There is nothing that wrecks a good swimming related thread faster than getting into a discussion about message board etiquette. So here is a thread that people can use discuss topics related to what should and should not be posted on the message boards while allowing the other threads to stay on topic.
It seems to me that there is a spectrum of opinion on off-topic posting. On one end of the spectrum people think that threads are a mechanism specifically designed to allow people to carry on discussions on different topics and that we would all be well served if changes in topic were just done in new threads. On the other end of the spectrum people think that people should be able to post anything they want anywhere they want and that any suggestion to the contrary is censorship, a personal attack, or simply control freakish.
Pretty much everyone falls somewhere between these two extremes. Very few people object to a humorous quip inserted here and there in an otherwise serious discussion. Very few people would actually advocate that people be able to liberally sprinkle potentially offensive posts randomly through all the threads.
Have you ever been at a party where someone has decided that this is the right time and place to have a big argument or screaming match with someone? Has it ever contributed to the general enjoyment of the rest of the people there?
I would argue that posts that are essentially expressions of anger and/or are essentially personal attacks have no place on the board. They don't contribute anything positive and generally turn off 99% of the people reading the boards. Even if it seems that someone else has attacked you, does it really help anything to post an angry response?
I personally don't see the problem with starting a new thread when one wants to make an off-topic comment, a little cut and paste and/or a link makes it easy enough to carry the context into the new thread. Why is it essential to be able to carry on an unrelated discussion in a thread where some people are trying to carry on a discussion on a particular topic?
Parents
Former Member
Karlene,
Thanks for your input...but Frank Thompson still posts here all of the time?...He made a posting today or yesterday in fact.....he seems to be posting at the same rate he always posts....LBJ has been posting a bit less....but he is still posting from time to time and still sharing his unique sense of humour with us in every posting. Gull left because he caused a fight and got mad and left. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but I agree more with new posters ensignia and wren (and a few other brand new posters as well such as VenusEnvy and Caped Crusade, poolraat ...etc...) and that is that the vast majority of the new posters really enjoy the vast majority of the banter around here....Did you read what ensignia and wren had to say? I think everyone has a right to express thier opinions (such as yourself) but I have to say that I do not really share your opinion when you say there has been very little posting here of any quality?? We all want to attract more members to USMS as the administrators have pointed out as well....but many of the new posters said they were encouraged to join USMS because of the banter that you have claimed to have such low quality....I guess it is a matter of taste? I personally really enjoy most of the banter around here....the only thing I don't like is the occaissional fighting and insulting that goes on....I love all the lighthearted banter though! I hope you stay and join in our discussions more?
Newmastersswimmer
Karlene,
Thanks for your input...but Frank Thompson still posts here all of the time?...He made a posting today or yesterday in fact.....he seems to be posting at the same rate he always posts....LBJ has been posting a bit less....but he is still posting from time to time and still sharing his unique sense of humour with us in every posting. Gull left because he caused a fight and got mad and left. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but I agree more with new posters ensignia and wren (and a few other brand new posters as well such as VenusEnvy and Caped Crusade, poolraat ...etc...) and that is that the vast majority of the new posters really enjoy the vast majority of the banter around here....Did you read what ensignia and wren had to say? I think everyone has a right to express thier opinions (such as yourself) but I have to say that I do not really share your opinion when you say there has been very little posting here of any quality?? We all want to attract more members to USMS as the administrators have pointed out as well....but many of the new posters said they were encouraged to join USMS because of the banter that you have claimed to have such low quality....I guess it is a matter of taste? I personally really enjoy most of the banter around here....the only thing I don't like is the occaissional fighting and insulting that goes on....I love all the lighthearted banter though! I hope you stay and join in our discussions more?
Newmastersswimmer
