CONFESSIONAL thread (ANONYMOUS so tell us the juicy stuff!)

[msbae]

Ice & a Slice with that?

Kinda makes me glad I don't drink...

Pfft ... If you've tried beer, you know what piss tastes like.

I have had a few beers. I don't understand why people like it so much. There are much more palatable forms of booze out there.

 

[Kirk's_Tights]

Canadian beer > American beer.

 

[Chekov's Phaser]

Kinda makes me glad I don't drink...

Pfft ... If you've tried beer, you know what piss tastes like.

I have had a few beers. I don't understand why people like it so much. There are much more palatable forms of booze out there.

Depends on what beer you've had. Some beers do taste like piss, but there are many that are quite lovely.

 

[Holdfast]

Hmm, this one's not really a confession as such, but I'm going to allow this through, this time. It's close to being an end-run around MA rules, but since no-one in particular isnamed, I'm ruling it acceptable unless a misc mod feels others.

I have only been a member of TrekBBS for less than a year now but I suddenly feel unwelcome, not by any members, but by a few mods in particular. It just seems that they point me out (and certain other members) when something happens and don't seem to address the other people involved. It hasn't happened often, maybe two or three times to me, but it's enough to set off a sensor and wonder why the hell they are doing it.

I have been as friendly as I could be towards everyone at TrekBBS but it still seems that these particular mods seem to have a stick up their ass on some days. It shouldn't matter if someone has 50,000 posts or 5 posts when it comes to a disagreement. What matters is that everyone involved should be dealt with properly. Instead, I have been pointed out and I can imagine the ones who weren't pointed out are laughing their asses off and saying 'haha, I got away with it".

It makes me not want to log into TrekBBS anymore. I know most people will say "well, it's the the internet, you shouldn't worry about a few mods on a powertrip" but it does make a difference when you want to be a good, dedicated member and it makes you feel like shit when mods are going out of their way to be assholes towards you and protect the longer serving members. Someone who has been a member for a year is no different from someone who is a member for 8 years. It is an equal opportunity.

I would report the mod behaviour but I don't think anything would be done, for one, because most mods stick together and for two, I am not the kind of person who really makes a huge deal about things and I don't want them to know it is me complaining about them but something has to be done somehow.


I will end this by saying in general that most of the TrekBBS mods are great and have a good head on their shoulders but others take their mod position way too seriously and forget that this is just a forum and they aren't any better than anyone else so they can leave their big heads at the door the next time they log in because it makes them look like idiots.

 

[Gryffindorian]

I don't know what to say to that. I've had disagreements with some Mods (and maybe one Admin), but I try not to make things personal.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Does bring up an interesting point, though. IIRC, a mod can pretty much do whatever he or she wants. If such a mod gets it into their head to have a grudge, what can really be done about it? Is there a moderator "Internal Affairs" like there is for police officers?

What, if any, defense is there against a 'rogue' mod?

 

[An Officer]

I'm ruling it acceptable unless a misc mod feels others.

This, I'd like to see.

 

[Kirk's_Tights]

I think the 'confession' is that they are actually fairly hurt by whatever happened and their true feelings against whatever mods they are talking about.

I don't know, that's just how I read it.

 

[sidious618]

I think the 'confession' is that they are actually fairly hurt by whatever happened and their true feelings against whatever mods they are talking about.

I don't know, that's just how I read it.

That is how I read it, too. While the internet is not always to be taken seriously, I can understand if a person wanted to be a member of the board and was looking for a community and now feels targeted. On the other hand, since we don't know who said it they may very well deserve what they're getting. But that's not to say that there isn't mod abuse and this person may be dead on.

 

[An Officer]

If you don't feel satisfied with the PMs, taking it to MA is the only real way of getting something done, if you have a good case.

 

[Kirk's_Tights]

I don't think I have come across it here yet but in other forums, I get the vet/newbie part of that confession.

A lot of times, vets will stand up for their fellow vets, even if their fellow vet is wrong. It's always a war between newbies and vets and newbies are always on the shit end of the stick because, well, they are new so they get kicked around.

 

[RJDiogenes]

I'm ruling it acceptable unless a misc mod feels others.

Tell me who put me on the Crush List and maybe I will.

Does bring up an interesting point, though. IIRC, a mod can pretty much do whatever he or she wants. If such a mod gets it into their head to have a grudge, what can really be done about it? Is there a moderator "Internal Affairs" like there is for police officers?

What, if any, defense is there against a 'rogue' mod?

The defense is other Mods. Despite how that Poster feels, Mods are not a Hive Mind. There's no way any Mod would be allowed to carry out a grudge against a Member. They wouldn't make it out of the BR alive.

 

[sidious618]

I don't think I have come across it here yet but in other forums, I get the vet/newbie part of that confession.

A lot of times, vets will stand up for their fellow vets, even if their fellow vet is wrong. It's always a war between newbies and vets and newbies are always on the shit end of the stick because, well, they are new so they get kicked around.

Which is silly. If you're a good poster, you're a good poster no matter when you joined up.

 

[Misfit Toy]

The defense is other Mods. Despite how that Poster feels, Mods are not a Hive Mind. There's no way any Mod would be allowed to carry out a grudge against a Member. They wouldn't make it out of the BR alive.

I tried explaining that to someone during my in-between mod time. With so many moderators from all over the globe, there is pretty much ALWAYS going to be someone with a different opinion - it's just that we usually argue AND respect each other at the same time.

 

[Chekov's Phaser]

Remember that the mods are (mostly) human. They can be as biased about some posters as the rest of us can. I would hope that most can be unbiased enough to judge fairly in implementing board rules.

Having said that, as sidious618, it's hard to tell because we don't know the entire situation. This person could have deserved it, and he/she didn't like the fact that they were called out by a mod.

 

[JustKate]

I would agree that, rightly or wrongly, the person who made the confession truly feels hurt. Not sure what can be done about it, but I would urge this person to bring a case of suspected abuse of power to the attention of...somebody - right after the abuse occurs so that it's still easy to find. If not to the offending mod then to another mod for the same forum. What's the worst thing that could happen? Nothing very bad, that's what.

 

[Kirk's_Tights]

I think it is also how people talk (or type, in this case). A mod might be sending the wrong impression if they type up a response that sounds arrogant.

I am a mod elsewhere so I know how it works and I have seen some of the other mods get mouthy when they could have just stepped in and asked everyone nicely to cut it out.

As I read the confession over again, it kinda sounds like the type of person who is really trying but maybe has a few 'oops' moments in threads and gets called on it but isn't addressed the way they think they should be.

It must be something serious, though, if they feel bad enough not to want to return to the forum.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

There's no way any Mod would be allowed to carry out a grudge against a Member.

So what happens when one tries?

They wouldn't make it out of the BR alive.

The what?

 

[trampledamage]

What could also be playing into it is if this person has only been here less than a year, the mods don't know yet whether they're joking or seriously picking a fight.

You know how it works, if you're here often enough you get used to how people post, and you can usually trust that, for example, Shameless isn't going to be posting something to pick a fight. So if he posts something that could be either funny or antagonistic you give him the benefit of the doubt.

But with new people you can't tell. So this person might feel they are getting picked on because the mods don't know yet what their posting style is.

(Does that make any sense at all? )

Anyway, my advice for the confessee. Lie low for a bit, don't try too hard. Enjoy reading all the threads, and certainly make comments, but avoid anything that could be construed as antagonistic just to be on the safe side for a while.

 

[RJDiogenes]

There's no way any Mod would be allowed to carry out a grudge against a Member.

So what happens when one tries?

It's never happened, as long as I've been here. Quite the opposite, in fact. Mods go out of their way to avoid even the appearance of bias, to the extent of letting co-mods handle certain situations; obviously it doesn't always work, since some members do feel they are the victims of grudges. If it did happen, the other Mods would not be shy about telling them off and Bonz and Spiff would not be shy about dealing with it. Mods are not above the Rules. If a Mod breaks a Rule, he gets a Warning; I've had to give a Warning to a Mod myself. Believe me, the Mods here take fairness and objectivity very seriously.

They wouldn't make it out of the BR alive.

The what?

The Briefing Room. It's the private Mod Forum where we discuss board matters and post Porn freely.