As a 50-year customer of Kalmbach, I do not agree to be subject to the insulting truculence of the likes of the hyphenated guy in the undershirt.
Therefore, hail and farewell. (I know, don’t let the door, etc.)
With a copy to Jim Wrinn.
dakotafred: although I’ve often disagreed with you in the past, on this issue, we are 100%.in accord. The hyphenated guy’s response was childish and hardly in accord with a commercial magazine.
Jim,
Come on, why leave? Most of us here have had our disagreements. I’ve been a member since 2003 and have had my share of torpedo hits. But we dust ourselves off and keep on a-posting.
If you wanted to leave, you could have just stopped posting altogether but you felt that you were not treated fairly and so you’re making a departing statement. But leaving won’t help the situation at all. Just hang in there. Sometimes we won’t agree with Jeff or another moderator, but they’re human too and trying to to the best they can.
High Greens [;)]
I understand how he feels. If this becomes just another railfan site while I probably won’t leave, I probably would have less reason to visit.
I will say that I am considering not renewing my Trains subscription. Some recent content of the magazine is mainly what’s making me reconsider if it is worth it, but this isn’t helping. I don’t blame the moderators because I assume they are following instructions of Kalmbach on how they want their forums run.
Jeff
But for me, the rub is simply we don’t have moderators, we have censors.
To moderate means to remain centered, espousing neither one side nor the other, no partisan views.
To moderate a conversation or debate requires the moderator to nudge the conversation back on topic when the participants stray beyond limits.
What has been happening in the last month or two is shameful…a forum member who has a narrow idea of what is “railroadedy” enough and what isn’t hammers the abuse button to have post they don’t like removed, in effect using the moderators as censors.
Granted, this is Kalmbach’s forum, they pay the bills, we play here for free, but one would expect the owner to follow their own policy as written, instead of allowing personal censorship enter into it.
Not knocking Wimberly, he is doing what he is ordered to do…maybe with a little more zeal than most would like, but still following orders.
The hilarity and absurdity of locking then removing a thread because there was confusion and comments about a posters gender is not lost on me…the really funny part is Sam1 was going to allow everyone to keep on wondering, which is exactly what I would have done in the same situation.
Then locking and removing a thread that complained about locking and removing threads, followed by a threat to lock and remove any thread that resembles either of those is kinda like prohibition, all it does is make people want it even more!
I originally subscribed to Trains because I enjoyed reading about contemporary railroading here in the states, and overseas.
I second most of Ed’s points. The old heads on this board may remember me – I stopped participating in discussions a while back for just the sort of reasons Ed mentioned, and have only started back after seeing Juniatha’s interest in some of the issues that interest me.
I’ve also served as a moderator for many, many years. And this is not what I would consider professional, or proper, behavior… especially for someone I haven’t heard from before, and whose distinctive qualifications for moderating a community have not exactly been established compellingly.
Now, if we could get him in to replace Doug Bailey on RyPN, THAT is a place his particular qualities could certainly shine…
It does have to be said that this is a railroad forum, not a netiquette forum. So I’d personally prefer that this thread not turn into an anti-Wimberley complain-a-thon. If I may advise from a mod perspective: keep the criticism constructive, and refrain from putting the sarcasm lever down in the corner.
Not really knocking Wimberly at all, as I said, I am sure he is following orders, and as was pointed out, everyone is human, so we should allow for emotions.
And yes, I remember you, you scored quite a few salient points in the “Mike Sols runs the Milwaukie and was buddies with its president” thread…had both Mike and Dave on the ropes quite a few times in fact!
And I agree, the criticism lever should be up where it belongs.
Moderate, not censor.
As you know, I am a moderator of these forums myself.
I can tell you it is certainly not a rewarding task and requires a good sense of judgement and foremost, a thick skin.
Our host Kalmbach, who offers this service free of charge to us, has a set of rules for the use of these forums and it is the moderator´s job to see that posts follow this policy. Which they not always do.
None of us mods will step in and lock a thread or even remove it without a reason. The respective thread was locked because it deteriorated into name calling, leaving the tracks of being on topic. A lot of forum members filed complaints about it. Locking the thread was a natural consequence.
Dakotafred´s comment is simply unfair and way too personal. Bashing a moderator, who dedicates a sizable amount of his free time to this community service, is not the way to settle an issue.
If you have a bone to pick with one of us, please use a PM! We are just human beings, not beyond making mistakes, and you will find us very responsive.
I will now lock this thread, as there is nothing that could be added.
aaaawwwwwww come on guys.
How many threads has this been now? 4? 5?
How about this for a procedure.
I start posting cat pix and other stuff from lolcats or somesuch? That is what happens on another site I’m on.
We keep conveniently forgetting, as opposed to remembering, that this really is not ‘public’ forum, but is 'privately run, forum…and I, as a user/moderator need to keep reminding you lot…[swg]