Are you too scared to post what you really think?

Nicenanny I m really interested who are the sainted few who think they own GN let’s have some honesty

Oreo

PoorJenny a question for you, have you literally just joined this site?Like this morning?

.

I wondered that, Oreo.

On another (maybe unrelated) note, a while ago there was an influx of lurkers supposedly from as far afield as the US and Mumsnet, who had simultaneously been watching GN closely and decided (individually) to swoop onto a particular thread to criticise 'Queen Bees' (they may have called them something else, I can't remember, but the gist was the same). They were very unpleasant and the whole thing seemed like an orchestrated attack - much of which was on one poster. That these were all different people acting independently, all with a grudge against one person was several steps too far from believable for me.

Some People get very invested in what is, after all, just a discussion site. Often when threads like this get going there are people who say they've been lurkers who, having watched the rest of us chatting to one another from the sidelines, have decided to tell us all where we've gone wrong and how to mend our ways. They haven't bothered to join in, or risk being taken the wrong way themselves (it can be easy to get on the wrong side of someone by accidentally saying something that rubs them up the wrong way) but have remembered who annoys them (with or without a list) and taken against a group of people with whom they've never even interacted.

Far, far better to join in, and say what you think at the time. The site would benefit from a bigger pool of posters, louder voices would be diluted a bit, and there'd be a chance to tell QBs to wind their necks in.

Either way, regulars are not here to perform for lurkers who don't contribute. There's nothing we can do about them other than form a private closed group, (and they tend to die quite quickly) but neither should we be expected to listen to criticisms from people who have chosen not to join us for their sport.

Oh, and by coincidence these threads always happen when schools and universities are in recess 🤔

Marydoll

Whew! Thank goodness for that! I am a gentle, fragile, little flower.

A nice flower I think 🌸

BlueBelle

Nicenanny I m really interested who are the sainted few who think they own GN let’s have some honesty

Why so you can report me 😊

This is getting more like the playground by the minute.

You've summed up perfectly what happens on GN from time to time Doodledog in your post @ 9.22.

I actually like that one that you are criticising. She shows a different point of view and without that the forums would be very dull. I also think she talks a lot of sense on many subjects whether or not you happen to agree with her. Balance is good, I don’t like to hear constant self righteous leftie views all the time anymore than constant right wing ones.

Bumface

I think GN is a much nicer, kinder place than it was a few years ago.
I first dipped into GN some time ago and I found an interesting chat that had been going a while so I started to read it. Round about page 2 somebody posted all about the colour of her new car (totally off topic, not even an interesting off piste comment). The next few posts were mainly a conversation between about three GNs about cars. They were ignoring others' posts and OP had given up long ago.

I posted my very first comment, explaining I was new and asked why they had gone so far off topic. The reply was something like. "We often wander off into interesting discussions that have nothing to do with the original subject this is the way GN works. I see you are new to GN. If this bothers you, might I suggest that you would be happier on another chat site."

In other words we are the bosses round here so, if you don't like it, buzz off and stay buzzed off. Some of you may remember this delightful women.

I know some topics do wander and there is nothing wrong with that but to hijack a chat to catch up with your mates was something else entirely.

I was wrong, not much has changed. I think I shall stick to the Games Forum in future.
One thing before I go. Germanshepherdsmum what is the difference between a German Shepherd and an Alsatian or are they the same thing? Are they called German Shepherds and not German Sheepdogs because that is a different breed? What is a Russian, German Shepherd? Toodle-Pip!

German shepherds and alsatians are the same breed. They started to be called alsatians in the war I believe because of anti-German feelings. I don’t know of a German sheepdog, but German shepherds do have shepherding instincts. Never heard of a Russian one, but my present one came from Ireland (rescued from being tied up outside) so I guess she’s an Irish German shepherd! Tata!

Nicenanny I think I ve only ever reported one person who was incredible rude to me and she’s long left ( not through me I may add ) she was pretty bad to everyone she had a penchant for handbags if any older members remember ?

No I m not a ‘reporting person’ apart from overnight spam
If you truly think someone is above themselves or rude or unkind don’t be afraid to say
Some people have been on here a long time
Some people come on very regularly
Some people post a lot
Does that make them a queen bee

There used to be accusations of cliques again they are all these vague accusations with no proof just because two or three people agree about something doesn’t make them a clique

The above ground accessory!

Never to be forgotten for all the wrong reasons 🤣🤣🤣

Just wondering about cliques,really. Do some of the posters know each other personally? I think it would be fairly difficult to form a clique online otherwise. I suppose you can constantly agree with someone and constantly disagree with another. Is that a clique? Perhaps.

Threads tend to reflect political leanings - so right learners tend to support each other as Left leaners post similar thoughts or support others whose views reflect their own. That’s not a clique - is it?

Nanna, about fifteen of the Glasgow grans know each other personally, because we meet on a regular basis.
We are certainly not a clique, because we welcome new grans with open arms.

I use the term Glasgow loosely, because the grans are from all over Scotland. 😉

There may have been a few queen bees in the past but they have buzzed off now. I don't think there are cliques but if you have been posting a long time you get used to other long term posters and find those you tend to agree with and those you don't.
That is just like every day life though.

Marydoll

*Nanna*, about fifteen of the Glasgow grans know each other personally, because we meet on a regular basis.
We are certainly not a clique, because we welcome new grans with open arms.

I use the term Glasgow loosely, because the grans are from all over Scotland. 😉

I agree with that as when I first started posting I had some very kind PMs from Scottish grans.

I have been to a Scottish meet up with quite a few other English grans so not just from all over Scotland Marydoll 😊

Harrigran I was specifically talking about the Glesca Grannies ( we only started up after Lockdown) and you are very welcome to join our unique clique anytime.

I used to go the the Edinburgh meet ups, where a gran used to travel up from York on a regular basis. We usually ended up trailing round TK Maxx, (kindred spirits) before catching our respective trains.

Sounds nice. You have TK Maxx there as well - good old USA, worldwide stores!

I'm glad it's not only me using expressions like,
There used to be .......
In the past .......
All those accusations, sneers and digs were tiresome. It stifled expression for me.

I've met some nice English GNs, but one left GN and one rarely posts now. They didn't live anywhere near me but we met up and had a cream tea together. Cream first!

There is a group based loosely around Oxford. We meet very occasionally and most of those present will be attending for the first time.

i will the first to say that I have made three friends through these meet-ups, although none of them know each other. Two post only very occasionally, and I get the feeling that we all are very sparing about being on the same thread at the same time. In other words about as non-cliquey as it gets.

Joseann

I've met some nice English GNs, but one left GN and one rarely posts now. They didn't live anywhere near me but we met up and had a cream tea together. Cream first!

Oh no Joseann*, cream last!

Sorry, didn't preview. Too many usuallys!! I don't usually write like that. 😂

One of the things I like about GN is that I don't know people personally. I've been on a few discussion boards over the years, and they tend to fold or lose their way when people get to know one another 'in person'. The friendships are often valuable, but they stop people from talking on the board about personal things as they are tied to a real person instead of a username, and the threads become less interesting.

Moaning about your husband, discussing a tricky work situation or whatever is one thing if it's anonymous, but quite another if people know exactly who you are, where you work etc. In the end, threads are about what you've bought for the house, how best to grow begonias and pictures of the dog.