Thanks to you all

[LHR02]

Hey fellow readers,
This evening I 'abused' my moderator power in a way I have never done. I have banned a member and deleted his posts, entirely. Kim did not know I was going to do so, and did not give me that permission. I did so on my own.
For some time it seemed that Stabone76 was somewhat hostile, at least it seemed so to me, and was I thought very rude to several of the valued members here. He was called on it....and being a moderator I was privy to many personal messages that most of you were not. His posts today contained several snide and nasty remarks directed to Kim...who has never failed to be more than totally diplomatic and welcoming to everyone who has entered this forum. She has on many occasions 'smacked me down' as I readily acknowledge I have a tendancy to be less than that. I can only plead that I am older than most of you, and have never suffered fools lightly, even less so as I get older. Mea culpa.
I was I believe the third member of Kim's little experiment...which has grown into such a great site. I remain so proud of it..and of her. She spends many hours trying to make this the best site she can and a good deal of her available funds as well. And to put it mildly, it pisses me off beyond reason to have some hotshot come in and give her such a hard time.
Kim needs to 'fire' me, but being the gal she is, she won't. She is too soft. So I need to retire as moderator. Hopefully not from the boards altogether as I would miss so many of you. I consider you my friends and net buddies and hopefully you feel the same, at least some of you do. It's been a great ride.
This site will continue to grow and succeed and how could it not. The owner is great, the regulars are too, and some of the best information to be had can be found here. Keep up the good work.

I apologize.....I really do. I took advantage of my 'authority'.....I took great offense to private messages, I've every reason to have lost Kim's trust, and yours.

ging

[Jules80]

Ging! you can't go! you're a great moderator and you bring so much to the board!

Jules

[dumbdiety]

Oi, Kim won't fire you. You're a good mod that's just a little vocal. ;D
I wouldn't have deleted EVERY post, just edited out the snarky bits, but I would've deleted his account also. I mean, it's not like we can punish you any more, you ARE living in the middle of nowhere....

[Kim]

I will hardly fire you for dealing with a poster that just sent me an email calling me a liar and swearing at me. Obviously not the kind of person we want around here. I was coming here to ban him myself, don't worry.

Kim

[dumbdiety]

See? I was right! This is why you should listen to me more often! [glaring at the regulars on MSN] ;D

[WillTravel]

Ging, you're just watching out for us. No need to apologize for that!

[MuvverRussia]

Good call. There's absolutely no need for personal attacks, insults and other negativity on a message board.

People need to realise that posting here is a priviledge, not a right and as such they should behave accordingly. The vast, vast majority of people realise this, as shown by the sense of community on this board. As for those who are incapable of understanding this, there's always the metaphorical door .

There's no way you should stand down for doing something that'll improve the board. As forums get bigger you always get people who disagree with the ethos of the forum, so you have to deal with them . It's a fact of life.

[jennifer]

Ging, come on, as it's been proven, everyone feels the same.
He made me so damn mad as you saw in a previous post and what i liked about GFE was from the start that its a friendship network and not only a travelling one. This guy passed that line.

I approve you TOTALLY. I would have done it myself if it wasnt that Im a new mod and all...
Jen
xoxox

[Patrick]

Ging, you had the 'nerve' to delete my favourite poster's account! How dare you!!! lol j/k

Honestly I don't even remember this guy, but from what you describe he sounds like a troublemaker anyway. All you can do is give warnings... if people don't heed them... well. Too bad.

[Eagle]

Ging et al, I was quite surprised and a bit shocked to learn about the events that have been taking place with Stabone76. I've posted a few replies to Tony, and he always seemed polite enough in the "public forums". I had no idea that he was also sending abusive and derogatory PM's to the Moderators! Although in fairness I haven't heard "both sides of the story", given what I see posted here it sounds like his behaviour was most certainly not appropriate or up the the integrity and standards we've come to accept at GFE. I normally favour a "progessive discipline" model, but based on the facts I have to hand, it sounds like he "crossed the line", which required a more severe response.

GING, you don't need to apologize for doing your "job"! You were maintaining the "code of conduct" that we're all expected to adhere to on these Boards. You did what Moderators are supposed to do. I'm sure you didn't need "permission" as Moderators must have some latitude in making autonomous decisions. I hope once you take a deep breath and ponder this for a day or two, you'll reconsider resigning and continue to share your travel experiences with us.

I don't believe you've lost "Kim's trust" and hopefully Kim doesn't feel that way either? I also don't believe she is "too soft". As you pointed out, she has "smacked you down" on occasion. From what I've seen, Kim has maintained consistent standards on the Boards, and that's nice for all of us. We can enjoy a predictable and "safe" experience in posting, one that is free of the "flaming" and other nonsense that occurs on some Boards.

As for Tony, I do hope he has a nice trip to Europe. Hopefully also, he is giving some thought to the "consequences of his actions"? If the behaviour you've described continues, I expect that GFE won't be the only people he becomes alienated from!

Cheers all!!!