Yes, people do. That is how many folks have been this summer.
Things get tense every summer because people are really upset about not being able to ski or snowboard. It has happened every summer but with the bad economy, folks this year are particularly on edge.
Decisions regarding this board are not made on a whim or because of an overreaction. They are based on enforcing the forum rules as well as maintaining the community standards. The former is black and white, the latter is more fluid. In the past year or so the community standard has changed from what it was and that is fine and normal, until it begins to fundamentally change the tone of the board. That is where we were at in the opinion of more than one person and of the owner.
Such a change is by no means herculean. Over the past two days there has been a lot misconstrued statements and misconceptions as to what is happening. The most troubling criticism is that somehow people are being censored solely because of the opinion that they express. That is not true. The fact that people during the last two or three days have been freely able to express this opinion undercuts that very argument.
The second misconception is that banning from this site is a common occurrence and something that happens on a whim. Banning a member is a last resort and is infrequent, except in the case of "drive bys" or people who post obvious spam. We apply a test before banning someone who is a member and we understand that this is the last resort. A decision is not taken lightly and as said is not made on a snap decision, but after deliberation by the mods and discussion. A majority vote is required. Consideration is given to if the member respects the community, in sum contributes meaningfully to the board, has respected advice from the management regarding behavior, and if the membership respects and values the member. When a person intentionally and frequently disrespects the members of the board and its rules it hurts everyone. At no time is a person's "opinion" the basis for a decision to ban. Quite far from it.
The keystone is respect--does the person respect others in their behavior. Disagreeing with someone's opinion is clearly acceptable and fine, but making repeated ad hominem attacks and mocking someone is not acceptable. E.g. saying, "I think that XYZ is the best resort," is clearly fine, but "you are an idiot," or making repeated wisecracks or attacks of the person, and not their opinion, is not respectful.
During the last few months many ad hominem attacks have taken place and it has lowered the quality of the dialogue in this room. As stated, many have felt that it is acceptable to put down people, but to complain to the mods when they become the target of the same behavior. The bottom line is that no such behavior is acceptable. While this might not be "fun" or as cool, it is what this board's standard has long been--a place to discuss many topics without the personal attacks.
The distinction between "opinion" and "personal attack" can be thin and blurry. The distinction is clear when the thrust of the comment goes to the person making the other comment rather than the person's idea.
One last point is the advice my family used to say in our small town business, "if you like our service and products, tell others. If you have a problem, tell us." In this context that means a PM to Greg or any of the mods, not posting personal and public attacks. The latter is disrespectful and has been used as an attempt to grandstand. A couple members wrote some particularly hurtful comments on Friday, with one making some very serious accusations about the management of this board and perceived biases. Despite repeated attempts to privately discuss the concerns, the members felt it was fine to publicly make the accusations. This behavior is at the very least disrespectful and could even be considered as slander at the expense of others. While this was an attempt to attack certain people it only reflected poorly on those who made the accusations.
We have nowhere to go but forward. We hope that people will move ahead and continue to discuss what is important and be respectful of others. In our society if people were respectful we would not need moderators, but that is our job and it is for the benefit of all.
Last edited:
