Railroad Forums 

  • new forum , Railroad economics and politics ????

  • General discussion about the RAILROAD.NET site, forums, or content ONLY. Please do not post your general railroading questions, please choose an appropriate forum. For help using the site, please post in the Help Using RAILROAD.NET Forum.
General discussion about the RAILROAD.NET site, forums, or content ONLY. Please do not post your general railroading questions, please choose an appropriate forum. For help using the site, please post in the Help Using RAILROAD.NET Forum.

Moderator: Jeff Smith

 #399228  by JoeG
 
I think it could be a good forum; that's why I volunteered to be one of the mods. But, I can see that the idea might not work; it could degenerate into flame wars or into rigid ideological camps.

So, I'd like to suggest we start this forum with an explicit limit of a month. At the end of the month, the mods and Otto will decide whether to continue it or drop it.

 #399261  by CNJ
 
JoeG wrote:I think it could be a good forum; that's why I volunteered to be one of the mods. But, I can see that the idea might not work; it could degenerate into flame wars or into rigid ideological camps.

So, I'd like to suggest we start this forum with an explicit limit of a month. At the end of the month, the mods and Otto will decide whether to continue it or drop it.
I agree with Joe..Let us know when you'd like for us to start setting it up.

 #399264  by David Benton
 
a compronmise would be to drop the politics . just focus on the economic issues . It would not be an easy forum .

 #399285  by JoeG
 
If you have economics you will get politics; nothing is more political than economics. Whether the forum works depends not on the title but on what our members do with it.

 #399372  by David Benton
 
That is true , and just becasue the subject is broad , doesnt mean it would be ok to go offtopic . It must be about Railroads , first and foremost .
 #399401  by henry6
 
GOLDEN-ARM wrote:
henry6 wrote:RULE TWO: MODERATOR HAS TO BE 100% IMPARTIAL IN EVERY AND ALL DISCUSSIONS AND WILL HAVE FINAL AUTHORITY IN HIS/HER ACTION
I think God has better things to do, than to come moderate THIS particular forum....... :wink:
100% impartial? I say 100% IMPOSSIBLE............... :(
This forum, would be a minefield, time-bomb and a barrel of agitated, venomous snakes, all in the same room, at the same time. Care to enter?.......... :P

You are right of course. The mere hint of making a decision indicates a judgement based on experiences, thoughts, feelings, convictions, et.al. But without decisions and judgements nothing would get done in this world. Really, this is a good place and a good time to give the idea a chance.

 #399406  by LCJ
 
It really is possible to have intelligent discussions about such things without it degenerating into personal attacks.

But I don't see much chance of that here...

 #399418  by Otto Vondrak
 
Do you folks understand why I am so cautious? It seems that no discussion of politics can take place without kicking and screaming about something. Ever watch those Sunday morning panel discussion shows?

I'm still not quite convinced. But I'm not the only one you have to win over here...
 #399431  by henry6
 
OTTO, don't be afraid of the term "political discussion" here. It is needed and it need not be name calling and personal attacks on or by anyone; if so the moderator(s) simply suspends the offenders. If everything about behavior and language is defined upfront, with an acknowledged "must read" before participating, then it should be ok. There are enough people out there who want to, and can, discuss railroading and politics and opinions and theories, that you should allow for it to happen.

One of the rules could be that any statement presented as fact has to be verified or documented by the one who posts such statements and his statement and post could be held up or removed until such verification. Difficult? Maybe. Possible? Yes. Worth a try? Definitely.

 #399438  by CNJ
 
LCJ wrote:It really is possible to have intelligent discussions about such things without it degenerating into personal attacks.
Yes you are correct, and the intent here is to have moderators who will actively engaged on the forum...and not just have their hands on the lock button.

The rules of engagement need to be clearly and concisely pointed out. Once they have been established then they need to be implemented to the letter.

And again, as was stated before, it must relate to railroads and railroad operations. Intelligent and meaningful discussion is possible. And you already have people (myself included) who have volunteered to step up to see that it works.

If you are still nervous about it, then give it a trial period of about a month, and lets see where it goes (or doesn't go) from there.

Sound fair enough?

Your Opinion(s)?

 #399536  by CNJ
 
Otto Vondrak wrote:Appeal to the Webmaster. I'm just the Creative Director.

-otto-
Your statement implies that the Webmaster has already decided against the idea.

If thats the case, was it based on your recommendation?

 #399561  by Otto Vondrak
 
Nothing of the sort has happened, but so far you have only been campaigning one partner in this site...

http://railroad.net/contact

I'm one voice of three. If the other two think it's a good idea, then of course, I'll go along with it.

-otto-

 #399903  by gp80mac
 
I can understand Mr. Vondrak's nervousness, but the subject has merit. While there seems to be some kind of issue against discussing politics, economics, and unions, these are the core issues regarding railroads today and yesteryear.

In my still very new career on the railroad, the previous three are discussed almost exclusively. Paint schemes and strobe lights (whole worthy subjects in their own right) are not talked about in the least. So I guess the question remains whether to make this a forum discussing railroads, or a forum dealing with only the "popular" railfan topics. I believe that the forbidden three topics mentioned above could survive, albeit with active, open moderation. And as Mr. Hensley put it, this can not be accomplished by throwing padlocks around like candy at a parade.

Not my board, so it is not my choice.