Feedback: Open Letter To MMiz

[ffemt8978]

Seaglass may have the most balanced post on the thread.

Amen

But this is the new official position of EMTLife:

Might as well quote the rest of the paragraph so that the appropriate context is achieved

Enforcement of Community Standards:
More recently, I found myself avoiding read threads in my own forum due to the guaranteed EMTLife lynch mob that inevitably took over each discussion. I refuse to let a small group undermine the community through their eternal drive to take over every thread and ridicule and harass our members. It is one thing to contribute constructively to a thread, and something entirely different to bully members with differing views. Those members who feel it is their duty to right the wrongs of the EMS community via EMTLife are not welcome here.

The part in red is the reason for the statement that you selectively quoted.

 

[VentMedic]

That sums up the attitudes of the moderators and explains the reasons posts containing educational information get deleted.

 

[ffemt8978]

That sums up the attitudes of the moderators and explains the reasons posts containing educational information get deleted.

How educational is a post really, if nobody is willing to read it?

We try not to remove truly educational posts, but we have to sometimes because people seem to be unable to educate while remaining civil.

 

[Summit]

How educational is a post really, if nobody is willing to read it?

Nobody = a few vocal folks with thin skin who make a ruckus about not reading it?

 

[ffemt8978]

Nobody = a few vocal whiners?

I'll reword it then...

How educational is a post really, if people aren't willing to read it?

 

[triemal04]

That sums up the attitudes of the moderators and explains the reasons posts containing educational information get deleted.

Losing educational threads seems to be the concern here. It is invaluable to have exceptional people take charge in leading meaningful discussions with all the bells and whistles of a class room. It would be useful to remember that a class room includes didactic content, discussions, agreements and sometimes hearty disagreements, theory, news and development. It's okay to sit back and relax and not play that role too but, once one chooses that role in a thread, he/she has an obligation to stay in keeping with the role as a leader. NO school that I know of would ever sit idly by and allow any educator to frequently call students stupid, ignorant, illiterate lemmings in the name of education. Agreeing and disagreeing doesn't include ripping a person to pieces..in fact, it is counter productive to the learning process.

People are getting away from subject of education, mistakenly insisting that we have the right to display screaming, negative behavior to get our points across in every single thread nearly. It isn't like we can pick and choose. Some of these folks chase threads just to fight or show off or whatever the agenda might be. Where's the professionalism in that? I've read a thousand times, loud and clear; "we want to be thought of as a profession." What purpose does interjecting constant negativism serve in this objective??

I have yet to meet anyone who learned a darned thing from a filthy mouthed educator. It's unethical and unnecessary and certainly makes an individual less than credible in my experience. When a lesson is filled with colorful adjectives, a learner must spend much of his/her time trying to sort adjectives from objectives. Meaning often gets lost in translation. Example: the reader is thinking "Am I stupid because the educator says I am or is the idea I have incorrect?" While I am busy subliminally or otherwise, attempting sort that out, the subject has already moved on and now I am lost! The only clear message I got was being called stupid! The entire objective is then lost and the educator has failed to reach his/her intended audience.

Take home message; There is a huge difference between sugar coating and being affective.

This really should be posted across the top of every thread in very large letters. There is a difference between a spirited debate (good thing) and blindly spouting vitriolic rhetoric, conjecture, insults and innacurate info (bad thing). When people are unable to differentiate between the two is when problems arise.

 

[Bosco578]

Enough already.

 

[dewd09]

Who really are the us vs them? Poorly Educated vs Properly Educated? It's a personal responsibility to seek out good education. You can't blame the masses if you're not educated enough to participate in a worthy debate.

This is an "in general" statement, not directed at any person, and not in reply to any person. But I keep seeing "vs" a lot. Maybe it's not the group, but the education of the individual.

 

[rescue99]

Enough already.

Agree...I suggest the thread be locked...all in favor say, OY!!!

 

[JonTullos]

That sums up the attitudes of the moderators and explains the reasons posts containing educational information get deleted.

There's a difference between an "educational" post and a post that is condescending, hateful and/or downright unprofessional. Yes, I have a pretty thick skin (getting picked on in high school tends to do that to a person) but that doesn't mean that I'm going to sit there and tolerate someone spouting some smartass remark to me under the guise of "education." Please. Educate me, please I want that! But don't talk down to me because I happen to volunteer (read: "be a whacker") in addition to being on a paid truck or because I don't have a bowl of alphabet soup at the end of my signature.

 

[Crepitus]

There's a difference between an "educational" post and a post that is condescending, hateful and/or downright unprofessional. Yes, I have a pretty thick skin ...but that doesn't mean that I'm going to sit there and tolerate someone spouting some smartass remark to me under the guise of "education." Please. Educate me, please I want that! But don't talk down to me because I happen to volunteer (read: "be a whacker") in addition to being on a paid truck or because I don't have a bowl of alphabet soup at the end of my signature.

QFT!


and of course IBTL

 

[Summit]

Agree...I suggest the thread be locked...all in favor say, OY!!!

Yea... you don't like it so lock it! Tell me again who is making you read this thread?

 

[rescue99]

Yea... you don't like it so lock it! Tell me again who is making you read this thread?

Arguing for no reason is a pure waste. It solves none of the worlds problems and offerers nothing educational what so ever. Hostile posts aren't useful. Offers absolutely nothing but an dysfunctional source of entertainment for some people I suppose but that's about it. The thread has run its course.

 

[firecoins]

No need to lock it. I agree with the arguments "more education" crowd but find many of their post to be unnecessarily condesending. The people I am talking about know who they are. I think the condensending hurts the argument big time. No need for posts to be deleted threads locked or whatever. Let the thread run its course. It will end on its own.

 

[VFFforpeople]

Arguing for no reason is a pure waste. It solves none of the worlds problems and offerers nothing educational what so ever. Hostile posts aren't useful. Offers absolutely nothing but an dysfunctional source of entertainment for some people I suppose but that's about it. The thread has run its course.

As stated by firecoins the threads always run their course, the people that get tired of whatever leave, and it turns into a happy thread again. Yes this does help people can vent frustration and see that MMIZ is actually responding and reading this. That in it self will have them calm down re think and then focus on what they would like to do. It is all very common sense, and thus why it has not been locked.

 

[triemal04]

As stated by firecoins the threads always run their course, the people that get tired of whatever leave, and it turns into a happy thread again. Yes this does help people can vent frustration and see that MMIZ is actually responding and reading this. That in it self will have them calm down re think and then focus on what they would like to do. It is all very common sense, and thus why it has not been locked.

See, that's the problem; they don't and it doesn't turn happy again. Just look at all the locked threads...I'd tell you to look at the thread about "what an EMT can do for asthmatics," but all the posts (and there where a large number) where deleted after awhile. Spirited debate is great and shouldn't be stifled, but for many people (who aren't posting much anymore) what they do is different, and detrimental. And none seem to know the difference, as can be seen by a recent post in THIS thread.

 

[Summit]

Arguing for no reason is a pure waste. It solves none of the worlds problems and offerers nothing educational what so ever. Hostile posts aren't useful. Offers absolutely nothing but an dysfunctional source of entertainment for some people I suppose but that's about it. The thread has run its course.

This feedback about the state of the community. It is in the Feedback section of the website. If it means nothing to you, you are not here by force.

 

[Jon]

Ok... I haven't responded here yet, but figure that I should at least weigh in, as the only active CL that hasn't.

I've been busy with work and other stuff for the past week... and the drama here has actually been causing me stress in my everyday life. Sounds silly, I know. I've been fielding emails, IM's, texts, and even some phone calls over this.

I have quite a few folks on here that I consider friends. I have friends on both sides of the issue that brought this to a head.

I've been trying to stay out of this debate, as I don't want to hurt my friends on either side. Not sure if its working.

Anyway - at this point, I've been a member for almost 5 years. I've got more posts than ANYONE here (except for MMiz's "new math" post count, ). I've made 1000 more posts than RidRyder, the don of the forum.

And I've progressed from being a rather fresh-faced EMT and paramedic student (the first time), to being a seasoned EMT and now baby paramedic (after a second time thorough medic school).

And I've pretty much always been around. Sometimes I've drifted away, but I've always come back after a few weeks or a month.

18 months ago, MMiz invited me to take a more active role in the forum and become a moderator. I accepted the challenge, and have been doing my best to be fair and impartial. I don't get paid anything for this job, of course. And it's caused me some stress and tension from time to time. I don't enjoy that, but, as Spock always said, "The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few."


I know that MMiz has asked us to attend the "town hall" meeting this Sunday. I'm going to try to be there, and I really hope that everyone else is going to try to attend as well.

I don't know what direction this forum is going to go in - I know it won't be the SAME as it was a few months ago. However, if we are willing to work together, and not be petty and argumentative, I think the forum will end up being BETTER for it, when we look back on this in a few months.

Anyway - I really hope that EVERYONE attends this discussion - if you aren't there, you won't get to voice your opinion.

 

[Foxbat]

I am one of the few "vocal whiners" who might have contributed to the policy.
A few months ago, after a number of threads got hijacked and turned into another holy wars (all within a few days), I PMed the CLs and asked if it was possible to modify forum rules to avoid this.
I care less about civilized debate and personal attacks than about these hijackings. If every topic turned into discussion about steths or lights it would be as unpleasant, at least for me.

 

[Summit]

Thread drift is natural especially when it drifts to the root cause of issues.