A heartfelt plea...

[cornetgirl]

I was gonna put this in Announcements - but as only mods can post there I thought this would be the next best place...

To all my fellow tMPers,

I'm sure I'm not alone in thinking that over the last year tMP has become a true force to be reckoned with. Where else can a 4th Section player debate the rules of Mornington Crescent with Philip Sparke, or players from the top bands offer advice to comparative newcomers to the brass band movement?

Over the last year, friendships (and even romance!) have bloomed in an atmosphere of mutual respect and encouragement. tMP has made its mark at two of the biggest march contests and even taken on the "Queen Of Mean" herself. Not bad for a little discussion forum is it?

So why are we having the trouble we are with posts that are causing distress and anger? Surely none of us signed up for this!

Recent posts by new members have changed the atmosphere of the forum, caused distress to long-standing, decent members of this forum and tarnised the reputation of tMP. Added to this is the additional strain placed on our wonderful team of unpaid Mods - and I'm sure I odn't speak out of turn when I suggest that it will have caused considerable distress to John Burns - theMusicMan and the reason we are here in the first place.

I therefore implore these "amusing" people to stop making posts of this nature, on behalf of those of us who log on for chat, discussion and the odd bit of gentle Straightmute-baiting :wink: . Please respect the opinions of others - if you do have a controversial opinion please express it gently. Don't upset people who you feel are inferior to yourselves.

We all have to start somewhere - and we can all learn from each other. At the end of the day, we are all people - not classified according to the band we play in.

I apologise if this offends anyone - feel free to edit or remove the post if you think I've overstepped the mark Mods - but I couldn't let this carry on.

I, and many others, back the Mods and John. Let's keep things friendly.

Rach x

 

[HBB]

Well said Rachel, I myself have noticed a change in atmosphere and it's not very nice.

Well said, and I think the mods will be touched.

Ben

 

[Straightmute]

on behalf of those of us who log on for chat, discussion and the odd bit of gentle Straightmute-baiting :wink: .

You're the daddy, Rachel!

Agreed with every word. Well said.

D

 

[cornetgirl]

How can I be the daddy if I'm female?????

Get brain in gear prior to band tonight!!!!!

Only kidding....for now...

Rach x

 

[GJG]

Unfortunatety I don't really understand your complaint.

I myself am a very new member of this forum; So far as I can tell, most of the posts are perfectly reasonable. Of course there are a few instances where someone expresses a view which is in contradiction of someone elses view, (or possibly even in contradiction of the majority view), nevertheless, surely that is the whole point of a forum such as this?

I would fully agree that if opinons are expressed in such a way that they could be considered abusive, or offensive, then that is unacceptable, and certainly the moderators should step in and take appropriate action. Otherwise, I am afraid that one should be prepared to accept that some people may have alternate points of view to one's own.

Best Wishes

Gareth.

 

[super_sop]

well said Rach......

keep up the good work mods and Administrator, your doing a grand job in keeping this site a freindly and fun place to be.

 

[Roger Thorne]

Well said, and I think the mods will be touched.

I speak on behalf of John and the team here, but can I thank you all for your support and the kind comments we have received. Can I also reassure you that we will continue to keep this forum 'alive' and will do everything within our power to ensure it remains a family friendly forum.

Roger
(on behalf of the tMP team)

:wink:

 

[HBB]

Gareth,

Recently there have been several cases of bad postings, in people expressing their own opinions as though they were god, and several people can get offended by a silly posting.

Although, i believe that people should have their own opinions, it is, afterall your own opinion, and although you might like to suggest it, there is no need for you to rub it under everybodys' nose.

Luckily, this has only been happening fairly recently, as the mod team have been doing a great job :tup:

Ben

 

[cornetgirl]

Unfortunatety I don't really understand your complaint.

I myself am a very new member of this forum; So far as I can tell, most of the posts are perfectly reasonable. Of course there are a few instances where someone expresses a view which is in contradiction of someone elses view, (or possibly even in contradiction of the majority view), nevertheless, surely that is the whole point of a forum such as this?

I would fully agree that if opinons are expressed in such a way that they could be considered abusive, or offensive, then that is unacceptable, and certainly the moderators should step in and take appropriate action. Otherwise, I am afraid that one should be prepared to accept that some people may have alternate points of view to one's own.

Best Wishes

Gareth.

Gareth,

You're right in saying that most posts are reasonable - and believe me I ain't afraid to express my opinion!!

I was referring to an isolated number of threads which became not only trivial but derogatory to individuals, some of whom were named openly. Us "oldies" have found these upsetting and hence why I wrote the original post. What saddens me is that the people posting these seem to be from some of the country's top bands.

Anyways - welcome aboard - the Straightmute-baiting bus leaves now for Random Chat! :wink:

Rach x

 

[GJG]

OK, but:

If there is a "bad" posting, why take notice of it? Surely the most effective response to such a posting is to ignore it. People who deliberately post offensive/maliciously contentious statements are usually only doing it in order to provoke a response. To deny them the satisfaction of a response is usually the best way to dissuade them from repeating the exercise...... (hopefully...... !!! )

Of course, I live in an ideal world .................

G.

 

[cornetgirl]

I agree - which is why I rarely respond to them (cos I'm a shrinking violet really!). I applaud your ideals - you are welcome here, friend.

Rach x

 

[yourmothersfatandold]

Aplologies

Rach, i am sorry about previous comments.
I promise it was only a bit of fun and everyone has taken it really seriously.
Have never writtten on a brass band site before and i feel like a big ass.
It is just that banding is such a major part in all our lives.
You have to laugh sometimes.
Sorry again.

 

[ploughboy]

Rach, Bravo, well said.

the good folks on tMP just want a good open debate with eveyone's opinions welcome, There should be no need of abusive or petty comments lets just keep putting our heads together and build our site and our movement!! Who knows, we could become bigger than football (think of the wages :shock: )

Once again, bravi to everyone who works so very hard to keep tMP on such a good freindly path!!

you all deserve :guiness and more :guiness

 

[SBB]

Well said but...


Where is al this??

I have'nt seen anything un less its me who's doing it?????

Hopefully its not???

Tell me where these posts are???

:roll: :wink:

 

[groovy]

SilkBrassBen - if it was you who was posting the kind of offensive stuff that this forum was not set up for, then you would know about it. The mods have been doing their job and any unfriendly threads have been intervened (is that the right word?) with or locked as appropriate. I hope this all ends soon, as it is very unfair on the guys that have worked so hard for this forum. Now I hope we can put this all behind us and move on, and tmp can return to being a happy, smiley, friendly brass band forum that we can all enjoy.

Long live tmp!

 

[Accidental]

Well said Rachel - I agree with every word you've said.
This is a fabulous site and it really leaves a sour taste when I see some of the threads digress into what IMHO seems little better than bullying and picking on individual members.

Gareth, SilkBrassBen et al... have a look at some of the locked topics for an idea of the type of posts we're referring to.

 

[Seedhouse]

Being one of the targets over the past I completely agree, tMP as well as banding means a lot to me as it means I can get in contact with other people who enjoy the same thing as me- banding.

I've realised a change in mood over the last few months, and I knew eventually something would happen like that (never thought I would be a target though).

However, the mods have been so helpful in cutting down on this problem, and keeping an eye out for me that i'm entirely grateful to them. Knowing that they are watching our threads/ posts in times of need is very encouraging! Thanks guys! :wink:

 

[Keppler]

I guess being a mod is worth it then. Guys, I know Rog has said thanks for your support on behalf of the whole team, but here's thanks from me personally too - means a lot to know that there are "oldies" (nice term Rach) and more recent arrivals who think as much of this forum as I do. Ah ye're a great bunch of people... *group hug*


Re the various incidents, I'm very much of the opinion that whatever required action has been taken, and we should move on, happier and wiser.

 

[floral_dance]

Well said Rachel, I know this is a bit late but have been away with work last week and am slowly working my way through the posts.

Also A GREAT BIG THANKS AND HUG to all our mods and the music man, keep up the good work.

 

[Naomi McFadyen]

here here! :bounce

I'll drink to that! :guiness