The changing face of Gransnet?

A thought has just occurred to me - GNHQ used to be quite jolly and good fun - always popping in saying they were eating cake, enjoying themselves in the office

That's right Callistemon, they did and I'd forgotten about that. I remember that used to pop into the Argy from time to time but that hasn't happened for a long time. The mods now seem to have graduated from the Miss Trunchbull School of Friendliness!

Can I ask, are there any "ordinary" GNetters who are moderators? Incognito, so's to speak? If there are, maybe they could answer some of the many questions that have been raised on this thread?

Do you think all this working from home is getting to them? We must spare a thought for them, it can't be easy.

Consider it spared!

Moving on.......

AGAA4

I will put my money one shilling on 11.46 tomorrow.

I think that this is a good shout.
I'll give you odds of 3/1 AGA

Harrigan I suggested that some time ago. I'm afraid it wouldn't be a goer. Lot's of new members now who accept this deletion business as the norm, plus, I believe, it doesn't really matter to the majority of posters.

Lot's of new members now who accept this deletion business as the norm

But somebody must be hitting the report button repeatedly petra; as far as I'm aware GNHQ don't sit trawling the threads looking for offending posts and they say that they rely on posters to report anything that they're concerned about. A case in point: there was thread, not that long ago, but I daren't mention it because it's against the roolz in which opinion on the OP was fairly evenly divided. About a week after the thread had died the death, I got a very nice email from GNHQ telling me that my post had been deleted because it had quoted a previously deleted post. Obviously, it hadn't been deleted when I quoted it! But who, and why, would anyone go back through aged threads that hadn't been contributed to for a week, and report dead posts?
It's anomalies like this that make me uneasy.

When this thread goes, as people reckon it will, how about a thread entitled Dear Mods, Please can we have?

I am thinking things like-
Highlighting the OP's responses
Having a Taking A Break thread
Notification of when a post has been taken down, with reasoning
etc

We could then wait for these points to be addressed.

Or deleted ?

I'll go for 10.30 tomorrow morning. Let me know when to take up my prize.

There are a few posters with whom I very rarely agree, although some of them sound like interesting people. However there are a couple whose posts I read because I can't believe that they can be so nasty, but I wouldn't want to get into a fight with them. Their posts are occasionally deleted, and always before I've had a chance to read them, unfortunately.

Marydoll

*Bellanonna*, surely you are not implying that there are posters who deliberately report others out of malice? ☹

Meryl Streep, you are brave posting that!

Marydoll, lol !

Chewy, you’ve made some interesting comments. I won’t say any more

I thought I was alone in thinking GN has changed so much since I joined, sadly, not for the better.

We now have posters appearing, deliberately out to bait us and when we question any of their posts all they have to do is run to HQ. Result, genuine caring long-standing posters are either, banned, suspended or have their wrist slapped. Alternatively, as soon as cries of ‘a gang of bullies’ is mentioned by a couple of friends of the poster/op, out come the deletions etc.

I asked a genuine question on one thread and for the first time in all my years on GN, I was speechless when I received a warning and slapped wrist from HQ. Worst of all was being termed a bully! Because I asked a genuine question? Well off the mark with that insult ?

Take note HQ, we are not unruly school girls. Think, mature, intelligent women who can smell a rat a mile off.

As for we are no longer ‘allowed’ to enquire if people we have known for years are ok, what is the point of this caring, supportive site you claim we are members of. Stop interfering with relationships we have on here. Bear in mind too, we are the ones who know theses people, not you and we look out for each other offering support and friendship. More so during this pandemic, we know who lives alone, who is struggling, who is ill. Your new ruling is destroying what we have built up over the years.

Your ethos of a caring supportive site is in danger of collapsing if you continue with non caring behaviour towards us.

MaryDoll I was going to post the same thing How come is fine to ask after Mick being absent and not about anyone else, double standards, nothing against Mick of course I hope he’s fine
I was also going to suggest the boycott of 24 hours it just could work, there could be quite a few of us and we could announce it Newbys might follow .....

Thirdly, now allowing for Sunday, I m going to change my time of deletion to 10.15 am tomorrow

MerylStreep.
Hear, hear. You have reached the point I am quite sure many of us have now.

Stop interfering with relationships we have on here. Bear in mind too, we are the ones who know theses people, not you and we look out for each other offering support and friendship. More so during this pandemic, we know who lives alone, who is struggling, who is ill. Your new ruling is destroying what we have built up over the years.

Spot on!

Now here’s a conspiracy theory what if
A poster, any poster, who felt ‘wronged’ or not listened to or didn’t get enough attention has returned under another name and is reporting everyone they didn’t like instead of posting ummmmm now put that one in your pipe and smoke it
???

*As for we are no longer ‘allowed’ to enquire if people we have known for years are ok, what is the point of this caring, supportive site you claim we are members of. Stop interfering with relationships we have on here. Bear in mind too, we are the ones who know theses people, not you and we look out for each other offering support and friendship. More so during this pandemic, we know who lives alone, who is struggling, who is ill. Your new ruling is destroying what we have built up over the years.*
Spot on Kalu

I've been on here quite a while now. Just found this thread. I've had posts and threads deleted in the past, when I asked GNHQ about one of them I was told the moderators at a weekend are sometimes less experienced and tend to err on the side of caution. I suppose those moderators have now taken over running GN.
I never report posts much preferring to challenge the poster and leave the evidence so everyone can judge for themselves.
As for the rules I've never understod them. But I really resent it when a thread disappears before I have had a chance to read it!!! It's like arrivng at a party after all the booze has gone!
Still I made it onto this one (which probably means its days are numbered).

AGAA4

I will put my money one shilling on 11.46 tomorrow.

By Jove AGA a whole shilling ! That’s going it a bit.

I very much miss the regular sensible contributions by a poster who owns a thin dog.?

How can this thread possibly be deleted when it’s not a thread about a thread, or full of personal spats.It’s simply saying what we see on GN nowadays. I think the moderators should take all comments on board.

BlueBelle ?? that may not be too far fetched after all.

I am new here and I am enjoying the site immensely. I do hope the mods read this thread because there is nothing worse than ‘over moderation’ I recently left a site because of it. I was never ‘moderated’ myself but many witty and decent people were for absolutely no reason I could fathom. The moderators decided to remove all ‘political’ posts in their wisdom. That site has become totally boring and very few post on it now. It will disappear. You are onto a good thing here, hope it lasts !

Here is another conspiracy theory to consider.

A poster takes a dislike to another poster and rallies her/his friends to join her/her gang to report the targetted poster, accusing them of bullying, in order to get rid of them. They give no thought to the personal situation of that poster nor their mental wellbeing. The banned poster is then left isolated from the very thing that offered them support in the dark moments of their life.

Or, a poster creates multiple user names, using multiple email address, (easy to do) to do achieve the same outcome.

Do you think that could be happen? Or is my own isolation making me delusional?

I think it could well happen marydoll .......I will join you in the conspiracy corner.?

Spot on BlueBelle.

Thin dog went through a desperately sad time not so long ago and is well placed to offer comfort and solace to those in need with her wisdom.

BlueBelle

^*As for we are no longer ‘allowed’ to enquire if people we have known for years are ok, what is the point of this caring, supportive site you claim we are members of. Stop interfering with relationships we have on here. Bear in mind too, we are the ones who know theses people, not you and we look out for each other offering support and friendship. More so during this pandemic, we know who lives alone, who is struggling, who is ill. Your new ruling is destroying what we have built up over the years.*^
Spot on Kalu

Yes to this.
Also waves to lemon grove, remembering many happy disagreements about politics and hoping that continues.

Lemon, I miss the much loved poster, with the sight hound/very thin dog. I remain angry and bemused that she could be banished. I was listening to the news earlier, about the crack down in dissent in Russia. It felt all to close to home frankly.
Can we start on if those on line petitions to bring back M?

A thought has just occurred to me - GNHQ used to be quite jolly and good fun - always popping in saying they were eating cake, enjoying themselves in the office etc. Do you think all this working from home is getting to them? We must spare a thought for them, it can't be easy

Ah, yes, Callistemon, it can’t be easy for them. Perhaps one of them has employed their offspring to ‘press the banish button” from time to time, whilst they’re working from home?

Yes, nanna8, over-moderation is often the death knell of discussion boards.

I enjoy posting on here, and enjoy a debate with people who have a range of experiences and opinions, but am very aware that we are making money for Gransnet, and feel that we deserve to be treated with respect for that reason alone, if they can't be respectful 'just because'.

I understand that posts of a racist or inflammatory nature can't be tolerated, and nor would I want them to be, but other than that there is no reason why we can't self-moderate. We are intelligent, mature women, and watching over us in case we upset one another is insulting, and asking for the site to become less interesting with fewer participants.

I have seen this happen before on various discussion boards, and it usually leads to people setting up breakaway groups (the software is free and easy to set up) where people can post freely and people can set up their own rules. As more posters migrate to the new places the original board either withers and dies, or new people replace the oldies and the cycle starts again. Alternatively it becomes a stifling and stilted place with a few members shouting into the wilderness.