[Blackdog_kt]

Originally Posted by JG52Krupi

Is this all really necessary?

Luthier has posted a great update, looks very promising do we have to derail it.

Don't worry, we won't. Off-topic posts will be moved as necessary.

Once again, it's not about Tree and i don't really care about setting the sequence of events right, i was just having a slight jab at him to illustrate to him how his method looks to others and he didn't seem to like it, as he's still debating it. The "do unto others..." quote comes to mind here.

I have nothing against the guy personally speaking and i'll be glad to fly with him online sometime, but when moderating i'm not supposed to behave as a person with ties to past history.

In order to remain impartial i have to do it like a robot/automaton and just ask myself a few yes/no questions. Is this off-topic? Is this causing unnecessary gnashing of teeth? Does it break any forum rules? If the answer is yes to any of that i do what the admins in Moscow expect me to do so that things don't get out of hand

The thing is, i don't care about the name above the post. If it drags threads off-topic the posts get moved and i try not to look at the names so that my personal feelings don't cloud my judgement.

After all, i didn't move his initial, perfectly valid question. What i moved was the bickering that ensued and that included the posts of people who attacked him, so my conscience is perfectly clear.

I think Tree is a long-timer that most of us have gotten used to, but that doesn't hold true for much of the newcomers. That doesn't mean he should suffer for it. However it doesn't mean he gets preferential treatment due to his veteran status either. I'm not moved one inch by the "victim" rhetoric when his posting style (accepted by many of the old-timers) is regularly ruffling other people's feathers. If i allow him to do it to others, i'll have to allow them to respond in kind. And since i can't bother keeping score between them, i just follow the forum rules that globally disallow it. I hate double standards with a passion.

I also regularly move posts of people that i have very good discussions with in other threads and they don't think much about it. They know it's not personal and they know they have a separate thread to vent their frustration if need be (which is where the posts get moved to anyway), so i haven't really had anyone actively express any displeasure yet and it's not like they couldn't: it's pretty clear i'm not very keen on banning people, especially so on a whim, so everyone can have their say. In fact i'm quite often bending the rules and letting things slide.

On the contrary, my PM box is often overflowing with messages that are split 50/50 between people saying they like the current moderation and others saying they would like stricter measures taken. What i haven't seen yet is someone asking me to let things slide more than i currently do. It's like a polling service to be honest and since the community is happy the way things are (and in some cases wants it taken even further), it's my job to do it. This is not my forum, this is nobody's forum individually. It's OUR forum collectively and everyone should be able to use it in an enjoyable manner. The boundaries of my freedom of speech lie where it starts to encroach on someone else's freedom of speech. So i can't just go around saying whatever i want with no concern for others, because it's not freedom of speech, it's being an overbearing, annoying person.

So, i'm sorry if i displease certain people, but i don't intend to apply post-count and registration date criteria in how moderation is done. Everyone is equal here and moderation is applied on a case by case, post by post basis, regardless of the poster's opinions, affiliation and time spent on the forum. If anyone wants to do it another way be my guest, apply for a moderator position and have a go at it. Just keep in mind that between answering questions and moderating the forums i have almost no time left to fly a sim that on my PC and installation works flawlessly and delivers what i want it to. So, any takers?