Dex, were you wearing your mod hat when you posted this? My response will differ depending on your attire.
Chapeau on: Please read the thread before making pronouncements regarding posts and member actions. The thread had veered away from the Tuba/catsix issue at this point. The post you quoted was about business and technical aspects of the board’s running. Moderation without reading is no moderation at all.
Bareheaded: Read the fucking thread before you post. And take a tranquilizer. To turn your question on its head, “…but why read when you can continue to flog the long-dead horse?” Flying out of left field like something from The Philadelphia Experiment pegs you as a freaking loon. Reading is fundemental.
I have, go me ! Please do me the favour of reading my response.
No, don’t say that. I know you’re just hearing the shouting, cursing and stomping of feet but most people don’t hate this message board. Sure there are some people who are probably just stirring for the sake of it, but it’s pretty clear there’s an undercurrent of sensible posters who agree. (Note to the shouters, if you’d be less nasty about it all you’d probably get more support).
Myself, I don’t really care. I have my opinion but it clearly didn’t stop me re-upping so it’s irrelevant. But what will stop me coming back is when we start losing people who make this place what it is. Sure we can (probably) live without some of the shouters but they’ll take other people with them. Tell people to take a hike is the worst thing you can do IMHO.
Having said that both sides are at the point of being far too entrenched for any sort of solution to be found. I’d take the time to actually read the thread and look at the what people are saying and see if we can’t all do better in the future.
Now, to samclem (less measured 'cos that first response to **XJETGIRLX ** pissed me off, that was really uncalled for.)
So you’ll be publishing the subscription numbers and the number of people who did and didn’t re-up this year? Excellent.
It also seems you think the reader has ‘plans’ for the site, do those rely on the community that you’re doing you’re best to piss off. Or will they just steamroller those plans over us? Or are you just plucking stuff out the air?
Honesty? I’d rather just see communication, don’t wave ‘plans’ and ‘things’ and ‘goodies’ in front of us without clarifying then. I’d be happier if they were never mentioned.
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Good! I am pleased that my previous post was not misunderstood as any kind of personal attack in your direction. I mention this because – I know you’ll find this really hard to believe – occasionally misunderstandings do break out around here, and people seem to reach the ‘daggers at dawn’ stage PDQ. And congratulations to you for being one of the all-too-few people who do things the right way around… first build your experience in the real world, and then graft on some useful academic depth in areas that interest you. Wish I’d done the same!
Garf, your provocative thread title has initiated a stimulus/response cycle among several posters and staff. Not what you had mind, I would wager, but it happened.
Another safe bet: nothing more than insults, insinuations, and non sequitur humor attempts are all this thread is likely to gather now. Best to let it sink and wait for new concerns on which to comment in the future, if that is to be one’s role in life. With attitudes like those displayed by those on all twenty seven sides here, that probably won’t be too terribly long.
Person: Greetings! Your messages of helping blind ducks in Africa has touched me. I’d like to make a donation to your charity!
Representative: Oh, thank you, sir! Will that be cash or cheque?
Person: Cheque, I think; here you go.
Representative: I’m sorry sir, there must be some mistake. This is for $250.
Person: Yes?
Representative: We don’t accept donations smaller than $100,000.
Person: You’re not accepting my money?
Representative: No. We like to think big.
Person: But that’s $250! It could buy guide dogs for dozens of ducks!
Representative: I’m sorry sir, but we just don’t accept tiny amounts like that.
Person: But I’ve told all my friends! I’ve spread word about the fine work your charity does! Between us all, we’ve probably got quite a bit of money!
Representative: If it’s less than $100,000, I don’t care, sir.
Person: Fine. Well, in that case, I’d like to sign up to help the blind ducks in person. Maybe I can make a difference directly.
Representative: I’m sorry sir, we don’t accept volunteer help.
Person: I have a degree in anatidae opthalmology , and i’ve spent 20 years helping blind ducks in my own town. My father was a blind duck…and one day he flew right into a plane’s engine! I swore on that day I would not rest until the plight of blind ducks was addressed.
Representative: Wow, you do sound like an expert! And you do sound committed… Nevertheless, sorry. We don’t accept help.
Person: Well, where do you get help from? Surely you must have teams of volunteers…
Representative: Oh no, sir. Just me and Bob. We take it in turns; one of us stays here and accepts donations, while the other helps the ducks. Every few months, we swap.
Person:…that really doesn’t sound like you’re helping the ducks much.
Representative: WHY DO YOU HATE THE DUCKS!!!
Damn! Didn’t realise I was being predictable. I’m afraid i’m going to add to that now by posting insults.
I’d just like to echo what people are saying about Dex’s last post. To not read, and in fact to brag about not reading a thread, as if that makes you look like the wise master who can predict exactly what everyone will say, and then proceeding to use the broad brush of all broad brushes in declaring every poster in this thread as being unreasonable, whining, vengeful bastards is the height of arrogance and apathetic condescension. If you planned to show yourself as being weary of this whole affair, you succeeded beyond your wildest expectations. Now, you just seem as assholish as the posters you claim inhabit the entire non-pro-Tuba side.
Just as a curious by-stander, I’m wondering what steps a person would take if they felt their comments/complaints were not reasonably addressed by administrators here? This seems like such a small and petty thing and yet both administrators seem to be making it worse instead of better. If someone wanted to write a letter and actually get a semi-polite and/or reasoned response, who would they send it to?
I emailed Ed Zotti, the head guy here, on Thursday night and asked him to look into the situation. He has not emailed me back and he hasn’t posted on the issue that I can see, although he did post on the boards yesterday and Saturday.
You don’t want “clarification”. Come on, don’t be disingenous.
If there was to be a “clarification” post by TubaDiva, you know exactly how it would read. Something like, “You’re an asshole, and no I would never ban you just because you’re an asshole. Asshole.”
And so what if you got such a “clarification”? What the fuck difference would it make? What you really want is an apology.
Personally, I can’t understand why people are so up in arms over the action of the administrators or moderators. Who cares? Some administrator insulted someone? Yawn. An administrator acted unprofessionally? Seriously, who really cares? Your feelings were hurt?
Fact is, you’re not going to be banned just because you’re an idiot. I’ve never seen anyone get banned unless they’ve repeatedly broken board rules.
That said, if the only thing you bother to post about is how much the moderation and administration of the board sucks, why bother?
You want to make the board better? Eh, I don’t think so. If you did, you’d take a different tone. You wouldn’t shout that the administrators aren’t fit to be administrators. You’d ask yourself exactly what you think you’ll accomplish with threads of this nature. Are you going to get TubaDiva kicked out? Nope. Are you providing a service by letting the administration know how dissatisfied the membership is? No, because you just fade into the noise of the standard, “You’re not the boss of me!” anti-authority bullshit that infests all message boards.
More likely you’re just a guy who enjoys a pissing match. Self-righteousness is a drug. You’re not going to “improve the boards” this way. You know it, I know it, the American People know it.
Reading minds is what’s gotten us into this whole mess in the first place. Far too many people trying to read TubaDiva’s, then far too many trying to read everyone else’s. I want a clarification.
What difference would a clarification make? It is from a clarification that we can see whether or not an apology or further action is warranted.
If you enjoy paying money and being treated like crap in return, I promise I could provide you hours of enjoyment for just a small yearly payment of $14.95.
Hey look, we agree. My difference is I don’t think an administrator should be able to threaten someone with banning unless they’ve broken board rules.
This is ridiculous. Neither I nor anyone else who has posted wanting a clarification from TubaDiva ONLY bothers to post about how much the board sucks. It’s not even the only thing I’ve posted about all day.
I’d take a different tone? I did. My first post on the subject in the most recent ATMB thread was pretty reasonable, IMO. The OP of my first pit thread on the issue was pretty reasonable, IMO. The email I sent to Ed was very reasonable, IMO. My tone changed when Dex went all ‘Almighty ruler and protector.’
Look, look, he said, to no one in particular, someone else who hasn’t been paying attention.
well don’t I feel all warm and fuzzy. apparently it has escaped detection that many of the folks presenting objections are charter members who’ve paid to continue posting, many of those who generally have been supportive of the mods, who come from every background, folks who generally don’t even often agree w/each other.
but I’m lumped in w/ ‘don’t let the door hit you in the ass’. and from other quarters, I"m a suck up. go figure.
no threat from me, I’ll continue to post here as long as I find it pleasurable to do so.
