Forum Change Announcement

[QT Luong]

> QT are you saying that the person who is insulted is also to blame because he is the one who started some of the threads?

A person who repeatedly starts political controversial threads is partly to blame for the disruption caused by those threads

> What about the responsibility of the people who offend?

They bear most of it.

> What do you mean gratuitous political threads?

Those that have no relation to photography, do not display original thought, and discuss topics that are essentially trivial.

> WHat about this thread http://www.largeformatphotography.in...ad.php?t=41053 that might have offended deeply some people and was allowed to live and show how low Human nature can go?

Thanks for bringing it to my attention, I just deleted it.

> But my real question is: why not get rid of the offenders instead of banning political and religious topics in the Lounge, when we have seen in this very thread that an aggressive mind will be so at any occasion it finds?

The alternative is not without problems neither. We felt it would be preferable to return this forum to its roots, which is photography.

[jnantz]

We felt it would be preferable to return this forum to its roots, which is photography.

much appreciated!

[nelsonfotodotcom]

Allow me to present a possible solution to the matter at hand.

While I fully respect the decision(s) of site-mod(s) here at LFPf, I do enjoy a bit of off-topic chatter.

On my forums there are two off-topic areas. One is hidden from view from all who are not logged-in. The latter also requires switches to be thrown in a user's account in order to view.

Admission to said private area is by request, as in you register, then request access. The rules are clear on my end. Here it was loose and I played hard now and again as when in Rome... well, my back-yard ain't Rome, but it is open to topics related to politics among others. I am the only moderator at NFf, and I do enforce the no-abuse policy, with relish.

That's what I can and will now offer. I'm not looking to build member numbers as my goal has always been small community, slow growth. I'm only trying to help sooth the situation here.

Best,
Craig

[Jim Ewins]

No more talk about Homeland Security and lost film/equip etc.

[Juergen Sattler]

No more talk about Homeland Security and lost film/equip etc.

Come on Jim, we all know the world is not black and white - why do some always have to take any changes to the absolute extreme? I am pretty sure that none of the moderators would mind a post about lost equipment and the problems he/she had with home security screenings at the airport. We all know which posts the moderators are referring to when they made the decision. It is uncalled for to paint the moderators as in-tolerant dictators - I would argue that this is one of the most tolerant forums out there on the web. Try to have any political controversial discussions on pnet or any other photography sites - you'd get banned in no time.

[Mark Sloane]

QT,

This website and forum are almost irreplaceable as a source of information for experienced and inexperienced photographers alike. Nothing can be more important than ensuring the health and integrity of this great resource.

Therefore, changing the rules to the lounge hurts to a point but is easily accepted when you put it into perspective.

I personally am ambivalent about the “new lounge”. On one hand I am delighted to be rid of the ill mannered and uncivil dialog. On the other hand, there are some very intelligent and knowledgeable people on the lounge who have been able to answer questions for me about modern history, global economies, and cultural issues that I may not have been exposed to before.

In many instances I also found the lounge to be somewhat of a microcosm of society. Often times we are surrounded by friends and family that do not represent the breadth and depth of ideology that exists in America and around the world and I found it very interesting to meet and communicate with all these different people.

The ideal of an un-moderated lounge was an interesting experiment. The results point to a well known and disappointing reality……human behavior needs to be moderated for the benefit of society.

Which leaves us with the conclusion that the rule change is absolutely required unless someone volunteers to moderate the lounge.

[CG]

I value this forum, first, as a photographic information resource, and also as a close second, as a place to have human contact with others who share a photographic interest.

The loss of a place to rant is a minor loss as there are many places seemingly dedicated solely ranting. I'll do any ranting elsewhere should I feel the need.

I suspect this forum will feel more communal now that we won't be ranting at each other quite so much. It's bad enough that photo topics can be divisive. So, thanks to the moderators for a good decision.

C

[Thomas Bertilsson]

Good decision. Thinking of the purpose of this forum, to exchange knowledge, ideas, and discuss topics that have to do with large format photography, a place to talk about religion and politics seem completely irrelevant to me.
Large Format Photography Forum.

- Thomas

[GSX4]

I normally stay neutral in many of these threads, but it's time to speak up here. I concur with the decision to clean up the lounge forum and ban the type of posts that are even filtering into this announcment thread. Such mean spirited personal attacks in many cases.. It's an internet forum about large format photography, not a political rallying point so get over it. If I wanted another run down on the latest political ineptitudes from both policitcal parties I'd go to a related forum, or turn on the TV hear the same old drivel there. These posts do nothing to promote LF photography and have actually turned me away from this site to a point where I minimally post anymore as a result. So much bickering that's so unnecessary. I choose not to look at all of the posts, and those that I have made the mistake of looking at, I notice that the majority of them are the same rogues gallery of names in the many garbage threads posted in the lounge. This makes me apprehensive about getting regular questions answered on the main focus areas of this forum from these same people. Why can't we all just get along and get over the fact that a decsion has been made to better the site. Thank you Mods.

[rknewcomb]

It would appear that this thread has become the new lounge space.