long time, well six months for me. I guess it maybe for the best as there seemed to be some people deliberately stiring the pot for their own amusement, so it was always going to come to a head.

 

I hope we can get over this and get past it, it was this kind of thing that broke the uk forum before and drove everyone elsewhere and it took us a lot of time and effort to get it up and running again

I don't know what happened to dapablo 'elsewhere' but worth reminding ourselves that this kind of thing is *usually* rare here but closing/deleting threads and silencing of valued regular members happens all the time 'elsewhere'. What makes this place different and what attracts many of us to the uk forum here rather than other forums is that we function as an inclusive and close-knit bottom-up community. Part of the reason we are so successful as a community is that we self-regulate, and that involves us openly discussing what happens here. If you take away our ability to openly discuss these things amongst ourselves you take away the very thing that makes this place different, the reason we are so successful as a community.

At the same time I appreciate all of Skip's time and effort that he puts into this site, it's a difficult and thankless task and I understand how it can be frustrating at times. We are indebted to him for keeping this place going, and it's his right to take this away whenever he wants to. I just hope we can move past this and not throw the baby out with the bathwater.

As for RMcD and all his other pseudonyms, he's really not worth causing a fuss over - he was on borrowed time for a long time. You can't post that kind of abuse and expect to keep getting away with it. Occasionally funny yes, but overall he didn't want to be part of the community and seemed more interested in spreading his childish nastiness. A shame because when he did decide to contribute maturely he could be intelligent and funny, but the vast majority of his posts were far from that, and he deserved to get banned.

Please CrucifiedDreams and phoenix_indigo and all the other valued and trusted regular members here who were upset by what happened, try to move past this. Nowhere is perfect, but this place is worth protecting because when it works it's great.

 

Well said mate. Not too sure but I think the young ladies might of been involved in their own seperate debate, oh well hopefully they'll stay in touch here. It was my slightly amusing greet to there appearance which nobbled me I'm afraid, still they got a good introduction.

 

I think there's been something in the air as of late. Odd things are happening. People are arguing, the weather has taken a turn and I've actually managed to con a company into giving me a job interview.

 

Well it was nice to have some people support my point of view. If I'm being bullied I do try and stand tall, always mannered mind you won't get abuse from me.

 

Yeah I was thinking that last night and today when I noticed some of the goings on - glad I left fairly early . Oh and good luck with the interview - need some luck myself.

 

Yes sorry a bit untoward of me. Congrats on the interview hope it works well for you.

 

OK, I'm back, and to be honest I'm still a little confused as to what's gone on. I've spoken to Skip and I'm going to speak to some of the people involved and I'm going to try to calm the stiuation and get us back to the peaceful, chilled little community we've always been when we've been at our best. Now Ronnie has always walked a tightrope as far as the guidelines are concerned. I've always given him a lot of leeway in the UK Forum and I've always stretched the rules so that they better reflect the unique community that we have here. However if Ronnie has been banned by another mod for something he's done outside the UK Forum, firstly there's nothing I can do to protect him there and secondly, it should not be an issue that affects the UK Forum or undermines its stability. Personally, I've never had a problem with people questioning my decisions. Where possible, I've always tried to promote open and democratic decision making on this forum. However, Ronnie's banning is an external issue and other mods work in different ways. I can say, however, that I'm back now and that I will be working as always to restore the peace peacefully. I can also say that Ronnie's ban was only temporary, that he will be back within a week and that all this is a bit of a teacup tempest....

 

Cheers for the good luck guys, just got back. I didn't fuck up.

Too badly.

I think.




Good luck to you too Matthew, you can have some of mine that was left over

 

Anyway going back to Dappy's opening post. I had a look at what you were referring to elsewhere and I think the worst thing about it was the fact that your complaints were repeatedly closed. Wherever one stands on the issue of causing offence, it is a valid question to raise and you deserve a chance to air your grievances. It's very frustrating when genuine and well meaning questions from regular posters get silenced like that. I think we can all learn something about how not to do it from the way moderation operates over there...

 

I missed something? Whatever happened, I agree it should stay in the past. However, On coming on today, I have sensed a tense atmosphere. Perhaps the rules are just being reinforced or perhaps things are just returning to normal. Either way, I do believe that this forum deserves protection. It is one of the best. Personally

 

I also had a look, made a comment, now banned for a week.....
Don't you just love free speech

ps. Who nicked my sig??

 

There are a few over here who need to take that lesson in...

 

Thanks for shareing you time with that Jon.

It is extremely exasperating to have an honest and fair request for consideration summarily dismissed without due care and diligence shown.

I'm just so very aware that if I was young and or female the reaction would be completely different, and I find the sexism distressing also.

I'd also like to raise another issue, did you notice that the arguers supporting the head honcho's right to abuse were all male. A not too uncommon form of pack behaviour i propose, the alpha males will attack the lonely stranger whilst the older males and females keep out of the way or cheer from the sidelines. It does strengthen the group but will also eventually isolate it as everyone sees the behaviour displayed.

Interesting dynamics for an anthropologist maybe, know anyone anybody ?
.

 

EXCUSE ME.....I'm an alpha male (so my other half tells me!!!) & I didn't attack the lonely stranger, I supported him. Honest.

 

I think I'm missing something here too. I was at the side-lines but to what I'm still not sure about.

 

it was never as much about Ronnie as the fact that we were never supposed to mention him.

and what about Paul? it was obvious none of us could say "boo" about Paul after what transpired over Ronnie. the posts about Ronnie wasn't malicious or mean, just was asking like what did he do to get himself into trouble. obviously everyone knew it occurred outside this forum.

but then anyone who asked or said they missed him or anything were deleted and put on lockdown.

i love you guys. i think Sal's great as a mod, and person. but if things get to a point where you are afraid to say "boo" or be banned then that is no longer a cool environment.

the whole situation last night was out of order and i'll never look at this site the same way again i don't think. which is a shame. but what occurred was hypocrisy in it's purest form. question the government, question everything, but don't question "us". and you better not talk about anything relating to it or you'll be deleted. that is what i saw last night, and it makes me sick.