Quote:
Originally Posted by HelixSix
I guess part of my "private membership" or "complete reform" thing has to do with how I PM'd a mod awhile back about a similar idea. I think mine was about having a "mature off topic section" because the one we have right now is just the same people making it impossible to have any kind of reasonable discussion about anything. Right now it should be called "off topic troll section". The same people often fill up threads in the Alizée Discussion area too with unneeded matter that takes up space on a page.
An example is the two main picture threads. There are so many posts compared to pictures. I've checked out picture threads in other forums about famous people and the comments are usually limited to "thanks", "wow he/she is gorgeous, ty for pics" just to show appreciation. The pictures are thumbnails that link to the actual picture in full size to not take up space and nobody quotes the pictures either which takes up even more space. It really is nice not having to wade through pages of text and irrelevance to find what a lot of people are here for - pictures of her and what she is up to.
I believe many of the longer standing members would be posting often if this place was cleaner or there was a private section. That's how it is for me at least. This place has basically evolved into a playground with kids running around everywhere. This is why the only times you see the older members talk is when it's about something meaningful or personal like somebody attacking our girl. But even then the "kids" are popping in trying to be funny. I think this also leads to some fights because on the rare occasion an issue that sparks interest comes along people want to dive in. It sucks that I'm saying this and throwing people under the bus but somebody has to.
|
I understand what you're saying, but I still believe everyone should get a fair shot at it if this does happen. It would be unfair and a bit rude to start a private forum having members who would not be allowed to enter it from the beginning. If there are rules and guidelines that are stated for the private forum, then those that break them would be banned from it until further notice. I keep saying this because I don't think we should quite leave it up to people to decide who gets in and doesn't without us knowing for sure who would mess things up while there. We can predict that certain members will post certain things. We can even predict that certain members may engage in or provoke harsh arguments, but unless there is a private forum with customized rules, then we shouldn't judge people negatively before all of that. Members may handle themselves differently in a private forum with customized rules. Right now there are no rules to keep people from doing what upsets you, so how can you truely say that those same people will continue to do those things in a private forum unless certain rules or guidelines are put in place? It just seems a little more fair to allow everyone be a part of it and then let the "bad seeds" sort themselves out. If members start "trolling", then they could maybe get a warning or something before getting banned from the private forums. Depending on the level or extent of their violation, the member could be banned or kicked from the private forums for a certain amount of time or until mods, admins, etc. felt otherwise.
With what you're implying, I take it that only older members, mods, admins, and a few other hand picked members would be allowed in. Who decides who gets in? What would be the criteria for members to get in? Would personal feelings towards other members be put into play? What happens if it doesn't work out with the "hand picked" members? Judgement shouldn't be passed onto everyone before their actions are taken in a private forum. The rules and guidelines would be there to warn them to keep in line. There aren't such rules here to keep people from doing what seems to get you upset, so maybe you could offer help in making rules or setting guidelines for a private forum. That way you would be happy with what is allowed there and things would remain fair in letting everyone get a shot at it rather than only allowing certain members in from the start.
Anyway, I still stand by what I said earlier. Unless a private forum has rules that are bent, changed, or added to the current ones, then it wouldn't really be necessary. I'll end again with this: The way it looks, if we can't have "mature" and "civilized" discussions on the current public forums, then it probably won't have much of a better chance in a private forum. Why don't we try out one of the topics that Corsaire has in mind? If you're comfortable with starting one that is. If it goes well, then we won't need to even think about a private forum. If it fails, then that could better help draw lines for a starting point.
(I'm sorry for any bad grammar or run-ons lol. I understand that what I write is sometimes hard to read. If what I'm saying isn't being understood clearly because of the way I'm putting down my ideas, then please feel free to ask.
