To Malcolms points first -
1) I don't really have a complaint in that area, not more than the occasional post anyway, certainly not anything I would call an established problem. Maybe I don't read the posts in question.
2) Humour is definitely in the eye of the beholder. Getting it across can be tortuous and has certainly caused me problems...
I absolutely agree with you about the death thing - Never funny. Shows the depth of sickness in the "modern" world IMO and is (IMO) part of why some people think it's ok and even think it can be justifiable to destroy peoples lives. Sick people and a sick society, whatever society that is.
The rest:-
This forum is one of the best.
It is pretty tolerant of alcohol and mood swings as well.
I agree it isn't what it was but I'm getting used to the new evolved version and it's not so bad really. Occasionally things get a bit silly but that mellows out pretty quickly for the most part.
I've had issues with misunderstanding etc but hell, you get that. Suck it up and try again is probably the best attitude.
I see no need to change the forum, although I really do regret that some of the early contributors have departed.
I do see a bit of a gang mentality occasionally and that can make it difficult for people to pipe up in disagreement, but that happens in pub's too.
I do regret that there seems to be less engineering etc discussed but part of that is (IMO) a sometimes aggressive approach towards people who are asking questions or bringing up subjects that have been discussed before. That stifles discussion IMO although I understand the frustration of constant repetition...
All in all I think this place has a great balance and as many have said before, it's easy to filter out stuff you don't like.
Contentious stuff:-
Things like religious or political difference are difficult anywhere. Things like experiential differences can also be troubling - for instance I feel terribly for those affected badly by RF mk1 but when I see RL called a thief it just doesn't work in my head because there were many opportunities for theft by him in my situation and it didn't happen in any way that I would call theft. I don't know all the circumstances of RF's implosion but to me what happened looked like the result of the SA problems and some really unfortunate business decisions, by some definitions probably negligent, but that's a different thing, to me at least. I was affected because of the loss of arrangements made, but that is nothing like as direct as those who lost deposits etc.
Having said the above I repeat that I empathise deeply with the situations of those affected as I have been let down badly with another vehicle. I lost something like AU$40,000 in that debacle.
From the point of view of those directly involved it is certainly a bitter wound and I understand that. Some effort to repay would certainly have made for a vastly different picture, and perhaps less threatening posts here.
If I am ignorant of some vital incriminating fact or other then I apologise here and now. My opinion is based on what I know of what happened and my personal experience of the business.
...End contentious stuff.
Maybe this is the wrong place to have brought the above up but I thought it likely I'd be shot at if I posted it in answer to recent posts on the subject and I think that illustrates the difficulty of navigating forums sometimes.
Sorry if you think this is irrelevant Malcolm, it seemed like a broad response to a broad (and broadening) question and title.
This is the paddock after all...
Long live The Iron Sheik! (IMO
)
Tim.
