Locked Thread

[Dougal 165]

I was just over on 'the other' forum reading a thread about TSA patdowns etc, to find it had been locked because the moderator was "woried where it MIGHT lead" :( Not being in the USA, I found the post interesting.Flippin' eck! talk about heavy handed moderating :(

[Matthew Kane 1,343]

They tend to be a little trigger happy on that lock-down button. I stopped going there and shopping there because of that. Their are other more friendly skies out there :(

[Chock 17,769]

Preemptive moderating, now there's a novel concept. Still, you could always beat them at their own game, by thinking about posting, and then not bothering to do so LOLAl

[Tom Allensworth 1,532]

Preemptive moderating, now there's a novel concept. Still, you could always beat them at their own game, by thinking about posting, and then not bothering to do so LOLAl

Al,We do "preemptive moderating" all the time here. If any of the mods think a thread is going to go south, they lock it down. Believe me, experience dictates that we do that. Having said that, we don't seem to do it as often as we used to. I guess that is because we're getting old and more relaxed about this stuff. But "don't touch our junk", cause you will be out here. As for the TSA thing, I have a boat load of stuff to say about that, but will keep my thoughts to myself.

[Matthew Kane 1,343]

As for the TSA thing, I have a boat load of stuff to say about that, but will keep my thoughts to myself.

I think that wise.....TSA is probably on the Internet seeing what people are saying, adding them to a list perhaps. I don't know though as USA is not my country. But I think I would button my lips as well.I am Canadian Citizen and New Zealand resident so I have less to worry about. We move back to New Zealand this January for good so I get to watch all this drama unfold from the comforts of Paraparaumu Beach. AVSIM is a cool forum. Never had issues on here. I also hang out at ORBX forums with all the other salivating dogs saying...."When's the next release, When's the next release."

[Chock 17,769]

Oh I know moderators need to be ready to lock stuff down, but the point is, if anyone (not simply on a forum) jumps on a subject and determines it is taboo simply because they think it might go awry, rather than actually knowing that it will, then what is happening is the stifling of what might be a legitimate discussion.It's a fine line of course, and where forums are concerned I personally think that moderators have a very hard job when that is considered (which I certainly wouldn't want to do). But in the wider context of open discussion not limited to a forum, I'm always mindful of the fact that if a security system, which has been implemented because of terrorism, cannot be discussed because it is thought to be taboo, then that's an example of a triumph for terrorists, because their actions are directly causing a consequence on whether people are free to discuss something. And that, is a victory for terrorists; a small one, but a victory nonetheless, because aside from the actual devastation caused by 9-11, the other objective of the attack was to impinge on how people live their lives as a result of the measures and reductions in freedoms which the terrorists doubtless knew would ensue as a result of the attack. Terrorists want people to live in fear, on many levels, and if we do, then they've got what they wanted.Al

[JSkorna 137]

Hi All,If I was home and saw that same thread I would have locked it, as Darrell did. We try and keep things civil "over there" just as we do here. If some of you don't like it, well, you can't please all the people all the time.

[ViperPilot 81]

Oh I know moderators need to be ready to lock stuff down, but the point is, if anyone (not simply on a forum) jumps on a subject and determines it is taboo simply because they think it might go awry, rather than actually knowing that it will, then what is happening is the stifling of what might be a legitimate discussion.It's a fine line of course, and where forums are concerned I personally think that moderators have a very hard job when that is considered (which I certainly wouldn't want to do). But in the wider context of open discussion not limited to a forum, I'm always mindful of the fact that if a security system, which has been implemented because of terrorism, cannot be discussed because it is thought to be taboo, then that's an example of a triumph for terrorists, because their actions are directly causing a consequence on whether people are free to discuss something. And that, is a victory for terrorists; a small one, but a victory nonetheless, because aside from the actual devastation caused by 9-11, the other objective of the attack was to impinge on how people live their lives as a result of the measures and reductions in freedoms which the terrorists doubtless knew would ensue as a result of the attack. Terrorists want people to live in fear, on many levels, and if we do, then they've got what they wanted.Al

Mr. Bradbury, I totally agree with your post. Just to clarify; everyone who had posted were commenting on how the TSA screeners treated a passenger with a particular medical condition and their attitude of indifference when the passenger tried to explain the circumstances. The thread COULD have gone down a completely different (and distasteful) road, but it didn't. Being 'civil' is one thing; over-reacting to the point of 'sterility' is excessive. The whole idea of a public forum is to have an avenue to discuss things intelligently, which is what was happening there.Thanks for reading this.Alan :)

[Matthew Kane 1,343]

Hi All,If I was home and saw that same thread I would have locked it, as Darrell did. We try and keep things civil "over there" just as we do here. If some of you don't like it, well, you can't please all the people all the time.

Ah well. No sense talking about it on here. Talk about it on Facebook. That's where most of the talk ends up anyways...I don't go 'over there' anymore but I notice when the Facebook Chatter increases after the locks come on. My Friends from 'over there' take the chatter over to Facebook right after.Nothing wrong with that. Some parts of the internet are over-moderated, some aren't at all.I think some Moderators sometimes come across as those 7-11 clerks that yell at customers for reading the magazines. So you just leave the store and shop somewhere else.

[JSkorna 137]

Hi,Those are not public forums. They are owned and operated by one person and we are there to enforce the wishes of that one person. You are free to to get on Facebook and discuss this and anything else you wish. And, there is no freedom of speech, either.

[Matthew Kane 1,343]

Hi,Those are not public forums. They are owned and operated by one person and we are there to enforce the wishes of that one person. You are free to to get on Facebook and discuss this and anything else you wish. And, there is no freedom of speech, either.

Exactly....and those 711 clerks don't own the store either. Thus the reason why I could never be a moderator.Some of these forums are very helpful though and the people on them are class acts. I just use them to shop, for support of my purchases as well as posting screenshots. Most of my screenshots are over at ORBX right now as that is where I am investing mostly in FSX these days. They got some good stuff coming out right now....

[Dougal 165]

I still don't get though. Everyone was perfectly civil. Nothing 'went south' or even looked like it was going to.I don't dislike the forum. There's usfull info to be had there, just as there is here, and a lot of like minded people.It just seemed such a strange thing to do.

[Matthew Kane 1,343]

I still don't get though. Everyone was perfectly civil. Nothing 'went south' or even looked like it was going to.I don't dislike the forum. There's usfull info to be had there, just as there is here, and a lot of like minded people.It just seemed such a strange thing to do.

I agree. Even JSkorna said he would have locked it down in this thread but he was commenting on the very same topic in this forum: http://forum.avsim.net/topic/317886-national-opt-out-day/page__view__findpost__p__1873999http://forum.avsim.net/topic/317886-national-opt-out-day/page__view__findpost__p__1874222Different set of rules between here and there I guess. You can say things here that you can't say there.Anyhow, like I said there are plenty of other places to go on the Internet.

[JSkorna 137]

I guess talking about the possible amounts of radiation from the scanners is the same as a spilled urine bag from an inspection gone wrong? Please notice the difference.

[Airbrakes 0]

Actually I agree with that level of moderation, and it needs to be applied more often. It only takes one post to turn a regular discussion into a flame war, and usually moderators aren't online when the flame wars start. So, you lock the topic to prevent the inevitable.Also, I don't see how a topic created to bash the TSA will help a particular flight sim community. Everyone hates the TSA.