Posts by Jonathan Wright2

bluecyclist64 said:It’s pretty obvious that Oštrić treats history as an actual science. The kind of "history" that trolls scrape from bottom-tier websites is much better suited for the Alternative section.
Let's be honest here: if someone is trying to learn history solely from movies on YouTube or similar sources, they really have no business lurking in the History subforum.

The moderation over in Natural Science takes a similar approach, and personally, I think it's excellent. If you don't have the knowledge, the facts, or the arguments to back things up, feel free to head over to some other subforums that don't demand much from their users.

That’s not fair, bluecyclist64...
You and Oštrić might share the same feelings regarding the USSR and JBT, and hey, that’s totally fine.
I’m not exactly far from the Partisans' positions myself, but what Oštrić is doing right now is straight-up driving people away...
Look, Oštrić is a phenomenal forum user—the guy is absolutely packed with knowledge—but as a moderator? He’s a killer. He burns everything in his path, and frankly, it’s deeply concerning how he’s chasing people off this subforum.
I’ve already reached out to the relevant mods to flag this, pointing out not just his behavior, but also Oštrić's thin skin, his angry outbursts, and even the threats he’s thrown around.
I don't know him personally, but the guy clearly has some neurotic issues going on.

The History subforum used to be a place for meeting up, for actual debate, for deep and meaningful discussions—it was a pleasant place to be...
But Oštrić’s moderation style has brought in censorship and a sense of fear; people feel exhausted by the constant "monitoring and eavesdropping"... you have to watch every single comma, because he’ll delete or remove anything that doesn't fit his specific worldview.

The truth is, Oštrić is killing the forum.
You have to think exactly like him just to participate.
If anyone actually cares, I can show you the sanctions he’s slapped on me and the "explanations" he gives for them.
I even sent messages to the moderators over at the History subforum asking for advice...

Oštrić is simply not cut out to be a moderator... it’s been proven.
He’s effectively suffocating every single discussion topic.

And look, bluecyclist64, just be decent. I’m not saying you have to be against Oštrić, but don't defend him like this, because you're only helping him do more damage.

A forum should be a place for community.
For Oštrić, it’s just a playground to vent his own frustrations.

stormytiger4 said:Instead of trying to kick out a mod on a private Forum—especially one who was put in that spot by the owner and admin—maybe we should just ask them to enable the history open and pdf right history features and then bring in Bujanac to handle the moderation. I read somewhere that he’s actually a real expert at this stuff.

Don't go there, man... Look, I am totally against the "right-wing" vibe here, and I honestly think Bljuvanac is a complete slippery character, but that's not even what this is about.

Let Zoran Oštrić stay on as a moderator, provided he can just... I don't know, chill out?
He jumps down everyone's throat over every little thing—everything has to bend to his own personal, subjective little version of reality.
That old spirit of free expression is basically being suffocated; that creative way of interpreting things is just gone. Now, look, it’s not like everything changed overnight, but a Forum is a sensitive community.
The whole point of this place is to pull in more users, make an impact on society, raise awareness on different levels, and all that good stuff.

And Mr. Oštrić is standing right in the way of that.

bluecyclist64 said:Oh, totally—it’s way easier to just swap out a moderator than it is to actually teach people how to follow basic forum etiquette. And let's not even get started on the quoting rules.🥳

Look, Oštrić isn't bad for the History section... he's actually great at what he does, but when he puts on the moderator hat, he gets way too heavy-handed.
I mean, sure, citing your sources is fine. It's standard.

But you have to look at the bigger picture here.
Sometimes you read a book—or three—you wrap your head around the subject, and you jump into the conversation. You don't always have the physical textbook sitting right in front of you to pull a quote from, but does that mean you aren't allowed to have an opinion?
That's exactly the point I'm making.

Every single sentence needs to fit the context, and the context needs to align with the author. Promoting that rule is all well and good, but honestly? It's nearly impossible to stick to that strictly every single time.
Besides, what's the use of those hundreds of books written by "experts" if modern history just tosses them aside the second some new discovery comes along and flips the whole narrative on its head?

What I'm saying is, history is a quest. A historian is an investigator. It involves impressions, gut feelings, and assessments. This forum should be a place for freer interpretations. Why block someone from experiencing their own version of that search? In the end, science, evidence, and a gathering of smart minds will settle the score anyway.
Oštrić really needs to loosen the grip a little... though I guess that might not be "good" for the strict order of the forum.
But this place should be a launchpad for creativity.

I honestly don't see a leadership change happening—setting a precedent like that is way too risky... But, I’m going to try and have a sit-down with him to see if we can find a totally different way forward.
The goal is to figure out a system where we aren't constantly dealing with this underlying tension, the petty bullying, the constant monitoring, and all that other toxic nonsense.

The end result? We're losing the very people who actually built this community from the ground up.
The vibe here is just suffocating because under Zoran Oštrić's watch, there's zero freedom, zero creativity, and zero soul left. Everything is being crushed into this rigid, pre-packaged box... You basically have to write exactly how he dictates and exactly how he thinks it should be done.

It’s honestly exhausting and pretty depressing that I even have to bring this up like this, but I’m genuinely worried this place is going to tank if Mr. Oštrić keeps moderating with this kind of attitude. There's just too much unilateral power being thrown around without any actual logic behind it... It kills the whole point of having a forum.
It's getting to the point where you practically need a permit just to post anything—what you say, how you phrase it, your entire attitude toward a topic, you name it.

Look, the rules are pretty straightforward... No insults, promote decent communication, show some tolerance, and help raise the level of discussion. I’m not saying moderators shouldn't have opinions—of course they should—but why on earth persecute anyone who doesn't share them?
I mean, seriously, what’s the point of a forum if we’re all forced to think exactly the same way?!

The real solution is making diversity our strength instead of letting it be the thing that tears us apart.
This whole platform was born out of a basic human desire for free speech. Let's actually protect that value!

Regarding the History subforum and the actions of moderator Zoran Oštrić.

Look, I’ll give credit where it’s due—this moderator actually puts in the work over at the History section.
He was a solid, dedicated member of this community long before he ever picked up a moderator badge.

But seriously, it’s high time the admin and the head mods step in and try to convince Mr. Oštrić to loosen the reins a bit. His moderation style has become incredibly rigid, blunt, pushy, and honestly, pretty intimidating.
And if anyone thinks I'm exaggerating, just check the private messages—there's plenty of evidence of him being outright disrespectful.

The guy is constantly hijacking thread titles to suit his own whims, which totally crushes any sense of autonomy or creativity the users have. All he’s doing is driving people away and tanking the traffic on the History board.
It doesn't feel like a welcoming space anymore. The whole reason people joined this sub was to dive deep into historical discussions beyond just dry facts, but that vibe is completely dead now.

It feels like Mr. Oštrić is using these restrictive tactics to turn the forum into his own little private fiefdom, effectively bullying everyone else out of wanting to show up or stick around.
Given all this, I’m officially calling for a review of Zoran Oštrić's position.
If he keeps running things this way, he’s going to kill this forum for good.

Kilt stuff—you know, the whole deal with the battalions, the specific patterns, how the lines are laid out and all that.
I was talking to this one Scott who fought as a mercenary back when things were heating up over here, and he was telling me how every single clan has its own unique colors and distinct line patterns.
Man, I totally blanked on asking him one thing, though—and I think the guy might have actually died somewhere down in Nicaragua—but does every single Scott actually own a kilt?