So long and thanks for all the fish recipes

jinky67

MrsE~ why are you keeping this going?

PLEASE just drop it ok

because for one, you are making yourself look bad by keeping on about it

If you drop it, it will all just blow over

Hopefully Penny will come back, and you two can just ignore each other in future

Please?

Edinburghlass_2

MrsE, I trust you followed Martin's advice and put in your formal complaint via the proper channels.

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2426983

I have read all the threads, including the one I reported to abuse last night which has now gone, I made no judgements on differing opinions but I did judge on the way you went about your complaint.

HariboJunkie

Absolutely, definitely my final post on the subject.

MrsE. To recap for you and to summarise for those who did not read the thread/threads, this is actually what happened.

Crux started a thread on eating luxury food, in a more inexpensive way and also healthily. A lot of us joined in to help him but the thread became a debate on OS ways because some posters were saying things like "can we please have a thread that doesn't talk about whoopsies", and "can we please not discuss ways to bulk out food". Some of us didn't understand that because it is precisely by doing these things that allows some of us to eat a more luxurious diet.
Some other people were offended by the references to OS being full of recipes that were cheap and not nutritionally sound. This is not actually the case as I demonstrated when I listed several threads on healthy eating the OS way. You then took exception to a reference to snobbery and called another poster a bully. THAT IS WHY PP CLOSED THE THREAD!!! MSE ask that accusations of bullying are taken very seriously by BGs. YOU started another thread on the subject of why the thread was closed and were joined by Poet who as far as I'm aware hadn't posted on the original thread and was simply concerned with the subject of the thread closure rather than the subject of the thread itself.
Next thing we know you have started a thread in the Forum Rules board likeneing Penny to Hitler and asking how you could report her. That was mischievious at best because she herself had instructed you on how to report her in the thread on Gastronomy. Poet managed to follow the instructions and report Penny to abuse but you felt the need to start a thread about it (one which Martin has now closed as it broke site rules).

I am very sorry if some people will think that I am dragging this out on here but I won't stand by and be one of the accused witch hunters without defending myself. If you, MrsE, are worried that people don't know what they are talking about while offering PP sympathy, then I have attempted to give a rundown of the events. Maybe it is just my version but I fail to see how or why you are still saying that a faction on OS didn't want a thread on frugal gastronomy when it is simply untrue. I really, truly don't understand that.

Also.....while you are asking people to be in full possession of the facts, perhaps you should link people to posts where you have accused Penny of bullying and abuse of power in the past. It was clearly an issue for you before yesterday and I think it's only fair that other posters are aware of this.

Kimitatsu

I am not a BG on this board, you can see which ones I am for my sins! But I do often come onto here because in the main everyone is very friendly and gets on with everyone else, there are relatively few really emotive issues that people disagree with so violently and it has always been a pleasure to watch people rub along even if their opinion does differ drastically.

I would just like to clear up a few misaprehensions about board guiding though, and I dont feel that the wonderful people that do bg this board should have to justify themselves. Firstly we are volunteers, and we have all been asked by the MSE team if we would consider being board guides, none of us pushed ourselves forward, we were asked because of our ability to see both sides of the story and even when we have a differing view personally to be able to take ourselves out of that situation to make a balanced view. That decision does not lie entirely with us, any thread we lock, delete, or edit is reviewed by the team at MSE towers, because ultimately they are legally liable for any comments which are made on these boards. We are very lucky as we have their backing and yet another viewpoint to fall back on, if we are not sure about a thread, if in doubt lock and refer is always the case.

All of the board guides on here, check their boards several times a day, I know Pen is like me and is up early so frequently is checking the boards before some of you have even got out of bed. All of us do this because we believe that knowledge is to be shared and the more people who have that knowledge the more people can benefit. Personally at 5 in the morning, I could be having an extra 20 minutes in bed and I am sure pen feels the same, but because of a shared belief we check on the boards to ensure that they are fair, concise and spam free.

I did read the entire thread which was locked.If you were in a work place and someone said that they felt bullied, what would you do? You wouldnt allow the percived bullying to continue would you? The internet is just the same, none of us are faceless creatures behind a screen, behind every user name there is a living breathing person with their own worries, emotions and opinions. Those people however professional can be hurt by words written on a page just as they could if you said it to their face, Pen did just the right thing locking the thread as someone had said that they had felt bullied. Whether they were or not, it is the perception which must be taken account of.

Being honest I think that you all need to take stock and look in the cold light of day at what was written in the heat of the moment yesterday. We have all been there, written down something that has incensed us at the time, and pressed the send button, sometimes I think we all need to count to 10 re-read what we write and then look at it from the other persons perspective. I know as a bg on my own boards, putting something across in the written word is difficult because we are missing the facial expressions that we rely on so much to soften what we are trying to say.

Pen - no-one on here is worth your tears, not even Martin! Take time out, then deep breath and decide what it is you want to do. I for one think all of the BG's on here are amazing, and on a personal level you have all helped me to save money and pass on tips to my children who will benefit too. I hope that you will come back, because as I think you can see you would be missed, but ultimately that is up to you.

Take care
x

kezlou

First an apology to all.

I had no idea the word i used in to describe the people who offended penpen had any association with the drug Thalidomide. So please accept my sincerest apologies, locally where i come from its mean"doyle" ( a word i hate) or "idiot".
Thanks again kazmeister for pointing this out, i really appreciate it, as i would hate to upset anyone. Again please accept my sincerest apologies.

weezl74

penny,

I'm so sorry you have felt so hurt and discouraged:( I hope you will come back soon.

pink and zippy I'm not sure if this is the right place to post this, but I know there are very able folk on here who will be willing to help you while penny takes some time out, and I do hope all of us who've been around OS for a while can step up to the mark and help newbies find links to older threads and the like.:)

love weezl x

Gers

MrsE wrote: »

As this is continually directed at me I will answer this.

I DID NOT REFER TO Penelope as Hitler.

I said it was "little Hitler" style behaviour (meaning dictatorial) to close & move threads that differ from your point of view. People are very apt here at twisting things to mean what they can to cause the most offence.

Its interesting how many of the people commenting on here start their post with "I didn't actually read the thread but........." & then proceed to comment.

A witch hunt has been started on OS because a small band of people dared have a differing opinion of what food & eating are:(:(:(

Please read the threads in question before you make your judgements.

Originally Posted by Gers View Post

.... just want to point out Godwin's 'Law'.
<snip> it was practice that anyone who compared the discussion/manner of posting etc to Hitler or the Nazis lost the argument and the moral high ground (however well held) immediately.

Please read my post properly before getting back on your high horse! I haven't said that you refered to Penny as Hitler. Oh, and I have read the posts and am still appalled that anyone can use a reference to (even a little) Hitler in relation to an internet forum discussion board.

Mutantk

Hi Penny, just wanted to send my love and thanks to you if you ever read this - I've always thought of you an my OS Mum!! I've asked you plenty of OS questions in the past cos like a Mum, you always have the answer and I've always been grateful for your advice. I post rarely these days altho lurk often following a discussion that turned nasty/upsetting/personal - but I will look out for your lovely, helpful, happy sounding posts and hope they return when you feel like it. XXX

funkymonkey849

MrsE wrote: »

I DID NOT REFER TO Penelope as Hitler.

I said it was "little Hitler" style behaviour (meaning dictatorial) to close & move threads that differ from your point of view. People are very apt here at twisting things to mean what they can to cause the most offence.

Sorry but that's still unbelievably offensive and you really should be ashamed of yourself for writing something so hurtful over something so trivial.

Instead of using the email address provided to report your grivences you made a new thread to bring everyone's attention to it in which you resorted to name calling. Even if you don't agree with the decisions made by Penelope there are far better ways of expressing your views. I think you have been very spiteful.

I think all the BGs do a fantastic job :T and Penelope if you decide not to return then it will be a shame and you will be missed *hugs*

Trinny

Hi Penpen

Thanks for all you have done - the trouble with females ( and i am also one) is that if you put them together for long enough, then trouble starts. You and the other OS ops do a great job, and i am sure get a lot of undeserved flack from others who dont see the good you do.

You will be missed by more people than you realise, my thoughts are with you. I hope those "in the wrong" realise that this board is not about making others feel bad, but for sharing ideas and helping eachother through what can be difficult financial circumstances.

When this board works well - its second to none, its a shame that folks dont have the wisdom to know when to back off.

Take care

Trin