Censorship and SB..how far are we going to take this???

[Kim]

The current balance is about right in my view.

Something I think that you need to get over is that "your view" isn't the be all and end all here. Others have views too - and quite a few who have had them on this board a good bit longer than you have been around, AND given a lot to the board. The specific incident that was mentioned earlier was a travesty. A member asked if something was OK and was publicly told by a Moderator that it was. An Advisor then contradicted that in a PM and told the poster that if he ever posted something like that again he would be permanently banned. That's a little more serious than a cultural difference or a bad hair day IMO. FWIW there is supposed to be consistency in moderation here. Andy and I know that, and also know some of the effort that has been made to get it as well. Of course there will be mistakes made in any endeavor, but that is absolutely no excuse not to try. If ANY Mod allows their own personal views and beliefs to get in the way of fair and equal judgement then I absolutely think they should step down - because they obviously can't do the job. It's not something everyone can do by a very long way, but that's absolutely no excuse to screw it up. People invest their time, their love, their energy into this site - not just the Mods....EVERYBODY. Every person who takes the time and thought to post, help other people, make connections and friends, provide information etc etc.....
They deserve to be treated fairly, and within reason be given what they want. Otherwise it should be made really clear that they aren't being listened to, it will never change, and they have to just accept it as it is or leave. On an individual basis that's exactly what some people are told. I have been - and threatened too. In public though the standard line is still that the views of the members are important and are taken into consideration. So we're left with that question...... if that's the case what happens next?

You're perfectly entitled to your view - but that's all it is. It's clear in this thread that most of the posters would either like the changes being asked for, or see no reason to deny them to those who want them.

Let's see if anyone is actually listening.

So far we've had over 5000 views, 300 posts, from around 60 people. It's fairly obvious that this isn't a non-issue. It's also fairly obvious what most people think.

 

[BabyDuck]

I don't think many people would dispute you're very trying.

while a mild one, this ^ *is* a personal attack.

ok, some people on this board (or anywhere else) may not want to read harry potter books because of witchcraft. i think that's stupid since reading about something doesn't make it real, but that's *my* opinion - they are also entitled to theirs. they are perfectly within their rights to not read them, not go see the movies, ask me not to read them in their living room, but *not* to not let me read them in *my* living room.

what we have here is similar, except we're asking the owner of the house if we can read a book he disapproves of *in the guest room*.

whatever is decided is within his rights as owner. that isn't in dispute. and i'll still come visit in the living room even if i can't get comfortable in the guest room.

 

[Kim]

ok, some people on this board (or anywhere else) may not want to read harry potter books because of witchcraft.

[slightly off-topic]
LOL....What do you expect from Muggles?
[/slightly off-topic]

 

[tonka97]

My preference is unfettered posting, and judicious use of the "add member to ignore list".

Ignoring the obnoxious 5% of posters results in a valuable, diverse collection of viewpoints without the crap.

I find it unconscionable for moderators/owner to CHANGE words and statements of a member's post.

Simply DELETE the perceived offensive post or thread.

Example?

My thread titled "Cancelled ScubaBoard Subscription" was changed by administration to "Tonka97's Whine", much to the chortling encouragement of a verbose contributor to this current thread.

 

[Ana]

while a mild one, this ^ *is* a personal attack.

ok, some people on this board (or anywhere else) may not want to read harry potter books because of witchcraft. i think that's stupid since reading about something doesn't make it real, but that's *my* opinion - they are also entitled to theirs. they are perfectly within their rights to not read them, not go see the movies, ask me not to read them in their living room, but *not* to not let me read them in *my* living room.

what we have here is similar, except we're asking the owner of the house if we can read a book he disapproves of *in the guest room*.

whatever is decided is within his rights as owner. that isn't in dispute. and i'll still come visit in the living room even if i can't get comfortable in the guest room.

I have similar views to this post above with one exception.

I'm not sure about

except we're asking the owner of the house if we can read a book he disapproves of *in the guest room*.

I think they are asking us because they are considering the posibility of a change, otherwise why bother asking?
Just like it happens in other situations/places people in "charge" may be extremely open minded but depend on users/members/customers with opposite philosophies.

I guess the "owners of the room" are finding out how divided we are. With a portion of us pretty tired of being treated like kids, ready to assume the consequences of freedom; and another portion holding on to strict rules because freedom invites anarchy.
Of course there is also a third portion. The ones that will take the board either way because they don't have strong opinions one way or the other, I personaly dislike them the most, but they belong too.

No matter what ends up happening I do feel gratitude to the "room owners" and hope they are getting some profit out of this because I couldn't handle the agravation of dealing with all the members here,

 

[BTravlin]

ok, some people on this board (or anywhere else) may not want to read harry potter books because of witchcraft. i think that's stupid since reading about something doesn't make it real, but that's *my* opinion - they are also entitled to theirs. they are perfectly within their rights to not read them, not go see the movies, ask me not to read them in their living room, but *not* to not let me read them in *my* living room.

what we have here is similar, except we're asking the owner of the house if we can read a book he disapproves of *in the guest room*.

whatever is decided is within his rights as owner. that isn't in dispute. and i'll still come visit in the living room even if i can't get comfortable in the guest room.

Nice analogy which corresponds with my view of the situation.

 

[jepuskar]

Did you bother to read the ToS? It is clearly laid out in there.



How many construction workers work in offices anyway? Your attempt to absurdify shows you either didn't bother to read the ToS or chose to pretend you didn't in an absurd attempt to absurdify them.

What is this ToS you speak of?

 

[24940]

Terms Of Submission?

I had post censored in this thread. It was an honest observation that had a single word censored. I was told not to be insulting, but the post was very general in nature and not directed at anyone in particular. It was also very accurate.

I'm not posting to whine, but I will say that this case of censorship seems to be representative of what people are complaining about. Me? I could barely care less about that or any other post I've had censored. The day I start getting jacked up over posting on SB is the day I find another sand box to play in.

I do find it rather odd that the filter is applied to PM. Inconsistent? Oh yeah.

 

[jepuskar]

Tired Of Sarcasm?

 

[BTravlin]

Of course there is also a third portion. The ones that will take the board either way because they don't have strong opinions one way or the other, I personaly dislike them the most, but they belong too.

No matter what ends up happening I do feel gratitude to the "room owners" and hope they are getting some profit out of this because I couldn't handle the agravation of dealing with all the members here,

I must be one of those you dislike the most because I don't have real strong feelings either way. I'm here mainly for the info on scuba and everything else is a bonus, yes a big one, but a bonus none the less. As I've said before, I'll keep coming back as long as the info is good and the discussions are civil and interesting.

I also appreciate what the owners, contributors and advertisers have made possible with Scuba Board and wouldn't want to try to keep the wide range of SB users happy.

I think there is an obvious desire for an area where the rules are somewhat looser and I would have no problem with that. It's also apparent that there is a need for a consistent application of whatever rules are in place. Maybe we need a Mod seminar to go over the rules, what ever they turn out to be, to make sure everyone understands them with an emphasis on consistent application of the rules. Then it's up to the Senior Mod to monitor the Mods.

Happy posting!