Complaints about post and threads.

[Kirk Gittings]

Just a reminder all. Over the last few weeks I have run across numerous posts like "why is this thread still here?", "where are the moderators?", "why hasn't this been deleted?", "I thought politics were out of bounds?" etc. Very often these posts are by people who do not officially report the post to the moderators. So let me remind you folks. It is very likely that we will miss a problem post/thread unless you make an appropriate complaint by clicking the little triangular warning icon at the bottom left of a post and reporting it. This will send the complaint to all the moderators via email. We try to follow most threads but, I know for myself, it is impossible to check them all so I tend to check ones that seem so inclined. Oftentimes though the most innocent looking threads get off track and I don't see the problems arise. However, before going online to visit the forum, I always check my email for complaints. Thanks all.

[Scott Knowles]

Maybe we need two rules. You know the ones your grandmother told your grandfather after a bad day with the ole' 4x5 or when he spent the day getting angry about some article in the newspaper. The first? "Henry, if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all." And the second? "Henry, just because you see it in print doesn't mean you have to read it. And if you do, remember rule number 1."

Or so said my grandmother. And yes, the name was changed to protect the innocent.

[Stephen Willard]

It is rare that passionate, rude, or inappropriate responses occur with threads that are technical in nature. These types of reactions reside mostly with postings about the politics of photography that pose hard questions to gray answers.

The politics of photography are about the ethics and art of photography and their answers are numerous and not simple. Discussions of this nature that are smothered in politeness are done at great expense of innovative ideas and profound thought. If we become concerned about offending others then we shrink from expressing out true thoughts and emotions about the discussion at hand, and the contribution becomes compromised. It is my belief, only when we move past politeness and engage in our passions, rudeness, and inappropriate responses will great ideas flow. An uninhibited response is far more expressive and imaginative than any controlled and measured response can ever be.

I personally have learned far more from heated discussions that seem to ramble, turn, and twist as they mature. They are at times not fun to engage in and can be hurtful to our delicate egos. However, the things I have learned from such discussions have been immeasurable.

For these reasons, I beg the moderators to exercise extreme caution in censoring any responses that may appear to offend others.