Another one bites the dust?

[R_Lefebvre]

So... another thread got deleted?

Wish we could just delete the offending posts, because there is some good stuff in the rest of the thread.

 

[Alaska Mike]

I agree. Consider the thread taken off the market for a while as I go through it. There's a lot to sort through, and a lot of people put a lot of thought into their entries. I'm having to cut a lot of entries that, while acceptable and sometimes funny, didn't address the main idea of the thread.

When it returns, it will be locked, but hopefully it will serve as a resource for those interested in Land Rovers in all of their variations.

 

[stevenmd]

Emotions seem to run high with landie threads as it appears the recent deletions have been in this section.eepwall: Nothing a cold beer, nice campfire and a good cigar won't fix. But it is nice to see the landie section have a bit more action lately.

 

[Blair G]

What seems strange is the amount of time that people devote trying to change the mind of the other people they are arguing with. Their is a saying about arguing on the internet. It is in poor taste but pretty much sums up the end result. Look it up if you like.
It appears that as this website grows, the amount of people who like to hear themselves type seems to multiply and it quickly spirals out of control.
Drive what you like. Who cares if anybody else agrees with you or not. Grow up and show some maturity. People don't need to consider it a personal challenge every time somebody disagrees with what you might think. Being mature also means not taking every piece of bait that is thrown out.

Blair

 

[TeriAnn]

I agree. Consider the thread taken off the market for a while as I go through it.

<<SNIP>>

When it returns, it will be locked, but hopefully it will serve as a resource for those interested in Land Rovers in all of their variations.

:littlefriend:

And we will be able to read what other people feel is appropriate for us to read. Cleansed, sanitized and filtered thoughts carefully channeled along approved guidelines of what is appropriate in an Orwellian environment.

Book paper burns at Fahrenheit 451. Forum expressed thoughts burn at the press of the delete key. As a member of this American based forum I feel violated. I suppose this posting will get censored too.

 

[Blair G]

:littlefriend:

And we will be able to read what other people feel is appropriate for us to read. Cleansed, sanitized and filtered thoughts carefully channeled along approved guidelines of what is appropriate in an Orwellian environment.

Book paper burns at Fahrenheit 451. Forum expressed thoughts burn at the press of the delete key. As a member of this American based forum I feel violated. I suppose this posting will get censored too.

Or..... people should read what is stated under the heading of Land Rover
"Land Rover Discussions specific to the modification and service of Land Rover vehicles for Expedition Travel".
It has nothing to do with censure, but the inability of people to keep themselves focused and on topic. Its not that difficult.
If people can't handle that then they need to find another forum. There are tons of them on the interweb.
Blair

 

[Tanto]

TerriAnn makes a good point. Differing opinions and discussion is healthy. It isn't so much as opening someone else's closed mind as it is your own.

I have no affiliation with this person but it is a good read and speaks to what Blair is saying. Steve Pavlina

 

[Tanto]

Would Fireside chat be more appropriate?

 

[Alaska Mike]

:littlefriend:

And we will be able to read what other people feel is appropriate for us to read. Cleansed, sanitized and filtered thoughts carefully channeled along approved guidelines of what is appropriate in an Orwellian environment.

Book paper burns at Fahrenheit 451. Forum expressed thoughts burn at the press of the delete key. As a member of this American based forum I feel violated. I suppose this posting will get censored too.

Granted, this is a form of censorship, and that thread has a lot of posts that are off-topic, but otherwise acceptable within the bounds of this forum's rules. Those comments led to comments that were less appropriate, and it snowballed from there. Where do you draw the line? It's not an easy choice to make. Since this thread had many on-topic, reasoned posts from several people (yourself included) before it went off on a tangent and into the inappropriate, should those posts be deleted as well? I think that's throwing the baby out with the bathwater.

Orwellian? Fahrenheit 451? I think you're perhaps exaggerating slightly. I think you should be offended and have the right to express it here, as long as it's in a mature manner. We (the moderators) have the ability to edit posts to fit within the parameters of the forum, and we try to keep the intent of the author as much as possible. Sometimes that's not possible. I wasn't the only mod (or member) concerned about the direction that the thread was heading. If a mod disagrees with another mod, a thread can be un-deleted or unedited .

It's a very fine line that separates your Orwellian society and, say, the Pirate forum. We're trying to walk that line. We may veer to one side or another, but hopefully we can find a balance that helps maintain the qualiy of ExPo for a very long time.

 

[Martyn]

If Land Rover threads are being deleted, and it sounds like a few are, I'd suggest a little more self policing by active participants. As we grow as a forum new members will need to reminded what our standards are, not just by the moderators but by the participants.

I don't have specific knowledge of the delete thread but there must have been some telltale signs that the discussion was getting out of hand.

Expedition Portal is one of the few forums I post on and the reason I do so is that my ideas, right or wrong, are listened to and responded to in a civilized thoughtful manner. It's very easy to let the standard decline, and very difficult to maintain the high standards we are used to.

Thread deletion seems like an act of last resort, could we have prevented it by earlier intervention. I think if we want the right to post what we think, then we need to accept more responsibility as individual members.

 

[I Leak Oil]

We're all free to choose which threads to view or not to view and participation is not mandatory anywhere on the web. With that said I'd hate to see this site become something along the lines of a DWeb where flaming is a way of life for many. Maybe there should be an "Opinion based rant all you want" section. That way you know what it is and you can go there at your own risk. I don't see any problem with moderators trying to keep threads on track for the specific section.
Jason T.

 

[Blair G]

TerriAnn makes a good point. Differing opinions and discussion is healthy. It isn't so much as opening someone else's closed mind as it is your own.

I have no affiliation with this person but it is a good read and speaks to what Blair is saying. Steve Pavlina

All of what you said is accurate. Typically, opinion changing does not seem to happen on forums unless rules are followed. People get butt-hurt to easily, People's skin thickness is different when it comes to disagreement, and you don't have the personal interaction that makes up a typical conversation.
Look at the responses so far. They are perfect example of the melodramatic. A couple of references to books, the fact that someone is offended as an American, and finally doubts the post will be there because it will be removed because it is so controversial.
This forum had been set up by the owners of it. They have their rules and if people can't get that they should move on.

 

[Alaska Mike]

TerriAnn makes a good point. Differing opinions and discussion is healthy. It isn't so much as opening someone else's closed mind as it is your own.

I have no affiliation with this person but it is a good read and speaks to what Blair is saying. Steve Pavlina

Absolutely, and internet threads (or human thoughts) are very hard to keep on a single topic. Debate is extremely healthy, until it becomes an irrational argument based on misunderstanding and ignorance. There are certain hot-button issues that cause that train wreck, and it looks like I found another one.

My current plan is to prune the thread down as well as I can to posts that address the original topic, and then post a final thought (just like Jerry Springer!) explaining that the thread has been edited and why, then I'll lock it. I started the thread, so I feel like I should close it. If your contribution to it ends up on the cutting room floor, I apologize. It was very likely pruned to rid the thread of tangents.

 

[Tanto]

Well, the whole IFS thing was tangental...but helpful in the right context.

Jerry Springer :hehe:

 

[Alaska Mike]

Look at the responses so far. They are perfect example of the melodramatic. A couple of references to books, the fact that someone is offended as an American, and finally doubts the post will be there because it will be removed because it is so controversial.
This forum had been set up by the owners of it. They have their rules and if people can't get that they should move on.

If I didn't respect and value TeriAnn's input and contribution to the forum so much, I might agree. She has every right to be concerned about censorship here and voice that concern in the appropriate manner: signed in triplicate, properly witnessed and notarized, then sent Certified Mail... Sorry. Couldn't resist. It's the bureaucrat in me.

Her post addresses the initial direction of the thread, doesn't cross any lines of decorum, raises a valid point, and throws a few literary references in there to boot. While I may not agree with her conclusions, the debate is open as long as it stays respectful of all sides. When it veers into the disrespectful, then I am forced to translate it into Newspeak.


Newspeak is a fictional language in George Orwell's novel Nineteen Eighty-Four. In the novel, it is described as being "the only language in the world whose vocabulary gets smaller every year."