Open letter to the moderator

[GPC2]

Mr. Moderator,

Please consider scrubbing all posts that do not directly respond to football related questions. Please consider scrubbing all posts that contain personal attacks, insulting language and egotistical chest thumping. If these types of posts are removed I think it will discourage those who post in that manner to waste their time typing such things. We need to focus strictly on mechanics, rule applications, and game situations - there is no room for harsh words and back-and-forth between officials. Thank you very much.

[SeanWest]

Hear! Hear! I second the motion.

Thanks for saying so GPC2.

-SW---

[JRutledge]

I have been here a long time. The internet is a place where things can be said behind a computer screen that would never wash if said in someone's face. Just because we are officials does not mean that will change. Go to any discussion board or chat room and you will always have fighting or words back and forth with members. It happens here all the time with all kind of officials in all kinds of sports. Will that turn some off? Of course it will. But the moderators are not going to be able to stop all posts that have a personal twist. There are many threads that take place where unless you know the history between people, you will never truly understand the fight. There are some people that will never get over a conversation they had in 2000.

This is a great place to learn, but it is not the only place. I would hope that any official takes this place for what it is and worries more about what goes on in their area. Most of the time we are sharing opinions and those opinions are not going to be something any of us need to worry about. Unless you are on my football crew, what you say or do here is not my concern. You could even be in an association I belong to, I still would not care.

It is a great goal to just have people talk football and football issues, but officiating brings out the best and the worst in people. Most people are very competitive and want to advance or get playoffs or head a board one day and that all comes out here. I belong to several associations and if there is fighting with fellow members about all kind of issue; you really think that will not take place here?

Read what you like, do not read what you cannot stand. Life will go on and so will this board despite all the fighting and personality conflicts that happen from time to time.

Peace

[OverAndBack]

I find it's best to ignore people who just spout off for no good reason.

Or, barring that, to ridicule them mercilessly.

Actually, except for one guy, this board seems to be more civil than most I've seen that cater to other interests.

[mor]

I agree with GPC2. I'm here to learn from some of the best officials in the country. Let's try and keep it that way please.

[cmathews]

Guys, I agree with Rut..moderators can't police it all. We need to police ourselves, if I don't like what I read, I don't read any further in the thread. As for "football" only related discussion, part of learning and such can happen outside the lines too. It helps to know people and what else they can be about when you take into context what they are saying relating to a football thread.

[Snake~eyes]

Hey, I'm happy, just be greatful theres not 50 porn spam posts like over at McGriff.

[JRutledge]

Originally posted by Snake~eyes
Hey, I'm happy, just be greatful theres not 50 porn spam posts like over at McGriff.

This place is tame as compared to that site.

He still has those porn posts up. Just sad.

Peace

[70160]

I totally agree with JRutledge.

[SeanWest]

I don't disagree with JRutledge and cmathews. What surprises me are the couple of people on this board who can't stop themselves from turning a heated debate of the rules and mechanics into a personal ego trip and name calling session. I would have thought that as officials, people who are supposed to show restraint, be objective, and have cool heads, that people on this board would at least display a little more maturity.

My request for people who post here is this: obviously you can't control a fool who has to degrade the conversation to first grade levels, but you CAN control YOURSELF from acting like a first-grader and keep the discussion on topic and from spiralling downwards. Where the moderators need to come in is when two (or more) fools get going and a thread gets out of control (as has happened here at least twice in the last couple of weeks).

Second request: If you have personal "history" with someone that requires you to fight then keep it in your own personal e-mail. That's not why we come here and this isn't your personal boxing ring. Nobody cares which of you can piss farther. If someone you don't like says something off-topic you don't like then take your own advice and ignore it. Posturing on this board is not going to get you a playoff spot or gain you more prestige with your crew or association. And it certainly isn't going to win you friends on the board.

Just for the record, I do skip threads that don't apply to me or those that have gone off-topic. I don't mind filtering out threads that discuss Canadian rules but I resent having to sift through posts that are off-topic ego boosting, especially because that BS usually starts in a legitimate thread. If you just can't help yourself, start a thread that's titled "My Petty Catfight" and at least then the rest of us will know to skip over it if we don't care.

-SW---
"Don't feed the Trolls."

[JugglingReferee]

Originally posted by SeanWest
I don't mind filtering out threads that discuss Canadian rules...

That's too bad. Learning about the game of football through it's history is very interesting. For example, I more fully understand many rules and philosophies because I have learned the history of football and the history of rugby.

In text that I've read, football came to Canada in the first half of the 1800's, and depending on which source you read, about about 5-10 years before it hit the United States. As it stands right now, Canadian football is much more closely related to it's rugby uncle than American football. There were even American rule changes brought about in the 1800's that were changed to resemble or be identical to the Canadian game.

Has learning about a PSK or a CA foul hurt my application of Canadian football? Nope. Has learning about the history of this great game helped? You bet it has Amigo!

Respectfully,

Mike

PS: The number of threads that contain only Canadian content is, from what I remember, one. I think you meant that you skip the Canadian Rulings messages, and not filtering out the entire thread.

[Edited by JugglingReferee on Aug 27th, 2004 at 06:40 PM]

[SeanWest]

I meant no disrepect to my fine Canadian colleagues and their rich football history.

The reason I filter out (in my mind) the messages that discuss Canadian rulings is that as a rookie official I have a hard enough time making sure I know the rules I'm supposed to be enforcing without confusing the issue by trying to compare and contrast an entirely different set of rules. I could have just as easily said the same thing about NCAA rules.

My point was that while that discussion may not be directly relevant to me, at least it is on topic and within the scope of the thread. The other business that we've been discussing has no place here.

-SW---

[mick]

Originally posted by GPC2
Mr. Moderator,

Please consider scrubbing all posts that do not directly respond to football related questions. Please consider scrubbing all posts that contain personal attacks, insulting language and egotistical chest thumping. If these types of posts are removed I think it will discourage those who post in that manner to waste their time typing such things. We need to focus strictly on mechanics, rule applications, and game situations - there is no room for harsh words and back-and-forth between officials. Thank you very much.

GPC2,
Thank you for your concern.
If you see a post(s) that may require deleting send an e-mail to a moderator or to the Forum administrator.
And, please note the post you question, so that it may be readily found.

As cmathews wrote, "We need to police ourselves,..."

mick

[Forksref]

If you want more 'garbage', respond to it. It's kinda like letting the 'market' determine the value or price. It's my choice whether I let something bother me or not.