Please welcome new moderator!

[Moses]

Jellybean.

Congratulations!

[arsenal]

Good show.

[a447]

Congratulations, old bean!

I say, jolly good news!

[Brad the Impala]

Has he volunteered or been press ganged? Can't be as bad as the last one!

[arsenal]

Poor baby Brad. I moderate for 6 months and it ruins his life to the extent he can't let go. Such power you now have Jelly. Haha.

[Moses]

6789

[arsenal]

Jelllybean. They will come to this thtead and try to lay down their markers, try to bullly you and attempt to use a force of numbers to suggest you let them do as they please. Remember, it's all pixels and nothing more. Enjoy.

[Brad the Impala]

Damn those posters can be troublesome, can't they Arsenal! I expect you kept your uniform in the hope that you might get another opportunity to deal with them in the future.

6790

[arsenal]

You're not troublesome Brad. A little bored in life perhaps but that's an issue for you.

[Jellybean]

Good show.


Congratulations, old bean!

I say, jolly good news!

Why, thank you kindly gentlemen.


Has he volunteered or been press ganged? Can't be as bad as the last one!

All I can say, Brad the Impala, is that my name emerged from recommendations put to Moses and I was approached and asked if I wished to serve as the third moderator. I carefully considered the matter and decided to let my name go forward.

And I would also say to you, Brad the Impala, and to the wider membership, that on taking on the role of moderator I shall give it my best shot and promise to serve fairly, impartiality and without fear or favour. This is exactly what I did when I was employed as a civil servant in the UK.

If members post within the rules, and the majority of members do, then you and the other members will not hear from me.

[scottish-guy]

Jesus Christ.

:unknw_mini:

[bkkguy]

Jesus Christ.

while he is popular in some circles I don't know that JC would make a suitable moderator here

and is Moses having second thoughts? at the time of this post Jellybean's status still shows as "senior member"!

bkkguy

[scottish-guy]

Well at least we'll have the amusement of being moderated in the literary style of Charles Dickens.

I wouldn't worry about Jellybean's status not having been updated just a few days after his investiture - look at this shambles almost a year after Surfy gave it up!

6792

[Moses]

at the time of this post Jellybean's status still shows as "senior member"!

bkkguy

It was cached to server's memory from past time and I forgot to delete cache, fixed, thank you

[goji]

Hopefully the new moderator can kick SAMEBB off to where he belongs.

[Smiles]

No offence to JellyBean in any way . . . but why on earth does this Board need three Moderators at all. A bit ridiculous really.

[scottish-guy]

I'm doing my own moderation these days - here's an example:

6805

[a447]

No offence to JellyBean in any way . . . but why on earth does this Board need three Moderators at all. A bit ridiculous really.

The mods are in different times zones, so that way the board can be monitored most of the time.

I think that's the reason behind the number of mods.

[arsenal]

Scottish Guy wrote.
"I'm doing my own moderation these days - here's an example:"

I should.have held out for the fifty quid he was prepared to pay. Oh well.

[christianpfc]

No offence to JellyBean in any way . . . but why on earth does this Board need three Moderators at all. A bit ridiculous really.
Not all moderators are reading the forum all the time. I can go for days without reading the forum when I have other business.

[Jellybean]

No offence to JellyBean in any way . . . but why on earth does this Board need three Moderators at all. A bit ridiculous really.

None taken, Smiles, it’s a legitimate question for a member to ask.

I see that a447 and ChristianPFC have already answered and I hope their answers adequately dealt with your question.

[Nirish guy]

Surely by Christians own admission there though in his earlier post and as it can be several days between him logging on when travelling etc and the whole point of having three mods was to have world time zone "coverage" that fact seems to bugger that idea up a bit somewhat.

And that's no slant on Christian btw as he's damned right not to waste his time feeling he should be logging on here when away shagging / travelling, I'm merely flagging up that IF that was the general idea then Christian ( who does seem to travel alot) maybe wasn't that best choice at the time when appointing yet another Mod. But of course that's totally up to Moses to decide, not us mere mortals - but just flagging up the fact.

Oh and PS a belated congratulations to you Jellybean on your appointment, I've no doubt you'll endeavour do a grand job for one and all here in the true spirit of the Civil Service ! ( OMG does your appointment mean we're now going to have to fill out several forms, all in triplicate and in black in before being able to post - please tell us that's not going to be the case !! :-).......actually now that I think of it that maybe wouldn't be the worst rule for some posters here ! :-) lol

[Jellybean]

. . . Oh and PS a belated congratulations to you Jellybean on your appointment, I've no doubt you'll endeavour do a grand job for one and all here in the true spirit of the Civil Service ! ( OMG does your appointment mean we're now going to have to fill out several forms, all in triplicate and in black in before being able to post - please tell us that's not going to be the case !! :-).......actually now that I think of it that maybe wouldn't be the worst rule for some posters here ! :-) lol

Thanks NIrish-guy, that means a lot coming from you.

If I am fair and impartial (got the spelling right this time) and I also promise to wear my reading glasses when posting from now on, so as to avoid any further spelling howlers, I hope I can count on the support of the majority of our members.

And, er . . . em . . . I am sorry to say, but those forms were sent out yesterday and should arrive on your doormat tomorrow morning. You’ ll no doubt recognise them, as they’ll be a brown envelope and headed OHMS. Do let me have them back within the next 30 days, there’s a good fellow.

;)

[a447]

...those forms were sent out yesterday ....You’ll no doubt recognise them, as they’ll be a brown envelope and headed OHMS.

I can only hope the OHMS is prominently displayed, and he doesn't confuse them with all those other plain brown envelopes that get delivered to his door every day!

[arsenal]

Point of order Jellybean.

Can I claim the costs of the many hours I spent moderating.the board , to near universal acclaim (surely no one will bite) as tax deductable including the costs of all my trips to Thailand during the period?

[Nirish guy]

I can only hope the OHMS is prominently displayed, and he doesn't confuse them with all those other plain brown envelopes that get delivered to his door every day!

Ahhhh no those are the one's with STI'c on them, I never open them as I always assumed they just stood for Statistics Management Information Commission ? However I've a terrible itch that just won't seem to go away that has been here as long as those letters have been arriving, I really should open one of them one of these days as I've a feeling that I may have made a terrible mistake !

[Smiles]

Despite the lame attempts to justify a Mod-thick field, this smallish message board with only about 20 'regulars' (if that) heartily posting away with gusto hardly needs a triad of Mods (plus Moses ... busy parting waters?) watching over the Board Babies 24/7.
Missing a once-in-a-while horror story posted by some pathetic troll for a few hours is distinctly not the end of worlds.

Moses + JellyBean sounds about right.

[Nirish guy]

Without any slant intended whatsoever towards A447 or Christian, who have by and large just kept their heads down and just got on with things without any dramas and managed to post away as themselves too at the same time without muddying those waters either ( more or less ) I would tend to agree with you Smiles - but this is all a moot point of course as as we've all been reminded on numerous occasions this is not a democracy and you / our / any opinion re such matters not a jot and can be stuck where the sun doesn't shine, lets not loose sight of that fact and so waste time discussing such matters even perhaps as such posts fall for sure on deaf Russian ears I fear.

[Moses]

deaf Russian ears

weak try... you can do better

[Moses]

Despite the lame attempts to justify a Mod-thick field, this smallish message board with only about 20 'regulars' (if that) heartily posting away with gusto hardly needs a triad of Mods (plus Moses ... busy parting waters?) watching over the Board Babies 24/7.
Missing a once-in-a-while horror story posted by some pathetic troll for a few hours is distinctly not the end of worlds.

Moses + JellyBean sounds about right.

Please don't limit yourself: you also may visit nearby groceries and tell to owner how many sales persons he has to have.

[a447]

Missing a once-in-a-while horror story posted by some pathetic troll for a few hours is distinctly not the end of worlds.

No. But missing lèse majeste posts may well be.

We've had 4 attempts to destroy the board in Thailand already. Luckily, they were caught in time and quickly removed.

[Brad the Impala]

Please don't limit yourself: you also may visit nearby groceries and tell to owner how many sales persons he has to have.

The difference being that here the posters provide the content that bring people to the site that you organise and pay for. Of course you can ignore those opinions, or listen to them, and equally you can respond graciously or not.

[Nirish guy]

weak try... you can do better

I wasn't "trying" to do anything, just stating an opinion as I seen it - I know you don't like that but I believe we're still allowed to here - just. And PS if I went to a grocery shop and in passing on what I felt was genuine constructive advice or opinion and the owner said "shup up, I dont care what you think" I would call them one right cheeky bastard.

You're confusing people having a simple genuine discussing about numbers of Mod's etc on the board that they visit - where NO-ONE by the way is casting any negative views or opinions about ANY of those Mods - just in case you're unsure about that - as something very critical of you or your choices - it's not that and no one is doing that here.

Perhaps maybe just relax a little bit more and engage with your posters in a more postive way and that positivity way may well be returned towards you you may find - or don't, totally up to you as they say - just a suggestion - for you to ignore or otherwise as you see fit.

[Moses]

I wasn't "trying" to do anything, just stating an opinion as I seen it

Should I believe, what words "deaf Russian ears" have any "opinion"?

[sglad]

Despite the lame attempts to justify a Mod-thick field, this smallish message board with only about 20 'regulars' (if that) heartily posting away with gusto hardly needs a triad of Mods (plus Moses ... busy parting waters?) watching over the Board Babies 24/7.
Missing a once-in-a-while horror story posted by some pathetic troll for a few hours is distinctly not the end of worlds.


Good point. I don't see a need for a moderator given the relatively small number of posts and posters. If somebody posts something that promoted a clearly repulsive activity such as sex with underaged boys or in contravention of the lese majeste laws or something that is blatantly false or might bring harm to an individual, then it can easily be flagged to the board owner who can then take the appropriate action if needed. Other vague infractions such as a perceived personal slight or insult, which are easily open to abuse by those in power to shut down dissenting opinion, can be determined on a case-by-case basis if there's sufficient outrage from other board members on the matter. Unfortunately, and not surprisingly, it is often those who are in power who abuse it to shut down dissenting opinion or people whose backgrounds and motivations for going to Thailand may be different to their own.

[Jellybean]

NIrish-guy and other members, I wonder if I may explain how I see things as a very new member of the moderating team.

Not so long ago, I too thought having three moderators was too many for such a small forum. It seemed to me like over kill and akin to having too many police officers walking the streets. That's how I used to feel while sitting in gay cafes in London’s Old Compton Street in Soho. There always seemed to be too many police officers on patrol or in cars or vans. It didn’t make me feel safe, for me it created an oppressive atmosphere. And I found myself thinking there must be better things they could be doing to keep London safe.

But having three moderators does indeed work well. Sometimes we are asked to vote on a particular action, or come to a majority decision. With three you can ensure there is always a majority. And, as has been said, we are in different time zones, which means we can, more or less, cover the forum over a 24 hour period.

And we all have lives away from the Forum and cannot always be instantly available to deal with a problem. Having three moderators and Moses around, means it is more likely that someone will be available most of the time.

And if a member alerts us to a damaging, malicious or serious breach of the rules by using the red triangle at the bottom left-hand side of the offending post, whichever moderator is awake, or free at the time, will be able to react. An email alert is automatically generated and sent to us and at least one of us can instantly deal with the matter before too much damage is done.

And, as a447 has already said, one of the things we are always on the lookout for is any post or image which breaks Rule 3.2.1.3, which states:

“Negative references to Thailand royal family. Thailand has very strict laws about this. The authorities have varying ideas on what are negative references so, as a general rule, it is better to just avoid the subject.”

The last thing we want, especially members living or holidaying in Thailand, is for the forum to be blocked in Thailand. I remember only too well how annoying and inconvenient it was to have to use a VPN to get around this. And invariably, whenever I tried to post, more often than not, my connection broke down and I had to start from scratch. Believe me, it was deeply irritating and I would really hate to have to go through all that again when I return to Thailand.

So, for all of the above reasons, Moses has, quite rightly in my view, decided that having three moderators is the appropriate number for overseeing the Forum.

I hope that my explanation, based on my short experience as a moderator, has been able to assuage your concerns NIrish-guy and has helped you and other members to understand Moses’ thinking on this matter.

[a447]

Sglad wrote:


If somebody posts something that promoted a clearly repulsive activity such as sex with underaged boys or in contravention of the lese majeste laws or something that is blatantly false or might bring harm to an individual, then it can easily be flagged to the board owner who can then take the appropriate action if needed.

When would Moses find time to sleep? Do you expect him to monitor the board 24/7?


Other vague infractions such as a perceived personal slight or insult, which are easily open to abuse by those in power

Wrong. Moderators recuse themselves, and Moses or the remaining 2 mods deal with the situation. Any action is based solely on the Posted Guidelines and Rules. If you are unhappy with those, you can always lobby the owner to change them.

Can you think of one example where "dissenting opinion" has been "shut down?" If so, in what way was it "shut down?" Was the thread locked? Deleted?

I deleted a post of yours in which you made a thoroughly disgusting and spiteful suggestion to a member who is suffering health issues. Was that an example of an abuse of power by a moderator, by any chance?

Or was that an example of your self-proclaimed ability to debate like an adult?

This topic has been done to death. Get over it!

[Moses]

Good point. I don't see a need for a moderator given the relatively small number of posts and posters. If somebody posts something that promoted a clearly repulsive activity such as sex with underaged boys or in contravention of the lese majeste laws or something that is blatantly false or might bring harm to an individual, then it can easily be flagged to the board owner who can then take the appropriate action if needed.

Let me show how fast modern technologies are.

These words were written 6 hours ago (see post #31):


We've had 4 attempts to destroy the board in Thailand already. Luckily, they were caught in time and quickly removed.

They were indexed and published by Google 4 hours ago (https://www.google.com/search?newwindow=1&source=hp&ei=TIPsWsLDIIuysQGm9buQAg&q="We%27ve+had+4+attempts+to+destroy+the+board+in+Tha iland+already.+Luckily%2C+they+were+caught+in+time +and+quickly+removed."&oq="We%27ve+had+4+attempts+to+destroy+the+board+in+Tha iland+already.+Luckily%2C+they+were+caught+in+time +and+quickly+removed."&gs_l=psy-ab.3...1684.2978.0.4217.5.4.0.0.0.0.72.72.1.2.0... .0...1c.1.64.psy-ab..3.0.0.0...57.BPuBilVYONs) - just in 2 hours after been published here.

We have here only 2 hours for action. Sometimes even less. Do you still think what it is job for one person - to keep forum safe?

[sglad]

I deleted a post of yours in which you made a thoroughly disgusting and spiteful suggestion to a member who is suffering health issues. Was that an example of an abuse of power by a moderator, by any chance?

Hmmm I don't know...as far as I can tell, all your insults and mockery of cdnmatt's blindness are still there not to mention your demand that he publish his very personal medical records...how many yellow cards did you give yourself? Did the other moderators give you any? I'm sure if we were to add them up you'd have been banned permanently from this forum a long time ago.

But then the rules don't apply to you, do they?

[scottish-guy]

I see Moses is still unable to accept any criticism whatsoever and is still lashing out at any remark he perceives to be a slight. To get his knickers in a twist over "Russian ears" seems out of all proportion.

A former (totally useless) Mod has exactly the same character failings (amongst many others), and it saddens me to observe that a447's unnecessarily aggressive response to Sglad seems to indicate that he has caught the same disease.

Is it a case of "follow my leader" or is it a case of recruiting in one's own image? What came first - the chicken or the egg?

At least Jellybean is civil (so far)

[Moses]

I see scottish-guy is still unable to explain what his "opinion" is hidden in words "deaf Russian ears"

[scottish-guy]

I don't even understand the question - are you suggesting it was a racist remark?

:aggressive:

[Moses]

are you suggesting it's a racist remark?

you wrote post with words "deaf Russian ears" and then you wrote post, what first post was "opinion"... so I'm just asking: what opinion is hidden in words "deaf Russian ears"? there is no suggestion in my question - it is just a question...

[Nirish guy]

I think you're getting confused Moses, It was I not Sg who wrote about "deaf russian ears" - actually what I said exactly was " so why waste time discussing such matters even perhaps as such posts fall for sure on deaf Russian ears I fear" - maybe you're not understanding my meaning, but the use of that phrase does not imply that you are "actually" deaf but rather it means that "there's no point in having this discussion as I doubt Moses would want to hear it or listen anyway"

That wasn't an insult or me calling you deaf in case you think it was ( as you seem to have ) - it was me suggesting that "in my opinion" that you simply wouldn't be interested in listening to any opinions being expressed anyway re this matter as you have your own views about it and to date you have never appeared to shown any great interest in hearing board members views on ANY subject as you've stated quite clearly that "this isn't a democracy" etc.

The Russian part was literally me saying that as you ARE Russian ( I presume) and that meant nothing more than that.

I hope that clears that up for you.

Also ( Jellybean) just for the record I am neither concerned or unconcerned about the number of Mod's - I do personally think there's too many for a board this size and it seems a few others agreed with that also, however I also accept that there could well be reasons for that decision which we lesser mortals enmasse are not aware of and I fully accept that.

You however kindly took the time to point the owners reasons for his thinking, which on reading your post does actually make some sense ( I still haven't changed my opinion but do see the other side of the conversation from the board owners view now too) .

My isn't it amazing what a simple civil post does to clear things up, perhaps Moses should appoint you as his offical board spokesman to avoid his apprent urge to jump on his board contributors for any precieved slight, intended or otherwise lest they ever express any opinion on the forum - on the page for discussing matters regarding the forum.

[scottish-guy]

you wrote post with words "deaf Russian ears" and then you wrote post, what first post was "opinion"... so I'm just asking: what opinion is hidden in words "deaf Russian ears"? there is no suggestion in my question - it is just a question...

Moses, I think you have lost the plot altogether - I wrote nothing of the sort.

I suggest you address your "question" to the person who wrote about "deaf Russian ears" - which was NIrish, and not me - but since you have asked, I believe he was expressing his opinion that you don't listen to any criticism, but he is well able to speak for himself (as I'm sure he will)

[scottish-guy]

Well, clearly my reply "crossed in the post"!

:drink:

[Moses]

Well, clearly my reply "crossed in the post"!

:drink:

op-s.. sorry, yeah...

[a447]

In what way was I "agressive?"

Forthright, yes.

I'm just sick and tired of sglad's constant stream of lame insults aimed at me. For example, close to half of all his posts in the last 2 weeks have targeted me. Stupid, snide remarks. He had the good sense to delete one.

He has now returned to gaythailand.com and started to attack me over there, as he knows he can no longer insult members with impunity on this board.

And for you, sglad, to equate seeking explanations from Matt as to his blindness with your degrading post targeting a member here is ludicrous.

Please show me where I demanded matt post his medical records. From memory, I asked for a couple of words;viz "optic nerve", from his medical report, not his entire medical records.

I questioned matt's story, as have many others here. Did you conveniently forget about them?

There is nothing wrong with doubting the credibility of someone's story, especially if they refuse to explain contradictions whilst continuing to post the same story ad finitum.

There is no yellow card issued for questioning that.

Oh, and SG, have you been guilty yourself of "aggressive responses" recently? Or would you, like me, call direct responses "forthright?"

Those two words are not the same and convey different messages.

Just wondering.

[scottish-guy]

Whether you see your remarks as "aggressive" or "forthright" isn't really the point - as a moderator do you not agree you should be above petty disputes and public arguments with Sglad (or anybody else for that matter)?

That's why I said I was "saddened"

As for myself, I'm just one of the plebs so it really doesn't matter if I am aggressive, forthright, even provocative - we don't count (as we are constantly reminded)

[arsenal]

Moses wrote.
"I see scottish-guy is still unable to explain what his "opinion" is hidden in words "deaf Russian ears"

I was never able to work out what Scottish Guy and NIrish actually want and what their main complaint is. I still can't.

[a447]

Whether you see your remarks as "aggressive" or "forthright" isn't really the point - as a moderator do you not agree you should be above petty disputes and public arguments with Sglad (or anybody else for that matter)?

SG, you and I have been around this board a long time. By now I think we recognise each other's posting style.

Surely you have noticed that since becoming a moderator I've considerably altered the way I react to certain posts and posters; I've ignored many comments aimed at me and avoided responding as forthright as before, even though I've been sorely tempted to jump in at times. I've had to hold my tongue and just let things slide. That's definitely not like me.

However, I'm also a member, not just a moderator. Sometimes it is better to respond to posters like sglad than to moderate.

Just because I'm a moderator does not mean certain posters are free to attack me at will. I still have the right of reply. And I'm not a punching bag.

Finally, you would have noticed that I criticised the comments made by sglad about me, but resisted the temptation to correct them.

I said to another poster after I became a mod that I refused to get into a to-and-fro argument with him. And I didn't.

And I haven't with sglad, either.

[francois]

Welcome aboard, Captain Jellybean.