***Ok, ya'll. I've been giving a lot of thought to recent angst and turmoil over moderating this forum. Deb's up for it, she's a competent adult, no problem.***
:smile: Thanks
***I should have probably announced it and Deb should have said something before hitting the delete key. Least ways, that's how I view it.***
Agreed, just trying to divert some troll spam until the guidelines for the forum were established. Apologies for any confusion. Rest assured, no one missed anything of significance.
***So, if she's still up for it, I'll set that back the way it was and ya'll know, henceforth, that Deb is the moderator.***
I've had a busy weekend and will accept moderator status when I have composed a welcome page. Could be a few hours or a few days.
If anyone has feedback they'd like me to consider, post it here, complete with an explanation for your preferences.
I would like, over some period of time, to clear out informative threads that were bogged down with spam or useless dialogue. I am not referring to open disagreement or the use of expletives. I'm not a puritan and actually quit tolerant of how people choose to express themselves. I'm referring to back and forth comments about what to do with one's body parts, as one example; that lend nothing to the discussion. I would ask those with user names? permission before doing so.
The forum serves many useful purposes. We have current/ex participants, staff, and pro/anti parents sharing their experiences. We have a few staff that have identified themselves and answered questions. We have anons presenting as staff, some genuine and some trolls. We have survivors of other programs, and pro/anti programs activists. And, the occasional obnoxious troll. Quiet a mix with the potential for useful dialogue.
This is, first and foremost a venue for survivors, their parents/guardians, friends, and supporters. I personally have low tolerance for program-like behavior being directed at surivors. They have had quite enough of that for several lifetimes.
This is not "Reals". Disagreement, even real world ?confrontation?, is fine. I?d prefer everyone to have a user name, as it eliminates the confusion of which anon said what. I will encourage it, but won?t require it, with one exception.
Representatives of HLA are welcome to post- with a user name.
If you forget to login, as a matter of courtesy, I?ll edit your post and put your user name(s) at the bottom of the message.
Anon messages that state or suggest they are a current HLA rep will be deleted. This has only led to confusion in the past.
While this may seem unfair, it actually works to HLAs benefit; as any anon troll can not pose as a representative.
Group chaos theory/therapy can be useful as a means to an end, when all participants are willing. On an internet forum, it is frustrating at best, unless all particpants are in agreement, are known atleast by a user name, and there are no anon posters. Otherwise, in my opinion, it's just chaos, and often very boring, wastes people time, attention, and resource.
I'm certain I haven't contemplated every possible scenario, but that?s my thinking at the moment, which is subject to change. I?ll wait for feedback. I feel that some moderation and a few basic guidelines will make reading this forum easier, and cut down on chaos and confusion.
Deborah
