Forum "Moderation"

Thanks, 13 is my lucky number!

 The problem these days is that few people are willing to step back and laugh at themselves.Some people would rather take what should be a funny post,as a personal attack.

  I have posted things about myself that has made me look a bit ridiculous.Billy too..The difference is that if someone wants to write something about me,I can laugh it off either knowing its not true,or laugh it off knowing it is true.Big deal.

  As for the interspecies communicator,who knows...I do not rule anything out.I certainly didn't create this world,and do not make the rules..I do know a funny subject to parody though.I also do believe there are people who are more naturally in tune with animals than others.I try and have learned a lot ,especially since having had a W/D in the house.

  I just think when a person tells you intricate details of a dogs former life,that is funny,real or not...

Anne, I agree with you 100%.  Billy can be a bit irreverent, maybe even a little over the top, but I have absolutely never seen him be deliberately cruel to anyone. Being more than just a little warped myself (a fact that I can usually mange to keep under wraps) I usually find him pretty funny.  And as we are all (or at least most of us) reasonably intelligent adults, I think we can all see the difference between deliberate cruely and off-beat humor.  Having said that, I would really like to see Ratsicles thread about Ogre get reopened.  While some people were attacking her, a lot of people were coming up with some pretty good ideas.  And I would love to hear more about her animal communicator, since I do not dismiss that at all.
 
Joyce

The problem these days is that few people are willing to step back and laugh at themselves.Some people would rather take what should be a funny post,as a personal attack.

 
For me, it really isn't about a sense of humor or having the ability to laugh at oneself or others.  Its kind of a time and place thing..
 
No matter what your opinon or suggestion in the "Ogre" thread" might have been, the seriousness, desperation, and frightening degree to OP and her pets, deserved to remain on/or near topic out of respect to them. 
 
I strongly disagree it should have ended with the mod's TO.  Afterall, it is the dog's well-being we serve.  What value is there in stilfling the dialogue?

I've dismissed animal communicators. But I've dismissed other things such as five element theory as being mumbo jumbo until I saw the effects on my dogs. [8|]

and act like adults...no more tattling to mods...no more getting so offended at the drop of a hat...You don't like something someone says?? Ignore it!!! It's really that simple...They aren't calling you on the phone or in your face...ignore them..block their posts if you don't like what they say...close the window..look at the next post....walk away from the computer if all else fails...Problem is more often than not people are too nosey to ignore someone...They actually want to see what they are saying....We are grown ups not kindergartners....no one needs to be told on and lose recess...perhaps some need more naps and cookies though

[sm=bravo.gif]

For me, it really isn't about a sense of humor or having the ability to laugh at oneself or others.  Its kind of a time and place thing..

 
Exactly. That's my issue. I may not show it here- ever- but I also have a pretty offbeat sense of humor. In any group of people I usually have everyone in stitches. One of the things that  drew DH and I to each other is that we were both the funniest people the other person knew- and we happened to have a similar sense of humor, which is saying something, considering we're weird.
 
I can certainly see the humor in Billy's posts. I get it. Until recently, I thought Billy was pretty awesome- until he was pretty unnecessarily rude to me in a few posts. Not in a humorous way, just in a mean way.
 
I'm not some huge stick in the mud with no sense of humor. However, there is a time and place for it. There's being funny, and then there's being inconsiderate and obnoxious. When someone is posting a VERY serious thread, with a MAJOR problem with their dog, that isn't the time to come in with your razor wit and make comments that, in light of the seriousness of the thread, can be seen as cruel and baiting. It's okay to be funny and have fun- but derailing someone's very serious thread and turning it into almost a full page of unrelated banter is not funny- it's rude.
 

Having said that, I would really like to see Ratsicles thread about Ogre get reopened.  While some people were attacking her, a lot of people were coming up with some pretty good ideas.

 
Definitely. Unfortunately, the moderator of the section refused to respond to my PM's about the situation. She sent me a brief message stating that she forwarded the issue to the admin, and that I could "take it up with them." I will be pleasantly surprised if one of the admins actually contacts me about the issue. For now I guess I'm out of luck.

 
And I would love to hear more about her animal communicator, since I do not dismiss that at all.

 
This forum, while there are some people who are open minded to the idea of animal communicators, is largely dismissive of the idea. Alot of my religious beliefs are actually centered around intuitive communication with nature and animals, and since I have a bit of a difficult time having that so blatantly mocked, I pretty much don't bring it up here. I understand that the idea of it is not only very difficult for most people, but there are SO many misconceptions about what is meant by animal communication that it's really just not worth getting into. It is a HUGE part of my life, and there *was* a really nice, informative thread on it a while back- I made what I think are some pretty informative posts on the subject: [linkhttp://forum.dog.com/asp/tm.asp?m=293352&mpage=1&key=animal%2Ccommunicators񇩹]http://forum.dog.com/asp/tm.asp?m=293352&mpage=1&key=animal%2Ccommunicators񇩹[/link]
 
If you're interested in the subject, I think that thread is a good place to start.
 
The communicator that posted in the Ogre thread? She's a very close friend of mine and has been for several years. She moderates my rat forum, and the fact that we are both very interested in animal communication is what started our friendship. I actually mentored her in the beginning, and she's gone on to start actually doing consultations for people. That's not a path I can see myself taking, for personal reasons, but I'm pretty proud of her. She's amazing.
 
 

I got the word Pecker red inked out and edited by the mod in the behaviour section as a "profanity" [8|]

Ratsicles--I really, really hope that your thread is reopened, as obviously this is a serious subject. 

If this board is here to inform dog owners and help people with their dog issues, how on earth is this going to be accomplished by NOT allowed people to discuss their dog's problems?  If the mod of the behavior board is feeling uncomfortable about having such a thread in their section, then maybe the thread should be moved elsewhere.  Otherwise, we've pretty much defeated the purpose of a dog discussion board, IMHO.  I find the futures and lives of a fellow member's dogs to be a bit more important than theoretical alpha rolling/not alpha rolling/dominance threads, but that's just me.....

ORIGINAL: glenmar

I know that this won't be a popular request, but I do wish you guys would keep in mind that a real human being is the one in the hot seat being roasted.  Perhaps we could all temper our comments with just a tiny bit of kindness?  Been in that seat and it honestly ain't all that comfy.

With all due respect Glenda, I didn't see anything that was unkind or even harsh.  Critical?  Sure, but I these issues are extremely important to bring to light--especially with a board like behavior, where a thread can literally be the difference between someone "getting rid of" or "putting down" a dog and the dog and owner getting real help.  In addition, I would think that someone accepting the position of a moderator would expect that people are going to discuss his or her moderating styles.  While I agree that insults and name calling is childish and uncalled for, I really haven't seen that happening here.

Let's not forget that Ratsicales and posters like her are also real human beings who are facing issues 18937483729 times more serious than someone being unhappy with a moderating style.

content deleted.  Personal attack
 

ORIGINAL: MhadDog

 The problem these days is that few people are willing to step back and laugh at themselves.Some people would rather take what should be a funny post,as a personal attack.

 
I think you are wrong.  I think most on this forum are good natured, have a sense of humor, and can recognize the joke part within posts.  A problem arises when the humor is meant for a “few people” who would ‘get it#%92 or ‘get you#%92 but then applied to those outside of the “few people”.   If someone is offended by the humor and that offense is sincerely expressed, then mea culpa is in order.  Its as simple as that.

Critical?  Sure, but I these issues are extremely important to bring to light--especially with a board like behavior, where a thread can literally be the difference between someone "getting rid of" or "putting down" a dog and the dog and owner getting real help.  In addition, I would think that someone accepting the position of a moderator would expect that people are going to discuss his or her moderating styles.  While I agree that insults and name calling is childish and uncalled for, I really haven't seen that happening here.

 
Good point. Maybe the Behavior section, which is generally quite animated in its discussions, needs more than one moderator to help balance the decision-making. Another question I have, but have been too afraid to ask, is why the most animated section on this forum is moderated by a brand-new moderator? Someone who is also a somewhat recent member, too. True enough, maybe moderators read the archives to see what's been customary for a discussion and what hasn't been.  Still? If the Behavior section is the one with the most issues (however you define that), why have the newest hire handle that? How fair is that to the moderator and the posters?

Rat, Personal Champ is typically pretty good about following up on stuff....but sometimes it takes a bit of time.  Remember, this forum is NOT the only job she has with dog.com and as with all of us, she does get to have a little bit of a life OUTSIDE the forum.  It might be more effective to address your concerns directly TO PC.
 
Lani, I suspect that you are still torked because, after numerous complaints about the way you worded your "get a real life" thread, I closed it pending PC's take on the thread.  To that, I can only suggest that you take your own advice offered in said thread.  While the idea had a lot of merit, the way you went about presenting said idea had a LARGE number of folks up in arms.  PC wasn't around at the time, so I did what I could do to prevent an eruption or implosion PENDING her decision.  Good gosh, the thread was only closed for a few hours, it was reopened and the discussion continued.
 
Again, I will use the thread that Sooner started on Abady and the dogfood project as an example.  I am not claiming to "see the future", however, based on the history of THIS forum, Abady is a hot button that often leads to absolute chaos and name calling.  My post THANKED Sooner for sharing the information and asked folks to please remember that beating one another over the head with our own opinions was not likely to change anyone ELSES opinion.  I further said to discuss the subject all folks liked, but to do so nicely.  I considered this a gentle reminder not to go down the name calling, rock throwing road.  This based on the history of the forum and subject (being able to remember the past).
 
As adults and responsible human beings we should be able to see such a comment as nothing more than a nudge to not be nasty.  If by posting that I prevented someone from expressing themselves in a way that was cruel, oh well.  The ONLY natural conversational flow I was trying to impact was the one that went over the rocks and became white water.

ORIGINAL: glenmar



Lani, I suspect that you are still torked because, after numerous complaints about the way you worded your "get a real life" thread, I closed it pending PC's take on the thread. 

Well I saw ONE complaint after a few positive posts. Then POOF! the thread was closed.