Guest Anonymous Posted December 20, 2011 Report Share Posted December 20, 2011 ^^ An entire paragraph of 'DePooperit's (extensive) complaint was obviously written by an 'anti Atheist'. I find it offensive that the Shetlink moderators openly support these views. To me, anti-Atheist comments are comparable to racist or sectarian graffiti, and their presence is a form of bullying! Normally I wouldn't complain but I see most Bible bashers as being extremists and that is, essentially what this forum is about.. Is it not? Happy Xmas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alchemy Posted December 20, 2011 Report Share Posted December 20, 2011 Well this thread has degenerated in a pile of tish rather rapidly! Is Shetlink still a valuable part of Shetland life? Yes, why not, it can be informative, frustrating, annoy, amusing... some people you can get, some you hope you never meet....a mixed bag, a bit like life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spinner72 Posted December 20, 2011 Report Share Posted December 20, 2011 ^^ Well said dat fellow, sums everything already posted here perfectly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unlinkedstudent Posted December 21, 2011 Report Share Posted December 21, 2011 I would like to propose a motion for debate, partly though not entirely tongue-in-cheek. Namely, that Shetlink has outstayed its welcome; that it no longer serves its purpose as a forum for intelligent debate about local and current affairs; that it now appears to be little more than a haven for trolls, extremists, those with too much time on their hands and the intellectually and grammatically challenged; that it has a great classifieds section but not much else worth looking at. The case for the prosecution rests, for now. Thank you very much. Me thinks the OP may be guilty of double standards perhaps? Me thinks the jury should consider and peruse over the following:- http://www.shetlink.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=23&start=2800 Wow, and then somebody types a long detailed response within 3 MINUTES of that post (Congrats on having a typing speed of obviously more than 100wpm). Brilliant teamwork there. The OP’s post couldn’t possibly have been a thinly veiled response to a post above it, now could it? Or was it tongue-in-cheek? Are we living in China? Is free speech censored? Perish the thought that perhaps there are those living in Shetland (and elsewhere) on low incomes/parents/pensioners/disabled/working class, etc., who do regularly post on this forum - obviously people who have "too much time on their hands"? What would we do without this forum - read/listen to 'approved propaganda'? Also too perish the thought that all Shetlinkers should have the same IQ level, possess the same sense of humour and be of like mind on every single topic. Superb debates on the proposed VE windfarm, excellent consumer resources thread, threads covering many topics ranging from television programmes to internet/power supply problems, gardening advice - need I go on? With any internet forum you will get people who post more than others with some people reading but never posting, those who visit the site on a regular basis, those who might only visit once a month, etc. If you don't like Shetlink, why not start your own forum? I like the mixture of serious and not so serious topics on here. I’ve attempted to inject (at times) humour into serious threads as an aside but some Shetlinkers tend to speed-read and concentrate on the tongue-in-cheek and don’t bother debating, let alone even reading or grasping, the other text. Some may even have decided that because a post is by a certain Shetlinker that they won’t attempt to consider what was posted without putting them down. Oops, almost forgot that I wouldn't have met so many WONDERFUL people in real life if it wasn't for Shetlink; but hey, let us do away with anon. user names so that those who don't like incomers can figure out with very little research where they live. Well done the creators of Shetlink. Now don't forget to consider celebrating perhaps Shetlink's next birthday - naturally by hiring Mareel so Shetlinkers can have a good old knees up and meet in person (Sorry Icepick, no mention in the Stakeholders’ Minutes of your favourite tipple being available in the bar but a superb local brewery will hopefully be supplying some real ale). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beachcaster Posted December 21, 2011 Report Share Posted December 21, 2011 ^ If I were on the jury, I would have to consider the possibility that the first post was submitted at 12.58.00 and the 2nd post at 1.02.59. This would increase the available time for a reply, from your wrongly quoted figure of 3 minutes, to 4 minutes and 59 seconds. This would then reduce the WPM from 100 to 60. I am afraid I would have no option but to find the defendant not guilty, or at least not proven Just out of interest, you didn't actually count how many words were in the 2nd post did you? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unlinkedstudent Posted December 21, 2011 Report Share Posted December 21, 2011 ^ Fair point, my learned friend. However, one was taking into consideration the amount of time to read, think, cut, paste and type. Even without allowing time for this lurvely server to respond and the above, you are still looking at around 50wpm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohanofNess Posted December 21, 2011 Report Share Posted December 21, 2011 Actually I type at nearer 50wpm, have a look at the little bit at the bottom of the post you'll find I edited it and that is when I added most of the text half an hour after the original post. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unlinkedstudent Posted December 21, 2011 Report Share Posted December 21, 2011 ^ Yup, I did clock the edit. Alas, if only perhaps said Jury could see the original posting and hence not to jump to any conclusions ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malachy Posted December 21, 2011 Author Report Share Posted December 21, 2011 ^^ No point spoiling a good conspiracy Johan! Just to clarify something here. Four people have now suggested that my original post was made because I don't like people disagreeing with me. Nothing could be further from the truth. I enjoy debating, and if everyone thought and felt the same about everything then there would be nothing to discuss at all. My argument is that, for the most part, making a point on Shetlink is about as likely to result in sensible debate as going into a school, grabbing hold of a 15 year old boy and saying "Your Mum's a slag!" I don't think I'm being overly nostalgic if I suggest that four or five years ago there were considerably more active contributors on these forums. There was a greater variation in the views expressed, and the quality of the debate was much higher. Let me stress again here that by quality I don't mean the extent to which people agree with me, I mean the ability of people to express their views in a logical, sensible and calm way. What seems to have happened is a self-perpetuating process whereby, as some of these people have drifted away, the proportion of ranters, trolls, illiterates and extremists has risen. As that proportion rises, so more people are persuaded that it's no longer worth bothering to post here (that's the most common reason I've heard from people who've given up on the site). And that's the point I suppose. Making a reasoned argument in a reasonable way takes just a little bit of time and effort. If everyone else is just writing the first thing that comes into their heads (and if you're anonymous then that's always more likely) then why bother getting involved? And before anyone mentions the fact that the number of users is still rising, I don't think anyone can doubt that the reason for that is the classifieds section, not the forums. More than one person has said something along the lines of "If you don't like it then go away". Surely though, Shetlink would be improved by more people bothering to post, not fewer. Finally, to respond to unlinkedstudent's first point. I'm truly sorry if you (and apparently Ghostrider) are distressed or offended by satire. I shall never attempt to make a point using humour again, just in case anyone doesn't think it's funny. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aaron Foord Posted December 21, 2011 Report Share Posted December 21, 2011 I would like to propose a motion for debate, partly though not entirely tongue-in-cheek. Namely, that Shetlink has outstayed its welcome; that it no longer serves its purpose as a forum for intelligent debate about local and current affairs; that it now appears to be little more than a haven for trolls, extremists, those with too much time on their hands and the intellectually and grammatically challenged; that it has a great classifieds section but not much else worth looking at. The case for the prosecution rests, for now. Thank you very much. The classifieds section is mainly businesses advertising which is supposed to be banned, or the same people spamming adverts trying to sell the same stuff over and over. If it were managed better then it would be useful, at the moment it is not worth going over what appears to be new ads but they are the same people spamming. Classifieds needs a proper moderator. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghostrider Posted December 21, 2011 Report Share Posted December 21, 2011 @ Malachy: No, no offence or distress, on my part at least, just very slightly annoyed and extremelysurprised, given the source, that is all. There is good satire, and there is, not so good, satire. There is a place for satire, and there are places where it is counter-productive. Clearly your definitions of these are extremely different to mine, such is life, so be it. However, starting a serious?? discussion on one part of the site bemoaning "slipping standards" of contributions and discussions. Then within hours effectively shutting down any chance of a serious discussion or contribution on another thread, and ensuring any serious points or discussion currently ongoing are lost, by posting a piece of "humour" generated from material of some of the most recent posters to that thread. Could, IMHO, be taken as a form of hypocracy and/or with ulterior motive. Again, your opinions of what constitutes "serious debate and discussion" would appear to clearly differ very greatly from mine. However, each to their own. Edited to clairify which post replying to, and typos. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustMe Posted December 21, 2011 Report Share Posted December 21, 2011 The classifieds section is mainly businesses advertising which is supposed to be banned, or the same people spamming adverts trying to sell the same stuff over and over. If it were managed better then it would be useful, at the moment it is not worth going over what appears to be new ads but they are the same people spamming. Classifieds needs a proper moderator.Is that you offering your services as a moderator then?. Seriously there are a lot of quite reasonable advertisers on Shetlink Classifieds but there are some who seems to abuse the system but it would be a thankless task keeping an eye on the classifieds and having to decide what was allowed and what was not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unlinkedstudent Posted December 21, 2011 Report Share Posted December 21, 2011 The classifieds section is mainly businesses advertising which is supposed to be banned, or the same people spamming adverts trying to sell the same stuff over and over. If it were managed better then it would be useful, at the moment it is not worth going over what appears to be new ads but they are the same people spamming. Classifieds needs a proper moderator.Is that you offering your services as a moderator then?. Seriously there are a lot of quite reasonable advertisers on Shetlink Classifieds but there are some who seems to abuse the system but it would be a thankless task keeping an eye on the classifieds and having to decide what was allowed and what was not. I have offered on numerous occasions my services as a Classifieds Moderator. For the record, I don't advertise my business on here in the Classifieds despite, however, at times being sorely tempted to do so. Likewise, I delete my old adverts and attempt to keep within the timeframe before renewing ... ... that reminds me, must whack off some dosh via PP to Shetlink! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aaron Foord Posted December 21, 2011 Report Share Posted December 21, 2011 The classifieds section is mainly businesses advertising which is supposed to be banned, or the same people spamming adverts trying to sell the same stuff over and over. If it were managed better then it would be useful, at the moment it is not worth going over what appears to be new ads but they are the same people spamming. Classifieds needs a proper moderator.Is that you offering your services as a moderator then?. Seriously there are a lot of quite reasonable advertisers on Shetlink Classifieds but there are some who seems to abuse the system but it would be a thankless task keeping an eye on the classifieds and having to decide what was allowed and what was not. I offered to moderate the classifieds months and months ago but no-one seemed to be bothered about it. No point having a classifieds section if it is not controlled properly, which is why I only log in when I have nothing else to do, just to waste time rather than taking an active interest in the adverts. Simple moderation, and compulsary locations on adverts are basics that should be done. I would also delete the constant adverts from the same people asking for things for free! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustMe Posted December 21, 2011 Report Share Posted December 21, 2011 I suppose it is technically possible for adverts to need approval by a moderator before they appear. That might get rid of some of the problems. And compulsory locations sounds good........but not too detailed. I have failed to respond to adverts for things I might have bought simply due to lack of location. Then there are people selling far too many things for them not to be some sort of trader. Cars and computers seem to be the most common items this relates to. But as long as they stick to the "no repeats within 14 days" rule I have no problem with people wanting something for free. Or indeed people offering things for free. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Please sign in to comment
You will be able to leave a comment after signing in
Sign In Now