"urchaidh" wrote in message
oups.com...
David Kemper wrote:
wrote in message
ups.com...
This should be a busy news group.
True, but unfortunately some posters are/were very intolerant of
other
people's opinions, and rather than agree, disagree, or ignore those
opinions, they went elsewhere to a place where dissent is not
permitted.

It was not just "some posters" who went elsewhere, David, more or less
all of the regular posters from the days when this was a vibrant and
useful group left. Your post incorrectly suggests that it was a
minority who went of in the huff, rather than the fact that it was the
majority who left because the newsgroup was becoming unusable.

It was a minority who first left, led by one of the more vocal critics
of Allan, to set up a forum where they could exclude those whose
opinions they didn't want to hear. I gather the forum is getting more
traffic than this group ever enjoyed, so perhaps, for some people, but
only while they agree with the group owner, migrating to a private forum
was a good thing. The functionality of discussion boards has never
impressed me much. I'm aware of the work needed to set up and maintain
such forums, which is fairly time consuming, and must also have some
financial impact. Do the people running the board find time to work and
play as well?


It wasn't intolerance of other peoples' opinions that caused these
people to leave, it was the fact that some people (one in particular)
posted their opinion on one or two topics (BCU corruption, weirs,
personal vendetta against BCU members, etc.) more or less constantly,
to every thread and at every opportunity. The rights and wrongs of
these opinions quickly became irrelevant (he may well have made some
fair points) as the sheer volume of off-topic (to the thread, not to
the group) posting, becoming abusive as people complained, drowned the
group.

I must say here that the abuse seems to have come from other people and
was mainly directed at Allan and Timmy the Sponson Guy.
I haven't any recollection of Allan being abusive. Offensive possibly.
Giving offence can be amusing, while hurling abuse never is.


People weren't too interested in much of what he had to say, so when
his threads on a given subject were ignored, he simply inserted his
views into every other thread on the group. Every day! Until the group
was swamped! Folks got fed up trying to ignore it and simply left.

See above, better for it?


Ironically, given your eulogising about the halcyon days, you aren't
entirely innocent in the demise of this group yourself. You indulged
in
a bit of goading, baiting and downright trolling yourself. Your first
posts to the group are in the post Bennett era so, perhaps, you never
really saw the group at it's best, when it was a useful resource and a
fun place to hang out.

I can indulge occasionally, especially when someone is taking themselves
too seriously or has an overinflated ego.
Allan pinched the not a fan tag line from me though, I first used it
here, once, as a throwaway signature. Allan saw the possibilities of
multiple interpretations of the tag and used it relentlessly. I got much
enjoyment from it, very often finding it the most interesting part of
the post. Funny how such a little thing can offend so many people, but
only if they chose to be offended. Absolute top class!

Allan and I were real life friends before either of us posted here.
Allan introduced me to the joys of usenet.


Anyway, don't just take my word for it. The 'facts' are all available
from the usenet archives on google and from the message board on the
UK
rivers guide site. Compare the latter with the sorry ghost group UKRBP
has become, see if you can find any any intolerance there.

Well, some of us can't because UKRGB is a private message board, and not
available to those who do not toe the owner's line. As I mentioned
earlier, dissent is not permitted. One of the main reasons I stay here
and post periodically, rather than leaving, is that I want those who
tried to dictate to me (and to Allan in particular), to know that they
lost and that they still can't force their will upon the group. This
group can either become tolerant or remain a ghost group. No-one has the
right to dictate on what terms anyone else may post here. Meanwhile the
mutual admiration society have their board and have to live with
whatever disadvantages and costs that arise from it. That was, is, and
as far as I know remains, their choice.

David
Not a fan of petty dictators.