I think the political threads in their various guises have rankled many. Brexit in particular has been divisive- just like the subject itself. Don't know if the horse has bolted but I won't miss the vitriol and what passes for "wit" - and I am as guilty as anyone here. Maybe keep the political joke thread as a token for cartoons? Then a sound out to all?
Morning all. Bright and sunny at present, but showers are around. A few things to do today, but generally I intend to take it slowly. It looks as if parts of the UK are suffering again following some snow. There has been plenty of it this year which has pleased the ski stations in the mountains. Last year they suffered without enough until the middle of January.
Agree - that thread is toxic but then so is the subject matter. And when it comes to football itself I don't think the discussions often get that heated even though there's some very diverse views on certain players. And everyone - yes everyone - brings something different and good to read when it comes to talking about favourite games, players, various memories etc. It's one of the joys of the forum for me.
I think it's a double-edged sword. You sit next to the Hornets either side of you and jump and cheer or put your head in your hands and groan at the same stimuli. But as you get to know them more you'll find you either share other beliefs or have similar opinions, or you might have diametrically opposed ideologies or faith/non-faith. Over the last decade, I've grown close to people on here and shared more here than with people I've known for years. I feel genuine connections with them. There are others with whom I share a love of football and that is all. There are a (very) few for whom I have so little in common as a human being, that even our shared love of Watford Football Club would not patch the differences - I just avoidthem like the plague. The political and religious threads have the danger of bringing us closer or further apart. The strangest experience I've ever had online was when someone detested me so much they had self-imposed a transference of the antithesis of their beliefs onto me, in order to justify hating me more. Would that happen offline? I doubt it, but you never know. It was very disturbing and upsetting and very much the sort of thing that turns you off the site (or any similar site), but if we keep it football only, how will you make the person next to you more than just a yellow and black scarf? If they stay as that alone, would you frequent a site like this? I wouldn't. COYH
Good comment Andy and very fair. I think it got very polarised around the election before last and continued in that vein. I had not posted on the political thread until then and got hooked into it as I believe(d) that people could move to consensus on basic principles....... not possible for those that seek to gain pleasure out of divisiveness though... I think more members or drawing back old members would help .....
In my opinion we have lost too many members by the lack of acceptance of an alternative view to the anti Brexit and often left wing views prevalent on this particular forum. New members with a Brexit or Tory bias have been immediately set upon by a gaggle of like minded posters which makes their participation not worth the hassle. This is an unusual situation as the UK certainly supported Brexit and the general right side of politics has been the norm for quite a number of years in the UK. It has never been adequately answered by the 'clique' why this imbalance continues.
It is true that there are more pro remain and non Tory posters than the other way - that's just how it is and there's no need for anyone to explain why that should be - anymore than Swansea fans need to explain why their Brexit thread is about 90% out! All forums are different. Regardless, politics and Brexit are two threads. The discussions on the other bits (including here) are usually pretty amicable regardless of political or religious views.
It has been asked why we lose members and cannot seem to attract new members, just saying that is simply, 'how it is' will not help. The political make up of our group is unnatural, I have my theories. I suspect the controlling group do not really want any change.
I believe that if you look around the posts on other club sites you do find that where they only discuss football the site can be pretty dead. I enjoy this one because it is diverse, and more to the point find that it can sometimes give you food for thought. It has always seemed sad to me that people outside of here that I know are so closed off to thinking about alternatives that they just repeat the same old views. There is no reason why difficult subjects should not be discussed providing it is done with respect for others. Just how many members have we lost? I asked that question of one ex-contributor and he came up with three names, yet it seems to be taken as fact that there are many. There is no group that have control of the site, it simply cannot be when anyone can come on and say within reason what they think or believe.
I believe wear-yellow's description of the controlling group as a 'clique' to be spot on. Of course nobody within the inner circle will ever accept that their domination has anything to do with the unwelcome attitude which engulfs any new posters who dare to express opinions contrary to the 'norm'. There has been calls before for an acceptance of a greater variety of opinions which fell on deaf ears. I do not expect 2018 to be any different, 'that is just how it is'.
Your thesis is not correct SH... we got on very well all of us until the political thread took hold..... go back on to the archived BBC 606 site.... all of us, WY, Dan, Toby, SLB, Leo, etc and we had a much larger active membership. There never was a clique ..... there was a more active group who socialized a lot via the old Hornets Nest and ironically we prided ourselves on being welcoming and generating a good group dynamic. You came in during the upsurge in the political thread and have sought to perpetrate your views on that and similar threads... so you missed the fact that we all used to get on .... WY I particularly enjoyed and was saddened by how things went. I think a more pertinent issue is that we need new blood.... quite a few have left or stopped posting for different reasons and unlike the BBC 606 where new members used to regularly find us via the BBC website this seems not to happen any more. Plus the inter club ribaldry has virtually dried up..
I thought everybody perpetrated their own views, that is the idea of a forum!! Unless you and others tolerate views which do not conform to the apparently acceptable narrow band we will continue to frighten new posters away.
I think the fact that this site does little (it seems to me) to generate new interest, is the difference. There was so much traffic on the Beeb’s site and that generated a flow of newbies. If 606 restarted, I’d be back there tomorrow.
I have crossed keypads with many here, most notably Colognehornet and Leo for their views on politics, religion and pacifism. However it has always been passionate rather than inflammatory and we agree to disagree and argue accordingly . Brexit is a leap of faith and is defended as such... thus the emotions kick in before rational thinking. I suggest locking off and preventing future political topics as a start (the political joke thread, preferably limited to cartoons and memes only) and see how we go. I see no clique. SH you would do well to part take more actively in the football forums, have a go at the Predictions. I don't think you quite realise how exclusively you comment politically. I know I did some research for an earlier comment and I think you were well over 90% politik. That is surely not what this forum is about?
I think both in life and on the internet, keep the company you enjoy and don't waste precious minutes on stuff that annoys you.
Yes in the spirit of the season I would agree on that for SH... if he was to take part in the other threads I am sure people would probably react to him differently. One of my main thoughts that he is a WUM is his limitation to probably 95% inflammatory postings..... ...and yes what unites us is WFC.....the rest just keeps us warm at half-time.....
To be fair his comments on the team and the club in general are a good read - and I should really take a leaf out of Theo's book. Metaphorically obviously as I can't abide people who vandalise the labours of an author!
Agree absolutely in principle but there is so much stupidty out there that needs addressing... you can only scratch the surface at the amount one ignores!
