Before you became a poster on here Strolls, we had a mod named BrixtonR (RIP). He would never have allowed your 'Politics Thread.' I sometimes wonder if I've done him a disservice to allow such a thread. The Politics thread has divided and disrupted more than any other since this board has begun. When I speak to our posters in real life it has been this thread that has caused the most division and been the causation of many of our poster's to take leave of our forum. The original idea behind this forum was to bring QPR fans far and wide together and across the globe to share in one common goal. This has been ruined by a handful who have divided our fan-base especially since the European Referendum. Not many of our overseas posters give a monkeys about the politics in the UK. There's also quite a few who reside here who have also been driven away by it's relentlessness and often heading the top of our forum. I really fail to understand why there is a need to see who supports whatever the political divide you sit upon and seek to undermine that to your own end. We are QPR fans, a small band of brothers. We don't need any further division. If you need to talk about politics I suggest you all migrate here ... https://www.not606.com/threads/the-politics-thread-loons-not-wanted-no-safe-space-here.341752/ The Premier League Board will accommodate you. Our board doesn't need such a divisive thread which has become over personal. Our board has already lost enough posters because of it! Cheers
A thinly-veiled invitation to **** off. Thanks Nines, I shall consider my position. What value would BrixtonR have put on the Word Association thread I wonder?
Not at all. You still seek the politics thread as a righteous passage to divide us. The forum rules states that ... Moderate Non-Football (Off Topic) Threads Off-topic threads are welcome. They must be distinguishable from football threads by adding the 'Green Prefix Off Topic' at the beginning of the thread title, e.g. Off Topic - Summer Holidays. The Word association thread is allowed ( although I don't agree or post on it ) your thread isn't and should be seen as a privilege and not a right and can be withdrawn without consent.
I don't seek to divide, Nines, just to debate. No one is compelled to take part in - or even to read - the Politics thread. For me, it's the most entertaining part of this forum, but if you wish to close it, that's your prerogative.
And yet it has divided. All I will say is this. I will let this thread roll on, although I have offered an alternative. If this thread didn't exist they wouldn't have had to take part or read it, few do. Out of all our posters how many contribute to it? Ten or twelve .. at a push? How many have changed their stance in 896 pages? I would hazard a guess at none! 896 pages of threads on a football forum ... and no one has changed their stance. What's the point?
Stroller, I don't even know why I'm arguing with you on here. I know you personally and we've sat at a bar in Berlin and had many a beer together. I consider you as a good friend and rangers to the end. I think it's time I gave this modding malarkey up. I've been doing it for over five years now.
Sorry 9s But five years is not enough to get a full mod pension And if this thread goes what else will be a long enough read to get me through my morning ****
We weren't arguing Nines, we were debating. I consider you a good friend as well and think you and the others do a great job as moderators on here. Why not canvass other board members' opinions as to the continuation or otherwise of this thread?
[sighs] What I wrote had nothing to do with how I voted in the referendum. It was addressing the issue that if we "leave" the EU but stay in the Customs Union, it will be restrictive, expensive and new laws over which the UK has no control could damage it. Let's leave it there.
I would certainly support Stroller's view that all members views are canvassed about this thread, Nines. I don't know who has left the board aggrieved by this thread, because they've never complained openly on the board. Why dIdn't they? Why did they read the thread anyway? I never look at the Word thread but wouldn't ban it. Of course, I don't know what grief you mods have to put up with behind the scenes, but so far as harmony is concerned on the face of the board, it is a more peaceful place now than it was in Brixton's time when there were running battles with serial offenders. It was a constant thorn in his side. On the whole, posters on the Politics thread are civil and respectful, even when debate is heated. We've seen a poster banned recently, critical of lorry drivers. He rarely posted on the Politics thread, and created his own thread that was offensive. Occasionally we get a poster on the wind-up. You remind us all of the rules of the board, and peace is restored.
That's pretty funny. @QPR999 it is true I am not a word fan which is why I haven't contributed to any QPR threads. Found myself here because I quite enjoy your politics board. There's both left and right view but not anything really extreme and there's relatively little bickering which seems to fill up on other political boards which is a credit to you boys really.
I can understand this view regarding politics dividing. There have even been ups and downs in here but those are relatively few. I think most here are hopefully mature enough to not let their politics affect supporting of your club. P.s. have you ever visited the link on the prem board? It's probably the most dysfunctional thread anywhere .It has about 5% politics, 25% Twitter spam 30% daily mail links and 40% abuse
You are all right 999's. Good you keep it going now you're retired. Must be good brain training. Respect! We dont have to read this thread and can "ignore" who we want. Personally I don't agree with much Col says about politics except when he says about Brexit that we all are repeating our same views over and over and over and over..... So I keep quiet mainly now. But still it gives a good guide to what is going on in the UK today from whatever perspective, so it makes a good read.
The alternative thread makes this look one like a debate between Cicero and Caesar mate. I have changed my stance towards politics as a whole (relatively recently) not in a direct response to content here, but as a result of what I see on telly and read in the virtual press, which is admirably amplified and clarified by the debates on here. So though I might throw the odd post in on something that interests or amuses me I won’t get involved in any debates (on any thread) anymore. I think Stroll’s idea of a poll is a good one though. I agree that this is a QPR forum (though I think that the only thing which distinguishes it from the others is the off topic stuff), and if the majority of posters want the content to be restricted to QPR/football and can’t stop themselves reading stuff that somehow upsets them, they should have their way. I also think you have served your time as a mod, above and beyond the call of duty. Although I think bowing out in an orgy of poster banning, culling of voyeurs and thread deleting has a certain grandeur to it........unleash hell!
This is a valuable thread, a great source of debate, covering important issues that ultimately affect most of us. If a qpr forum can lend itself to becoming a venue for such debate, I say all credit to the forum, a positive, not a negative. We should encourage the important notion of free speech, not seek to eliminate it. If you don't like it, don't read it, if you read it and are offended, respond thoughtfully and don't blame others for the offence you have taken. Does it matter if this thread is often at the top or is pushing 900 pages? Scroll just a little further and don't worry, the paper won't run out. 9's you're a top bloke and if I were with you right now, I'd give you a great big hug.
Sorry Goldie but that last paragraph simply isn't true. We are free to talk with them but cannot sign off deals till we leave. We are talking tot lots of countries aboutna huge range of issues. To be honest I find the EU stance around loyal cooperation a bit farcical. We are leaving so I think the EU knows how loyal we are! And they can't tell any of their members who they can and can't talk to.
Pretty much bang on - and I do post on some of the other non football threads on here. I blame Beth, 9s and Tramore for running such a decent board!
I might be wrong but I suspect the missing posters thread has got you wondering why the board isn't getting as much traffic as it did previously. Personally, I think it's as much down to the relative calm around the club. No soap opera and no money to spend so less wild speculation. We now seem to go under the radar a bit more so there's less news stories to start threads with. The politics thread and the other off topic threads are a good advert for the board as it demonstrates the familiarity amongst the posters (akin to friends having a chat down the pub). That would be bad if everyone wasn't welcoming but I don't believe that to be the case. For me, debating on the matches is difficult because there's an abyss between overseas posters who see the games online and match attendees who see them first hand where non-attending domestic fans reside. Couple that with the cyclical debates on sacking managers (which I am rarely in favour of) there seems little I can add. Off season is a more level playing field however. As for stepping down as mod, as long as you aren't being hounded by dozens of PMs then enjoy the fruits of your labour - a board that, from our perspective at least, seems to run itself without too much intervention but with a strong mod presence doing what they should - contributing freely (which all three of you appear to do). I think the lack of need for a heavy hand is what Brix would have wanted much more than to stymie a political thread (informative and entertaining although fairly repetitive and partisan as it is). My final point would be a suggestion - have a sticky on a current QPR related discussion topic to keep the off topics further down the page and that might, in turn, spawn new interest and other footy related threads.
