On 26 Nov 2010 at 8:31am MC (and Mr Tickle) wrote:
I thought this deserved a thread to itself (I hope that's OK Mr Tickle).
Mr Tickle said:
"I see this forum is turning into a soap box for some of the people on here.
Most of the posts, like the ones above have no relevence to local issues at all and just give people the opportunity to vomit out their political dirge.
So come on webbo, this used to be a great forum having lots of debate about what goes on in and around the town. Surely there's another soap box forum somewhere for all this?"
My immediate concern about this is that there are just not enough posters for this to cover what are seen (and by who) as "local" issues. This forum has done Bills, Parking, LDC Planning, Bonfire, Anchor Inn to death on numerous occasions. Threads and subject seem to repeat themselves at an alarmingly regular rate. If you take out the posts for people who use this forum to discuss both Lewes issue and national issue (myself, BrixtonBelle, ACCT, Clifford, Newmania, 'ere be monsters etc etc) then the risk of it becoming a pretty silent place are increased.
To exist a forum has to have a critical mass. Once it doesn't it dies pretty quickly. People stop returning to see if there are any new posts.
I like the mix of local and national here and very often the national posts have local perspective anyway. It makes Lewes seem so less parochial, as if the town actually had interests out side of itself.
IMHO If there is one thing that threatens this forum it is not the breadth of discussion topics it is the constant rude, sniping and aggressive tone that some users (maybe only one or two who use multiple user names) adopt when given the anonymity cloak. Anyone can avoid the threads that discuss topics outside of Lewes but you can't avoid the spiteful posts by belligerent cowards peppered with swear words that appear in every thread
On 26 Nov 2010 at 8:34am Annette Curtin-Twitcher wrote:
I see nothing whatsoever wrong with discussing national issues on here. After all, they affect Lewes life just as much as local issues. If national matters seem to dominate, it may be because there's not much local controversy atm and lots going on nationally.
On 26 Nov 2010 at 8:34am Newmania wrote:
I`m on the fence here.There are endless forums for poltical debates and I contribute on them. I do try, personally, to ensure that anything I post here has a direct local relevance whether or not it is also a National issue. Maybe I have got that wrong
Having said that its not as if living in Lewes is living on an island, we do read papers, have views ands vote like anyone else and would not like to think you had to hand youre brains in at the door.
On 26 Nov 2010 at 8:35am jrsussex wrote:
This remains a great forum.
"No man is an island......." , nor is any community. Our lives and environment are shaped by many factors, mostly outside the area in which we choose to live. That most certainly includes politics, both nationally and internationally, so it is a valid to discuss them on this forum.
On 26 Nov 2010 at 9:11am Used to read this forum wrote:
Personally I have found this forum exceedingly dull lately. I'm not sure what's worse, political turgid discussion or people slagging off other people. Where's the discussion of Lewes history, latest news, events, problems in the town, litter issues, anti-social problem areas, folks in need of help etc ???
On 26 Nov 2010 at 9:12am Annette Curtin-Twitcher wrote:
Imo, a forum will always represent the interests of its active members. If they're political, it will have a political bias, if they're interested in local gossip, it will reflect that. I'm on a lot of forums to do with dogs - one is dominated by training and behavioural issues, another by rescue and welfare, another has a lot of groomers who post arcane stuff about how to get a Bedlington's ears just so and some are almost entirely about breeding and showing. That's entirely natural, just as a group of friends might have different conversations depending one which of them are present at any given time.
This forum has changed in nature somewhat since the likes of Spinster and Lopster have stopped posting. There is less of the lighthearted, fun stuff and that is a shame imo.
If Mr Tickle doesn't like the number of political threads, then he should start some interesting non-political ones and get other discussions going.
The great thing about this forum is that it DOES allow people to post about whatever they want, pretty much, and isn't run by a Stalinist control freak who closes any thread that gets a bit lively like a camping forum I could mention. Well done Webbo - you do a great job.
On 26 Nov 2010 at 9:13am Mr Tickle wrote:
One of the main reasons for the few "local issue" posts on here these days is that most of the original posters on this site who used to discuss (or argue about) local things, have got fed up with the light hearted banter and chat which has been taken over by constant political drivel and cleared off.
The politics have only been prevelent on here for about a year now but it's just a constant battle of one side against the other and it's only being conducted by a few individuals. I mean, are we really that bothered about starting a thread about what makes us scientifically happy ?
On 26 Nov 2010 at 9:14am Badger McKnight wrote:
Anyone know how that couple that were kidnapped in Somalia? Are they ok now?
On 26 Nov 2010 at 9:20am Annette Curtin-Twitcher wrote:
I think they're happier than they were, but Cambo hasn't had them assessed yet!
On 26 Nov 2010 at 10:03am MC wrote:
Mr Tickle.
Are you certain that the "original posters" don't post because of the increased number of politically based posts? I was certain most of them (if you mean Chav, Lopster, Tooth Fairy) had stopped posting here a long time before the comparatively recent rise of political discussion. It's the normal way of things, posters come and go. Some of the older posters don't post, but on the other hand there are lots of regular posters who have been posting less than a year... and lots in between.
Political threads are usually easily avoided. Anyone can start a local thread at any time. It's not as if there is a a thread limit here. If there were loads of popular local threads the political threads would become an increasingly small proportion of the content. It all adds life and colour to the forum. Go on, start your own local thread! What's on your local mind?
On 26 Nov 2010 at 12:58pm Newmania wrote:
It might be an idea for anyone commenting to bear in mind that an overly aggressive tone might be very off putting for those who look in.Women, in particular may not want to raise issues in an environment that is more combatitive than inclusive.
Welcoming , polite friendly good humoured , these are all things I would like people to say about me in real life and i feel there may well be a bit too much keyboard machismo.
On 26 Nov 2010 at 1:08pm Webbo wrote:
Should I create another forum for non-local issues perhaps
On 26 Nov 2010 at 1:33pm ? wrote:
Er, there was an election this year... that was always going to mean more political discussion for a while Mr Tickle.
On 26 Nov 2010 at 1:56pm Brixtonbelle wrote:
I think there's a healthy mix of local and national issues on here. National politics affects every aspect of our lives and deserves to be discussed. I agree though - not much about local politics and ESCC or LDC decisions at the moment. But there has been plenty of local chatter about other issues - bonfire, local crime, schools, bakeries etc etc
The forum is bound to change and focus on different issues at different times. I'm sure in a year we could all be debating the impact of a new local planning law, or the falling house prices in Lewes (hope springs eternal), or the effect of the cuts on local services, or how to volunteer locally etc etc.
I do wonder what has happened to the local swingers society who used to contribute posts on here. They were fun ! And what's happened to spongebob ??
On 26 Nov 2010 at 2:56pm Amsterdammer. wrote:
And where is Peter??
On 26 Nov 2010 at 5:42pm Mr Forks wrote:
And where is my Bonfire countdown??!! Oh, here it is, 354 days to go, yay!
On 26 Nov 2010 at 5:42pm Mr Forks wrote:
Just kidding floks, actually only 344 days to go, woohoo!
On 26 Nov 2010 at 7:29pm Clifford wrote:
Yes, as one of the guilty parties who posts stuff that could almost be called political philosophy, I'd like to see a lot more local stuff. I generally react to what's already been posted. This forum was pretty hot on local issues when Angel was planning to devastate the town with its inappropriate development, with opinions either way. One problem seems to be the dire the level of debate arising from what our many councils get up to. I used to enjoy the periodic slagging off of Bill's (a place I particularly dislike) but there's a limit to how long that can go on.
On 26 Nov 2010 at 9:17pm Patrick Star wrote:
Bring back Spongebob!!!
On 27 Nov 2010 at 7:43am MC wrote:
Peters character is resting between series getting off his trolley in Amsterdam.
I thought Spongebob still posted occasionally but under another name.
I appreciate the posts from insiders and authorities like council bod, the parking attendant, the planning department leaker and the police. I've not seen a lot from them recently, sadly.