Just one last thing from me on this topic. I'm a member of a skiing forum that isn't moderated. Basically anything goes there. Just about any suggestion of censorship there is met with a very loud Bronx cheer :) Anyway, it's a very tight knit community even though it's a much more active forum than this is. People are always getting together to ski, help one another out, etc.
Anyway, a serious tragedy befell two members of the forum this week. They were a husband and wife who both posted. Well, the wife commited suicide a few days ago and the husband posted to the group to tell everyone. There was a huge outpouring of support for this guy. Someone suggested setting up a fund to help him cover funeral expenses and whatever else he needed the money for. This started yesterday. As of a couple hours ago over $5,000 has been sent to the Paypal account he set up for this.
Obviously this would have never happened if the topic never drifted off the topic of skiing.
I agree and I'm so glad you brought up this great example. I think of Masters swimming as being about a lot more than just swimming. It is about camraderie and support too. I think this forum allows us to talk about swimming and how it influences our lives. It also allows us to get to know each other and become friends.....friends that have this wonderful sport in common but also are interested in each others lives. So what if we get off topic every once and a while. As long as we are civil and kind to each other, where is the harm? :dunno:
Just one last thing from me on this topic. I'm a member of a skiing forum that isn't moderated. Basically anything goes there. Just about any suggestion of censorship there is met with a very loud Bronx cheer :) Anyway, it's a very tight knit community even though it's a much more active forum than this is. People are always getting together to ski, help one another out, etc.
Anyway, a serious tragedy befell two members of the forum this week. They were a husband and wife who both posted. Well, the wife commited suicide a few days ago and the husband posted to the group to tell everyone. There was a huge outpouring of support for this guy. Someone suggested setting up a fund to help him cover funeral expenses and whatever else he needed the money for. This started yesterday. As of a couple hours ago over $5,000 has been sent to the Paypal account he set up for this.
Obviously this would have never happened if the topic never drifted off the topic of skiing.
I agree and I'm so glad you brought up this great example. I think of Masters swimming as being about a lot more than just swimming. It is about camraderie and support too. I think this forum allows us to talk about swimming and how it influences our lives. It also allows us to get to know each other and become friends.....friends that have this wonderful sport in common but also are interested in each others lives. So what if we get off topic every once and a while. As long as we are civil and kind to each other, where is the harm? :dunno:
