Been nice knowing you.....

Fi_1966

Unfortunatley as with all unmoderated forums there is always the chance that things can get a little bit ....... shall we say "opinionated".

But to send abusive PMs is way below the belt and not at all in the spirit of helpful support or indeed these forums.

Everybody on the MSE forums has the right to an opinion and by posting it you do leave yourself open to disagreement. For the most part this banter is one of the fun things about being a member. Opinions and disagreements, should you choose to disagree, should be out there and not responded to in the cowardly way OP says he was subjected to, by abusive PM.

Boo hiss to those members that aren't up for an adult debate and are only capable of PM bullying.:mad::mad::mad:

WASHER

I have noticed the tone of the forum have dropped recently, I used to post frequently but rarely visit now, life is tough enough without getting abuse etc from people on MSE. Its a real shame, its not just on this board but most of them on MSE.

DarkConvict

I only joined in September, but i have found the atmosphere to be as expected.

A few less people advising on SOAs, only 2 rude members that i spotted lately, but nothing that unusual. Sadly some prefer to dish out harassment off the public forums.

wendall

I discovered the forum late November and was pleased for all the help, advice, bargains and motivation i have received. Unfortunately in all walks of life there is always someone who likes to disagree for the sake of disagreeing. On a forum there seems to be quite a few people like this as they can hide behind a name and feel that they can write what they want and not bother about the affect it has on others. I would not leave because of people like this, i would report them. I hope the few bad ones do not spoil it for the majority of good helpful people who come on here.

niccatw

It's a tough call. I first posted in 2008 and was quite down at the time. I don't think I was even able to take the "tough love" advice as it was meant at the time and some of the nasty comments I got really hit hard. I just stopped posting.

I started lurking again last year and after getting a feel for the forum, started posting again. I'm able to see the horrible people for what they are and I want all you, lovely helpful people out there to kick my a** when it's needed! This time round, I've found people very supportive and helpful.

I can see why those that have had a bad time (and abusive PMs are way out of order!) want to leave. But I also see all the regulars rally round to be supportive, not only when some-one is out of line, but when a poster has misinterpreted the tone or intention behind a perhaps genuine but blunt poster.

What I find most difficult are posts that have a "tone" but on their own, if I hit the abuse button, would seem harmless enough. And perhaps are - perhaps the person is just having a tough day and needed to vent. We almost need a three strikes system! (Uhm, I think I may just have "invented" forum moderators! Oh well, I'm sure you know what I mean!)