Posted by mair on January 7, 2004, at 17:06:42
In reply to you're absolutely right » SLS, posted by judy1 on January 7, 2004, at 11:05:23
Judy - you'll get no argument from me concerning the need for Dr. Bob to administer this site in a way which makes it as safe as possible. By the same token, I think we frequently use the word "safe" all too casually as if there was a bright line between what is "safe" and what is not.
I try to be a responsible poster, but I can't help but cringe when I see someone being sanctioned for making statements which I know could easily have been made by me with no concern that I might be violating one of Bob's rules. This is particularly so when it's so obvious that the offending poster is not just spouting off thoughtlessly, but is making a genuine attempt to be civil.
I know that I would feel pretty awful if I was blocked or warned for making what I considered to be responsible statements. I'm sure I would be hurt by the inference I would make that my contributions to the site were not valued. Under some circumstances I'm sure I'd be pretty horrified that others might think I was trying to put someone else down, and I seriously doubt I could look at my block in any objective way. Your assertion that blocks happen all the time and that posters who have been blocked frequently return is absolutely correct. The fact that blocks may be pretty standard stuff around here, however, doesn't mean that the people who have been blocked can simply view them as casually. Getting blocked would certainly be a big deal to me, and I'm sure I'd have a tough time returning to this site afterwards.
This is too long-winded. The point I'm so ineptly trying to make is that I'm sure that those who feel they have been blocked unfairly or for reasons which they cannot really understand do not at all feel safe when they return, and ironically, it seems that many of those who have registered objections to Larry's block have done so because they respect the efforts he made to make the site a safe place for others.
Mair
poster:mair
thread:296523
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/admin/20031120/msgs/297774.html