I've learned that message boards that permit free expression are extraordinarily RARE

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atpollard

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GREAT MOMENT IN HISTORY: The Pilgrims land in the New World..:)
"Okay people, first things first, let's start clearing land for a golf course, bowling alley and theme park"
The secret to "civilization" is to create an intersection with a "Mall" ... from there, Gated Communities will organically grow around it in concentric bands where NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard) will drive away all uncivilized behavior. Thus "Suburban Sprawl" is the real secret to WORLD PEACE. (Nobody is permitted to fight wars in Gated Communities ... the HOA forbids it!) ;)
 

atpollard

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Yes that's been my experience too in 20 years of doing the rounds of the boards.
I think most mods see adverts like this one and apply because they're perfectly suited..:)-

View attachment 28879
I've been a moderator on a secular Forum and declined an offer to moderate on another Christian site. The job is not unlike being Mall Security ... almost everything about the job 'stinks' and the only thing worse is having no 'Mall Security'.
Let's list some of the high points:
  • who doesn't want to have to deal with all of the petty arguments? (I don't, but moderators have to.)
  • who wants to deal with the floods of spambots? (I don't, but moderators have to.)
  • who wants to explain the rules to new people that want to verbally attack others? (I don't, but moderators have to.)
  • who wants to review the complaints about what some other moderator has done? (I don't, but moderators have to.)
  • who wants to spend days discussing the appropriate action for dealing with a disruptive member? (I don't, but moderators have to.)
  • who wants to do all of this because you love this Forum and want to protect it from people that would drive everyone away if left unchecked ... get paid nothing ... and be rewarded by calls that you are a "jack booted thug" or lampooned in memes like the "advertisement" in the quoted post? (I don't, but the moderators here do.)
Moderators have nothing but RESPECT from me. They do unpleasant things for a largely unappreciative audience ... for the love of the Forum and to support each other. :Thumbsup:
 

atpollard

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ive been banned from every single other Christian forum; for pretty innocuous (imo) stuff, too; the Bible isnt Holy, the Bible isnt Word, Jesus isnt "returning," etc

BURN THE HERETIC!!!!

(just kidding) :)

People generally have a right to say foolish things ... they should just say them politely if they want to avoid getting banned. 'Personal Attacks' and 'making the debate with the decision of a moderator the hill one is prepared to die on' are more typical of what gets one banned (unless the site has specific rules about belief to be a member like "One must accept the Nicene Creed" and you don't accept the belief required for membership) ... but I do not hold it against Catholics for not admitting Baptists into a forum that is "for Catholics only".
 
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Mr E

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I've been a moderator on a secular Forum and declined an offer to moderate on another Christian site. The job is not unlike being Mall Security ... almost everything about the job 'stinks' and the only thing worse is having no 'Mall Security'.
Let's list some of the high points:
  • who doesn't want to have to deal with all of the petty arguments? (I don't, but moderators have to.)
  • who wants to deal with the floods of spambots? (I don't, but moderators have to.)
  • who wants to explain the rules to new people that want to verbally attack others? (I don't, but moderators have to.)
  • who wants to review the complaints about what some other moderator has done? (I don't, but moderators have to.)
  • who wants to spend days discussing the appropriate action for dealing with a disruptive member? (I don't, but moderators have to.)
  • who wants to do all of this because you love this Forum and want to protect it from people that would drive everyone away if left unchecked ... get paid nothing ... and be rewarded by calls that you are a "jack booted thug" or lampooned in memes like the "advertisement" in the quoted post? (I don't, but the moderators here do.)
Moderators have nothing but RESPECT from me. They do unpleasant things for a largely unappreciative audience ... for the love of the Forum and to support each other. :Thumbsup:

What’s not to love about a job like that? The same kinds of people volunteer to coach youth basketball and have angry parents who at one moment yell and swear at referees who make bad calls and then complain to you about how little game time their little Johnny is getting.

Yet, your moderator platitudes aside, there are bad referees out there.

No one would do the job merely for the love of the game (or the forum). You have to have a real love for the players.
 
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Mr E

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BURN THE HERETIC!!!!

(just kidding) :)

People generally have a right to say foolish things ... they should just say them politely if they want to avoid getting banned. 'Personal Attacks' and 'making the debate with the decision of a moderator the hill one is prepared to die on' are more typical of what gets one banned (unless the site has specific rules about belief to be a member like "One must accept the Nicene Creed" and you don't accept the belief required for membership) ... but I do not hold it against Catholics for not admitting Baptists into a forum that is "for Catholics only".

Also known as Bible Clubs.
 

atpollard

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Yet, your moderator platitudes aside, there are bad referees out there.
... feel free to volunteer to show them the RIGHT way to be a moderator. :)

[I was unwilling to invest the emotional energy and I have too strong of personal opinions. I usually agree with the warnings that I get that my response was at a minimum "unkind" and at worst "crossed a line". - sarcasm is not always my friend. ;) ]
 
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Mr E

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... feel free to volunteer to show them the RIGHT way to be a moderator. :)

[I was unwilling to invest the emotional energy and I have too strong of personal opinions. I usually agree with the warnings that I get that my response was at a minimum "unkind" and at worst "crossed a line". - sarcasm is not always my friend. ;) ]

Sometimes light-hearted humor including tongue-in-cheek sarcastic cheekiness isn’t well received. Welcome to the Christian version of political correctness and intolerance for any perspectives that don’t align with whatever orthodoxy is in play.

I once set up at my own expense an entire forum and gifted it to someone and my only expectation (rule) was kindness. That no one would be rude or insulting to those (particularly) that they disagreed with. I was ultimately banned. :tearsofjoy:
 
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atpollard

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I once set up at my own expense an entire forum and gifted it to someone and my only expectation (rule) was kindness. That no one would be rude or insulting to those (particularly) that they disagreed with. I was ultimately banned. :tearsofjoy:
Ahhh ... the famous "no good deed goes unpunished". :cool:
 
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BreadOfLife

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That is probably appropriate for CARM, which has a specific stated purpose and theology. It would be equally appropriate to ban me if I went to Catholic discussion forums to "defend Protestant beliefs" ... which in reality would probably look a lot more like either "attacking Catholicism" or "proselytizing for Particular Baptism" (neither of which would be appropriate for a Catholic discussion Forum).
It’s completely inappropriate and cowardly to ban ANY poster for a theological argument. I could understand banning somebody for an inappropriate post – that is to say, a post that is abusive or profane,

However – theological differences is what these forums are ALL about.
I would condemn a Protestant being banned on a Catholic forum for defending his beliefs.
 
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Heart2Soul

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I've been a moderator on a secular Forum and declined an offer to moderate on another Christian site. The job is not unlike being Mall Security ... almost everything about the job 'stinks' and the only thing worse is having no 'Mall Security'.
Let's list some of the high points:
  • who doesn't want to have to deal with all of the petty arguments? (I don't, but moderators have to.)
  • who wants to deal with the floods of spambots? (I don't, but moderators have to.)
  • who wants to explain the rules to new people that want to verbally attack others? (I don't, but moderators have to.)
  • who wants to review the complaints about what some other moderator has done? (I don't, but moderators have to.)
  • who wants to spend days discussing the appropriate action for dealing with a disruptive member? (I don't, but moderators have to.)
  • who wants to do all of this because you love this Forum and want to protect it from people that would drive everyone away if left unchecked ... get paid nothing ... and be rewarded by calls that you are a "jack booted thug" or lampooned in memes like the "advertisement" in the quoted post? (I don't, but the moderators here do.)
Moderators have nothing but RESPECT from me. They do unpleasant things for a largely unappreciative audience ... for the love of the Forum and to support each other. :Thumbsup:

I've been a moderator on a secular Forum and declined an offer to moderate on another Christian site. The job is not unlike being Mall Security ... almost everything about the job 'stinks' and the only thing worse is having no 'Mall Security'.
Let's list some of the high points:
  • who doesn't want to have to deal with all of the petty arguments? (I don't, but moderators have to.)
  • who wants to deal with the floods of spambots? (I don't, but moderators have to.)
  • who wants to explain the rules to new people that want to verbally attack others? (I don't, but moderators have to.)
  • who wants to review the complaints about what some other moderator has done? (I don't, but moderators have to.)
  • who wants to spend days discussing the appropriate action for dealing with a disruptive member? (I don't, but moderators have to.)
  • who wants to do all of this because you love this Forum and want to protect it from people that would drive everyone away if left unchecked ... get paid nothing ... and be rewarded by calls that you are a "jack booted thug" or lampooned in memes like the "advertisement" in the quoted post? (I don't, but the moderators here do.)
Moderators have nothing but RESPECT from me. They do unpleasant things for a largely unappreciative audience ... for the love of the Forum and to support each other. :Thumbsup:
Ahhh, thank you for your support and understanding! Cnine:
 
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Patrick1966

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I just wanted to revisit this thread to say that I continue to believe that the moderators here do an excellent job. I think 90% of it is just letting people express their views, a practice that moderators here apparently support. :Thumbsup:
 

Rita

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I've been a moderator on a secular Forum and declined an offer to moderate on another Christian site. The job is not unlike being Mall Security ... almost everything about the job 'stinks' and the only thing worse is having no 'Mall Security'.
Let's list some of the high points:
  • who doesn't want to have to deal with all of the petty arguments? (I don't, but moderators have to.)
  • who wants to deal with the floods of spambots? (I don't, but moderators have to.)
  • who wants to explain the rules to new people that want to verbally attack others? (I don't, but moderators have to.)
  • who wants to review the complaints about what some other moderator has done? (I don't, but moderators have to.)
  • who wants to spend days discussing the appropriate action for dealing with a disruptive member? (I don't, but moderators have to.)
  • who wants to do all of this because you love this Forum and want to protect it from people that would drive everyone away if left unchecked ... get paid nothing ... and be rewarded by calls that you are a "jack booted thug" or lampooned in memes like the "advertisement" in the quoted post? (I don't, but the moderators here do.)
Moderators have nothing but RESPECT from me. They do unpleasant things for a largely unappreciative audience ... for the love of the Forum and to support each other. :Thumbsup:
Thank you …….I am feeling discouraged today and hadn’t seen your post before.
 

Patrick1966

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Thank you …….I am feeling discouraged today and hadn’t seen your post before.

Maybe you're being salted (tested).

Frankly, life is oftentimes discouraging. I was thinking last night about how I wish I could go back in time to share a day with all of my loved ones that have passed. I miss them and it saddens me.
 
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Rita

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Maybe you're being salted (tested).

Frankly, life is oftentimes discouraging. I was thinking last night about how I wish I could go back in time to share a day with all of my loved ones that have passed. I miss them and it saddens me.
So sorry , yes I know that feeling well xx
Definitely ‘ in the classroom with the Lord ‘ ….
I love being a moderator here but it comes with a price , you lose being able to just be a member here and often the decisions that are made in that role get in the way of friendships you once had.
 

Patrick1966

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So sorry , yes I know that feeling well xx
Definitely ‘ in the classroom with the Lord ‘ ….
I love being a moderator here but it comes with a price , you lose being able to just be a member here and often the decisions that are made in that role get in the way of friendships you once had.

I've often thought that moderators should have a separate account from their user account so that they can moderate posts without others knowing the identity of the moderator. In your case you could be "Miss Manners". :)

P.S. Do we have the ability to write to you privately.
 

Rita

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I've often thought that moderators should have a separate account from their user account so that they can moderate posts without others knowing the identity of the moderator. In your case you could be "Miss Manners". :)

P.S. Do we have the ability to write to you privately.
Lol- I can think of many names I could give myself !!
 
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Jay Ross

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When is moderation needed the most? When members try to limit the insights of other members in their threads and it blows up into an open fight in that thread where point scoring is the usual means of rebuttal.
 
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ButterflyJones

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In my view, it's cowardly to restrict speech short and I'm not talking about threats of violence, pornography, or instructions on how to build a pipe bomb. I'm talking about expressing views that others dislike or that may actually be offensive. I've been participating in message boards for a wide array of topics from football, dogs, politics, religion, etc., and the two segments most quick to BAN speech are the political left and the religious right. Many sites list rules and one of the rules is a "catch-all" rule called "trolling", and when one expresses a view with which they disagree they claim "trolling" and then ban the supposed offender.

To me, a good moderator engenders discussion but, in my experience, most of them annihilate discussion. I suspect that some or "many" of them gain a sense of power by restricting and banning the speech of others. The result, of course, is that they drive away good posters and good discussion while they remain the big fish in their little pond.

By the way, this isn't a knock on any moderators here. I haven't encountered anything here that I would describe as censorship. Of course, this is a privately owned forum and management is obviously free to allow or disallow pretty much whatever they want, as long as it's lawful, of course. I'm just speaking in general terms about the vast majority of forums that I have visited.

I was just banned from a "Christian" forum because I very politely, and respectfully, expressed my disbelief in the Catholic teachings and beliefs regarding the Rosary. I relied on scripture and asked proponents of the Rosary to do the same. I didn't attack anyone. I wasn't impolite. I often prefaced my posts with "I believe...".

I had to take my elderly mother to her doctor. Upon arriving home I went to my thread about the Rosary and, to my disbelief, I was banned and the reason given was that I was a "troll". Never had a moderator ever contacted me about anything that I had ever posted there. There was never a need. And then, from out of the blue (so to speak), I was banned. My impression is that one of the senior moderators there is a Catholic and he could not tolerate my scripturally-backed views. Again, this wasn't a Catholic forum but a CHRISTIAN forum. To me, that is both sad (for him) and amazing to me. I cannot fathom the thought of banning a fellow believer (or anyone else) for simply expressing a view that I don't share. That's just incredible to me.

Ok. I got that off my chest. Thanks for reading. :)
Bye. And may you find a forum you judge not cowardly.
There are rules in the Christian faith too.

There's a gate in Heaven and a vetting process.

Whining against rules imposed by a private site open to the public that is permitted access only if they agree to terms of use defined before registration is cowardly.

Again, goodbye and good luck.
 

Patrick1966

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Whining against rules imposed by a private site...
You are bearing false witness against me. Not only have I never complained about rules or moderation, I have been extremely complimentary of this community's ownership and its moderators.

I feel you seething with hatred toward me. Why?