General Chat

Robin, not everyone can agree all the time and sometimes it is going to get a bit heated. Yes there have been some awful things said, personal things about some members, and things that nobody ever had any right to say, but hopefully that's all in the past now and we've all moved on.

Sylvia, I wasn't doubting you, I was just surprised as I've never seen it myself. As you say, if it was in the early ours our time, then I'm not suprised, there were many nights where there were some gin-soaked comments made that were removed by morning. :-\

Hi

Thank you for your comments


Some of you seem to doubt that there were occasions when I was told to not post because I was not British ......... let me say that most of those messages were posted in the early hours of the morning.

Same for at least one down under member who was told the same thing.

I tried to give the posters the benefit of the doubt as to whether they were drunk or just plain discriminatory against overseas members


But it is also probable that the messages were removed before most people were up in the UK, or were on threads that slipped off the front page, or did not attract your attention ......... I did not go back to check after the first reading. Why upset myself a second time?

I chalked it up to experience, and an inward promise to myself to avoid that poster.



Uggers

..... I was born in Britain. I left in 1967, and have been a naturalized Canadian since 1974.

Britain to me now is a place to visit as a tourist ................. but that does not mean that I do not have an interest in what happens in the UK, politically or otherwise. Just as I have a great interest in a number of other countries, especially ones that we have lived in or visited for extended lengths of time.

I may be getting older, but my brain is still engaged! :-D

Same here Kay,
I will talk to anyone.......then again I'm easy....LOL

I dont think us common folk are up market enough to be **clicky **,,,,,,,,,we'll mix with anyone..... :-D :-D :-D

I think that's true Teresa, there are some very long running threads that are not in the least cliquey but just so 'established' it would be hard for a newbie to jump in on...I realise that I don't add to them myself lol, even though I know most of the people on them to some extent.

Part of that is lack of time to read through and 'catch up', and it's easier ( for me) to pop on and post on 'topic' threads or post my own ramblings.

And I would say to newbies if you do feel like posting your own thread ( maybe because a topic you are interested in isn't on here or just to say hello ) it is often a better way of getting to know people..... 'we' then have to come to 'you' lol
:-D

Just a small observation here, and certainly NOT a dig at anyone, but if we are talking of perceived 'cliques' on this board, we do have threads on here, that by their titles, could be perceived as 'cliquey'. ie, 'Canucks International', and the Aussies thread.

Anyone who looks into these threads and actually reads them, would know right away they are open and friendly threads for all, not just the nationalities mentioned, but the title would surely give a new person the PERCEPTION that it might be exclusive, therefore the entire board being 'cliquey'.

Maybe if the thread titles of these and others were better thought out and written to sound more inclusive that perception might diminish?

Again, I've used those two as an obvious example, not singling anyone or any thread in particular.

Again I agree with you TW, I don't think we are so bad!

Sheila I agree with you too. In the old days on the old style chat it took me ages to 'break in' to a conversation, and being a slower typist than some my answers were always a long way behind and therefore ignored. However, I did persevere and enjoyed a lot of laughs with the likes of Colin and Grandpa Jim, but yes that style chat board had the potential to be a perceived clique.

Well maybe I'm not so easily offended (thicker skinned) than others, but I've never seen any negative comments about someone's nationality. Perhaps it just all goes over my head ;-)

If you put up the word 'newbies' in the search box, and search through a few pages, you'll find a few threads welcoming newbies to the boards and asking them to introduce themselves. In fact, Rose herself has put a couple of them up. Unfortunately they do run their time and slip off the page eventually...but you only have to look. So to say it's up to us to welcome newbies...well I think we fulfilled that one :-D

Ann - just goes to show, 'nothing changes', lol!

I actually think the board is less cliquey now than it was in those (early) days.

Just been looking back at posts in 2002/3 and thought this one posted on 9 July 2003 was appropriate for this thread Lol!!

Any chance of having 2 members boards, one for the clicky lot, and one where you actually stand a chance of getting a word in edgeways?


Plus ca change plus sa meme chose (or something like that - nothing changes.

Interesting that it seems to have been a year before the boards were chat boards, originally it seems to have been mainly genealogy chat and confusion!

I shall try and pick my words with care :-D which may be difficult since I'm wrecked today lol, still couging and also up at 4 chasing a mouse round the house :-0



I HAVE seen, as Sylvia says, a degree of 'unfriendliness' towards some posters from other countries, of the 'you don't live here, so you don't know' variety.... that must be very annoying for those who live overseas yet take an interest in world affairs generally...and the 'Old Country' in particular :-)

that has on occasion worked the other way too, but as many of you know it won't matter whether I live 'there' or not I will still comment if I feel I might know something about it worth saying ( debateable lol).

No one should have to prove they are not 'someone else' , but unfortunately that has often been the case thanks to a small number of people who will insist on causing trouble by posing as 'new' to settle old scores or just to cast suspicion. Just lately we don't seem to be having that problem , maybe the protagonists have grown weary of the game? I do hope so.

I dare say there will be new members to replace all of US current 'oldies' who post a lot lol, so 'Welcome' to them, please post :-D

The old general board was once a very groupie board. and to just jump in on a thread with wit or comment wasnt the done thing old bean !,,,,,,I know I got told that when I ventured onto a thread back in Feb 2003 it was then called -Members Board of Genes Connect ..so I let membership run out.....very unwelcoming lot and seemed to have a leader who called the shots and so so serious....

Most of the time everyone gets along, but I'd agree with Sylvia - there have been occasions when someone living outside of GB has been told their comments regarding something essentially British weren't welcome.

Personally, I find that points of view from another perspective should be welcome.

My first post was about our fiftieth wedding anniversary, and the number of congratulations we received amazed me. I now post when and where I feel an interest, and occasionally start a thread, some of which are ignored, some keep going. I have now met a few, made a good friend in Jude, who lives not far from us and is coming for coffee this morning, But it doesnt take long to get to 'know' people and find those you connect with. For some of us this site is a lifeline to laughter and sometimes commonsense. Newbies, do join in and dont be afraid of being ignored, it happens to all of us from time to time. <3 <3

Have to agree with Ann, TW and Uggers and say I've never seen anyone be told that it's a Brits only board...granted I don't read every thread every day.....but it's certainly not something I'd ever imagine happening on the old General or Chat boards.....all nationalities chat without boundaries as far as I've seen ..must've been a rogue WUM rather than a regular poster...that's all I can think x

I've seen a few generalisations about nationalities but never seen any real discrimination - I don't know where most people live let alone what nationality they are, although Sylvia, I thought I'd seen you post that you *were* British.

A few good points made by Sylvia, but like Ann, I have never, in all the years on these boards witnesses any discriminatory posts toward anyone not in UK. However, I never posted on the old chat, and I will admit, that WAS very cliquey, and the one time I did pluck up courage to post on there I was told to get back to general, I didn't belong there.

Fortunately there was nothing like that on general, or the new chat, and now on general chat. (For newer people looking in, we used to have the General board, and a Chat board that was just a single thread, then GR changed it to General and Chat, which were both the same, now they have combined the two)

Quoting Sylvia on one point..."May I dare to make the suggeston that it isn't up to newbies to this board to introduce themselves, but for the regulars to "meet and greet"?"

How? We don't know they are there until they post? :-D

To be fair, and you can check on my posts if you want, I and many others have always welcomed newbies to the boards once they've taken the plunge and posted...or as I've often put it, 'welcome to the madhouse, we're all gaga here but don't let that put you off '

How strange Sylvia that I have never in all the time I have been a member, been aware of any discrimination between Nationalities. Maybe I have been around with my eyes shut, or maybe it is because I am not on the boards UK time 10.30pm to 0830ish. I have only ever been aware of the interest shown about the way others live.

I have to say, if I spot a newbie I always welcome them to the boards. But in defence of those who don't, we have been through some very uncomfortable times when 'newbies' were actually 'oldies' who returned in disguise to cause mayhem. This created a feeling of distrust among members and some closed ranks. This mainly happened on the chat board and not usually gen board. It could be easier now that we are all on one board to keep abreast with what is happening.

As you know you have always been made welcome on any of my threads and my most recent thread (Has the heart gone out of the message boards) which tried to do almost the same as this one brought in some welcome 'new blood' who are still with us but mostly only on that thread.

I would also add that I didn't have very happy experiences when I did start posting on Chat, and that is another reason why I am wary, and do not think of it as a "friendly" place.

As I said, I started posting about 2 years ago

I was ignored on a couple of threads ..... just as I had been 5 years earlier, but I persevered because people kept telling me that there were good threads and people on Chat.


I was told that I had no right to express an opinion on something-or-other as I was Canadian, so stop posting and go away (not so politely!).

Brits only wanted, obviously!

That happened a couple of times, so it was not a single experience


I felt disgusted .... and imagine what a newbie would feel seeing that remark!


I was accused of being someone else ............. and had no right to post under another name ............. the rationale there was rather strange

................ I was the other person because we posted at the same time, and also because we didn't post at the same time

For the record, I have never had another name on GR, and thus have never posted under another name



so Kay, there have been people on Chat trying to "police" the board, and rather nastily at that! There was some sort of jury keeping track .......... and boy oh boy did they pounce!


It's called discrimination in most circles of life

The "rules" I was given to understand were to not post anything that might annoy a Brit. Never express an opinion on life in Britain, politics, royalty or anything.


Nor am I the only non-Brit to have received this treatment.

I stick to a few threads where I have come to know people, and avoid a lot of other threads that might be very interesting, with posters who may well be very pleasant with some but have not seemed to be so to me.


It's all in the eye of the beholder of course!

Chat in the ealry days wasnt threaded as now and so moved faster as replies were misplaced and that made it hilarious but it was still an open board where anyone just hopped on board amongest regular posters...

I think that it appears to any new member looking in that approval from somewhere or someone is neeeded for them to post,,,but we're all at the same level as all other members,,,in that thats all we are a **paying member** regardless of time spent on site...no one has been given a supervisiors badge...

**New members dont feel you have to pass any jury to post on chat because you dont,,,,,,,only GR are in charge and can enforce any RULES on you.**