Some thoughts on this subject........
In my opinion when a forum has been as disturbed, as the iris forum has been for the past few weeks, it is good to see in a notice that the problem is over. Normally I would not think this way but other people than the poster were involved. It had gotten to the point that many of us were not posting and I was thinking that the forum would never be the same again. If this changes I will not have any problem with it.
I read the posts from this person and at first I thought 'just needs meds and prayers'. I can supply one of those.....
And the ignore button is a great option but after awhile, as the attacks continued, it was impossible not to be aware of the topics of the posts even if the ignore option was used. After many of her posts people were defending not only themselves but others. I had moved beyond pity and I thought 'grow up and stop this behavior!'.
Some people like conflict and drama and no matter what is said they always take offense. I have disagreed with many people on the forum but still have great respect for what they think. No one wants a world with one book and I love that we are such a diverse group with so many different ways of tackling things. However, I have never seen words on any forum, except the Roll Call thread in the Iris Forum, like the ones that were used in just a period of days. These words were scattered over many posts, and a lot were aimed at me in different posts, and I had not responded to any of these posts but that did not stop them from coming.
I am a big believer in if you don't like what you see look somewhere else. As the posts began spreading into other threads on the forum it became harder and harder to avoid them. If it is not a happy place why am I there. I can't fix it. Reasoning by calm voices were not fixing it. It is sad but when you think of the alternative, which is for most or all of us to just leave, it is more than sad. This person did make the comment that they liked another forum because it did not have as many people and they could 'dominate' it.
I felt a great deal of relief when I read the message that they were banned. I felt other things as well.
I think this option has saved the Iris Forum and therefore a source of comradery and new ideas for me. I hope anyone who was looking the site over was not put off by this past months angst.
It took a lot of negative posts, accusations and some name calling by this person before anyone made a decision to report them. We are a live and let live group and that is as it should be. It was not taken lightly.
I hope I never see this situation on this site again but it is good to know when you have exhausted all options there is someone that can set things right. In every society, and I think the forums are a bit like a tiny society/\. there are rules to live by. The rules we live by, and most of us adhere to, are just good common courtesy and thinking all of us are equal.
If the admin system had not posted the banned notice I think after a period of time people would have started coming back slowly to the forum. As it is this morning there is a lot more posts than has been there is weeks...... very few of them about this situation.
I hope the banned person finds peace in their life and will not need to 'dominate' a group of people to feel like they belong.
Just my thoughts...... and they are worth just what you paid for them.
