Ms. Diva
Tom, what would you call this post to me? Hmmmm?
Well, let me try to answer you, Tuba. If I’m the cyberspace village idiot, it really does takes a village Tuba, then you are the SDMB Dame Edna. Fiddlefaddle to you!
“All rising to a great place is by a winding stair.” F.Bacon
Brille
Uh, guys. Not to be the party pooper here but…would you mind taking it to the P…
…
Never mind. Please carry on.
Chaulk this up as another vote for Ed and the SD Staff.
Any minor infractions have been apologized for and (let’s hope) forgiven.
Now let’s move on. . .there’s nothing more to see here.
Hell is Other People.
Oh, please. What a bunch of whining babies who cry when they don’t get their bottle quick enough for their self-gratifying histrionics.
If you don’t like something the admins have done, complain once and then get back to your lives – if you have one. Or else see a shrink about how you have made this enjoyable diversion a way-too-high priority in your life.
I’m here because it’s moderated. I would like the staff to be even more ‘draconian’ than they already are.
If you don’t like the rules or how they’re sometimes imperfectly applied by imperfect volunteers then go to the Usenet unmoderated group and good riddance to you.
Peace.
moriah (yes, I have made a complaint once, and no, it was not resolved to my satisfaction, but I let it go and continued to live my well-adjusted life)
My two bits:
First, I think that this board is well run. By this I mean that the jerk level is pretty low and the entertainment/information level is fairly high. IOW, a pretty good signal to noise ratio.
And if you don’t think that there’s a fair amount of shit that we never see 'cause the mods get to it first, then (as my and Bill Cosby’s mothers both used to say), you’ve got another think coming.
Second, if your tolerance level is so low that the amount or type of moderating that goes on here is enough to make you leave the board, then you are far more sensitive than the chick who couldn’t sleep with the pea under the mattress. Get real for crissakes.
Lastly, those who complain about censorship or wonder what happened to the first amendment or rant about how their rights are being abridged are to stupid to participate in alt.fucking.morons, let alone the Straight Dope.
This is a commercial site folks, and the golden rule applies. It’s their gold, and their rules. They owe you no explanations, and have no obligation even to listen to your complaints.
But the fact is, they do listen, and certainly have and will continue to take into account the comments they get. If you don’t think they do, you’re foolish.
If they don’t do things your way, it doesn’t necessarily mean they’re not listening, it probably just means they didn’t like your idea. Get over it. They don’t (and shouldn’t) have to explain things to you. The times when they do are gravy, and not part of the standard service, so to speak.
Having watched these people do this work for two or three years now gives me the distinct impression that they are much better at it than the folks doing all the bitching and moaning would be. If you don’t like it, feel free to leave a comment in the appropriate place, or move on to somewhere more to your liking. But quit the damn whining!
Ugly
Thanks, Ugly!
(He’s just kissing up because he’s ascared of me.)
Damn right! I’ve seen her arm! And then there’s Vinnie. (shudder) 
Ugly
Ugly and Moriah are dead on target. (Which means I agree, and they said it much better than I did.)
The whole “debate” about the running of this board has descended into whining, pouting and tantrums. Get a freakin’ clue, already. It is a commercial site. Don’t like the rules of the playground? By all means, stomp, yell, and take your bat and ball home.
Go ahead and sell your used SD books and refuse to buy more.
Check out Amazon–SD is on their pick list.
If you don’t like the establishment: leave.
No one is being held hostage. Opinions are allowed and encouraged. No decision will please everyone. Sometimes the answer won’t be “your” answer. So get the hell over it.
But the abuse that’s been heaped on the moderators, and Ed, has been plain stupid and self indulgent. Disagreement is one thing, but the ugliness shown here is quite another. In self righteous defense of poster “rights”, Ed has been imputed to be a drunk and the moderators (en masse) to be capricious, fascist twits. This is hardly a convincing platform for argument.
This is not intended as a slam at those who pursued reasonable discussion about this. But the pettiness and personal vindictiveness that some wrapped around the issue is, yes, tacky at best. Not to mention stupid.
I do appreciate the chance to be heard and give input. But that does not mean my opinion, or anyone else’s, dictates how this board is run. I don’t have the full facts, the responsibility, or the right to all the details about individual presence here. And since we are, yes, guests at this commerical site, adherence to generous rules is utterly reasonable.
Nitpicking moderators because they choose to perform a thankless task is TACKY. They don’t have to justify why the do it. Assuming the mantle and identity of “SD” and “Dopers” and “Teeming Millions” and then reviling the source of that identity is not only tacky, it’s plain arrogant. Don’t like the way it’s run? Then forge a better identity and muster the support to sustain your own presence. Start recruiting sponsors. And get ready to be nitpicked in turn.
OK. Everyone gets their chance and their say. Sometimes the answer is no. Get the hell over it. And strive for a grasp on reality while you’re at it.
How did a great site ever deteriorate into this nonsense?
Veb
Thanks to Nickrz for following up on Ed’s apology above with his own: http://www.straightdope.com/ubb/Forum3/HTML/003555.html
That’s all I ever wanted, and all Dr. Sue ever wanted. AFAIAC, I’m done.
-Melin
'Scuse me. Ed’s apology is on the other thread ("Hey Ed – "), where I also posted the link to the apology; it’s not, obviously, on this thread.
-Melin
[[ Ed has been imputed to be a drunk and the moderators (en masse) to be capricious, fascist twits.]]
And twats, too.
Jill
F.I.T.
I wanna be a drunk, too!
To quote from Dean Martin, “too bad about sober people; when they wake up in the morning, that’s as good as they’re gonna feel all day.”
your humble TubaDiva
Ms. Diva
“All rising to a great place is by a winding stair.” F.Bacon
Brille
John John asked:
It’s a hobby. Lots of people have different hobbies. This is mine. I have other hobbies that also are time-consuming and have no pay. Maybe I’m nuts.
What share? First of all, most of that 10 years was, as I indicated, on Fidonet. There were no profits there – it was a hobby BBS network. And here, well, I doubt anybody’s getting rich off of my work.
Indeed, it is. As at least one other person has recently noted, I prefer moderated message boards to complete anarchy. When I was in Fidonet, as attrition started to take out moderators in areas that I participated, I saw some pretty horrible moderators take over in some cases. I saw some good conferences go to hell. So I began to volunteer to help. Soon I was moderating several conferences. I did that for quite some time, until I saw all of Fidonet going to hell. Then I came here (with a brief stop at the newsgroups along the way). After participating here for a while, the administration asked for volunteers to be moderators. Well, I’d done it for so long, I saw no reason not to volunteer my help. Plus, I expected this to be an easier job than I ever had in Fido. Mostly, I’ve been correct. But the 50% rule still seems to hold.
[[Ms. Diva quote:
I wanna be a drunk, too]]
Watch your mailbox for a package, Jenny. I’m trying to help you out.
Jill
The mod’s do a good job,at least,they haven’t bothered me!
Jillgat
I think we’re talking pint twist cap.
“All rising to a great place is by a winding stair.” F.Bacon
Brille
Dave B.
The way you explained it makes so much damn sense. Of course, hobby, so obvious, but one that I did not consider. I’m sure that is not the case with all Administrators and Moderators. I presume the biased and petty can be found in all endeavors.
You have a healthy, and refreshing, attitude about your role and I would imagine that you do it well. You seem efficient and nonjudgmental Thanks for answering.
“All rising to a great place is by a winding stair.” F.Bacon
Brille
Let me use that uninspired analogy about the restaurant.
Let us assume you’ve been going to this restaurant several times a week for years because you like the food, prior service you received, the owner and the decor. A waiter that used to work in the “take out” area has now been elevated to the dinning room because someone suddenly quit. The new waiter is petty, bumptious, inefficient, ugly, judgmental, ignorant of the menu and gossips with the other patrons instead of doing their job. This waiter gives very bad service, in fact is clueless on what their duties are. You are even handed the check during dessert, while the dirty dinner plates are still on the table. You’ve tried to be patient with this person but they never improve. Do you stop going to the restaurant, or tell the owner to send this lardass back to the “take out” area of Yuck Fou’s Dim Sum Parlor where they belong?
“All rising to a great place is by a winding stair.” F.Bacon
Brille
Well, the few times I’ve had a post edited it was done fairly and the moderator let me know why. I wasn’t called names or anything. Just a “hey, it was out of line” kind of thing. In looking over my post I had to agree. I was out of line. It really wasn’t that big of a deal.
I am getting sick and tiered of all the complaints. It’s their ball game; either play along or go home. Seems to me the ones doing all the complaining are the ones who chronically post over the line. They post KNOWING that they are going to get in trouble. I’m sure they’ve been warned. But they just keep doing it because they feel that they are in the right. You can feel as right as you want but if someone who works on the board tells you to knock it off, than you should knock it off. Seems fairly simple to me.
Best!
Byz