Feedback regarding the thread closure on the recreation subforum

I really can't get behind the decision to shut down the recreation thread and then lock the other open topic where we were all just joking around and chatting. In my 15 years of being part of this community, I have never once seen an entire group of users on a sub-forum get hit with a blanket ban on talking

I don't think I've ever actually seen an entire thread get locked just because a moderator decided to throw a tantrum. And this is coming from a moderator who, honestly, just popped up after being MIA for who knows how long. The biggest crime here? Someone dared to comment on how the moderation was being handled. Wow. What a scandal!
Just delete the posts they deem controversial, hand out penalties to whoever needs them, and call it a day, I guess.

I’m jumping in here to echo the sentiments regarding the closure, because honestly, I just don't see the point or any valid reason behind it.
There wasn't any personal attacks or anyone veering off-topic; if someone actually broke the rules, they should just get a warning and that should be the end of it.
As it stands, the one—and I mean the *only*—permanently active thread on that entire sub-forum has been shut down simply because the moderator decided to call it that.
At this rate, you might as well just close down the whole sub-forum entirely.

Wow. So, Daniel Gomez10 never even touches the moderation duties over at Rekra, and now suddenly she’s decided to come in and start playing cop with people who are just hanging out and having fun? That's basically the hallmark of a bad moderator right there. At least when it comes to Rekra. Because, let's be real, she doesn't moderate it, ever. I don't even know if she's a moderator anywhere else or if she actually does a decent job elsewhere—honestly, I couldn't care less. But as for Rekra, I'm telling you, she doesn't moderate it and she clearly doesn't give a damn.

A private thread on Rekra? That’s absolutely unheard of and just plain wrong!

It’s always such a blast there, and the vibe is usually top-tier, even if some of the newer folks haven't quite caught on lately... 🤷 but shutting down a thread... 🤦

If suicide rates spike today, just make sure you note that moderator Daniel Gomez10 from Rekra is the one to blame 😬
It makes zero sense for a single mod—who, by the way, hasn't contributed a damn thing to this chat in four years—to suddenly swoop in and hand out nine bans all at once 😁
I’d have to wonder if maybe the problem actually lies with me.
Anyway, this whole topic is directly tied to this:

Closing a thread is just one of the many tools we use for moderation.
If I were actually being as heavy-handed as you all claim, I could have banned everyone from starting new threads entirely—even though I specifically asked you guys not to do that.
So, I’m going to reopen the old thread now, but here’s one more heads-up: please don't comment on the moderation there. Honestly, I really don't feel like handing out bans today, regardless of what you think.

I won't be posting much in the threads or on Rekra anymore, but I'll still be lurking and handling the mod duties.
That's all from me.

Kimberly Rodriguez51 said:Closing a thread is just another tool in a moderator's kit, plain and simple.
If I were actually as heavy-handed as you all claim, I could have easily handed out bans for opening new threads, even though I specifically told you guys not to.
So, I'm reopening the old thread now, with one more reminder: leave the moderation talk out of it. I really don't feel like handing out bans today, regardless of what you might think.

It’s not even about what people think, since the bans have been issued—and they were issued after God knows how long by a moderator who doesn't even hang out in that thread.
The conclusion is pretty self-explanatory.

I don't really participate in the thread anymore and I barely post on Rekra, but I still read it and handle the moderation.
That's all from me.

It's obvious that 🕺

Kimberly Rodriguez51 said:Closing a thread is just one tool in a moderator's toolkit, plain and simple.
If I were actually as repressive as you all claim, I could have banned you from even starting new threads—even though I specifically told you not to.
Instead, I'm reopening the old thread with one final warning: stay away from discussing moderation there. I really don't feel like handing out bans today, regardless of what you think.

I'm stepping back from active discussions here and barely posting on Rekra anymore, but I am still reading and moderating.
That's all from me.

Forgive us, Your Majesty, we didn't recognize you. 🕺

Keith Doyle18 said:It’s interesting how such a huge chunk of the community is landing on the exact same opinion regarding why and how people are getting banned—it makes me wonder who’s actually right here, and who’s just refusing to see the big picture.

Jack Ward82 said:Maybe one could conclude that none of us realized you were an active participant in that same chat yourself—not just tolerating posts similar to Arashev's, but actively engaging in that kind of back-and-forth for quite some time.
If fourteen different people are telling me I'm wrong, I wouldn't try to hide behind a literal interpretation of the rules; I’d take a step back or at least check in with a fellow moderator.

I'm with everything said here, and I want to highlight two undeniable facts.

To give you the full picture: those of us who've been around for a while are just fed up with the "newcomers"—who aren't even really new, honestly, they've been here a bit—constantly putting us down and being blatantly rude.

We're all long-term members, and as mentioned, none of us have ever been banned—which proves we're peaceful people who don't go looking for trouble—but we've finally hit our limit because the rudeness from certain individuals in this peaceful chat has completely exhausted our patience.

How much longer are we supposed to sit there and let people mock and disrespect us, only to be sanctioned ourselves when we finally stand up for ourselves?

It’s pretty clear the "kill them with kindness" approach isn't working anymore.

Most of the high-quality contributors left because of the toxic atmosphere that's been brewing for the last year.

And just like I said in the original thread, I'll say it here too: from now on, I'm reporting every single disrespectful post directed at anyone in the chat. Being polite got us nowhere; the moment we stopped staying silent and called out the rudeness by meeting them on their own level, we got banned.
Fine. We'll start reporting too, and maybe a moderator—who seems to be nowhere to be found on Rekra—will actually do their job and stay updated on the actual dynamics between members.

Betty Jones32 said:I agree with everything said here, and I want to hammer home two undeniable facts.

To give you the bigger picture: we, the "old guard," are fed up. These so-called "newcomers"—who aren't even new anymore—keep belittling us and engaging in incredibly disrespectful conversations.

Most of us have been on this forum for ages. As mentioned, none of us have ever been banned, which proves we’re peaceful people who don't go looking for trouble. But we’ve reached our breaking point. The way certain individuals communicate and their sheer rudeness in this supposedly peaceful chat has pushed our patience past the limit.

Exactly how long are we supposed to sit here and take being mocked and insulted, only to be sanctioned ourselves when we finally stand up and defend ourselves because we've had enough?

We've realized that the whole "be the bigger person" theory just doesn't work here anymore.

Most of the high-quality contributors have already left because of the toxic atmosphere that's been festering for the last 12 months.

And just like I stated in the thread, I'll say it here too: from now on, I am reporting every single disrespectful post directed at any user. Being polite got us nowhere. When we stopped staying silent, called out the rudeness, and met them on their own level, we were the ones who got hit with warnings.
Fine. We'll start reporting, too. Maybe then a moderator—who is practically nonexistent on Rekra—will actually do their job and pay closer attention to the actual dynamics between users.

Give me a break. Some of these "new" chatters were telling others directly that they didn't have a penis, yet that wasn't considered an insult. The moderator, who apparently only reads the manual like it's a textbook, didn't see fit to react. Instead, Arash made a massive, unforgivable mistake.
Personally, I don't want heavy-handed moderation in the chat. This is meant to be a space where people can speak more freely—something the lady moderator should understand, given that on similar MK threads, it's perfectly fine to say certain things without getting punished.

Betty Jones32 said:I totally agree with everything said here, and I really want to stress these two undeniable facts.

And if we look at the bigger picture and the reasons behind it... honestly, us "old-timers" are just getting fed up with these "newcomers" who aren't even really new, but they show up and start talking down to everyone or having these super rude conversations.

Amen

It feels like we have two possible ways this plays out. Luckily, the mods don't have a ton of work, but when they do, they somehow always pick the worst way to handle it.

1) Someone new jumps in.
They don't try to fit in, they’re disrespectful to everyone, and they basically ruin the whole vibe.
The cultural crew (or at least those trying to keep things controlled—if you can call it that! 😁 but hey, keeping it polite and justified) points out that this behavior isn't okay.
Then the mods play the victim role a bit, and once things escalate, instead of dealing with the actual troublemaker, they just end up lecturing "everyone." It’s like, suddenly we aren't allowed to talk anymore because now the rules are being strictly enforced.
But it's applied to "everyone."
And just like that, the casual conversation is dead.

But there’s another way this goes.
2) Someone new jumps in.
They won't show even a shred of basic decency, they antagonize the group, and they act like they came here to "teach everyone how it's done" or "educate the community," etc. (those are direct quotes, by the way).
The group again points out that you actually need to socialize normally within a community.
And the mods tell the person causing problems, "Yeah, okay, but hey, maybe don't argue with everyone and put everyone down like that."

So, honestly, if we didn't have mods at all, it might actually be better than this circus. They never seem to catch the Type 2 situation, and (probably both) they always default to Type 1.

It’s just not right. Just choose the better option. It shouldn't be that hard.

And instead of settling things internally, they end up pushing the people who don't want any drama or arguments on the PŽK straight toward the PŽK.
It's kind of like when the new American family law comes along and forces everything into court, refusing to allow any reasonable, agreed-upon solution without a judge involved.😁

Personally, I usually try not to get too involved with people acting that way; I'll give them a heads-up, and if they want to listen, fine, if not, whatever.
But even for me, it’s annoying to see someone insulting and belittling the rest of the group. And regarding that, the mods were just, frankly, pretty weak.

-Steve

Just a quick heads-up, I actually hung out in that thread once before, but I didn't feel welcome at all, so I bailed. You guys were constantly picking on people just to drive them away, including Anid.
Major props to Milivojka, Bugica, and Tvuk, but some of you... honestly, give me a break.

And Anid was just collateral damage in this. From what I can see, there’s plenty of drama and downright malicious mocking happening here even without her involvement.

Stop being such jerks, individuals. Milivojka, I'm rooting for you. 😬

And don't go trying to belittle me just because I posted photos on MK—photos that you all obsessively click on every single day. You're acting like total newbies, honestly.

I honestly feel like just because someone like Jason Richardson5 or whoever else had an opinion, you can't really take that and apply it to everyone else.

Maybe try listing out the other 20 regulars around here and then go ahead and search through to see if anyone else ever talked to you like that.
I mean, nobody really cared about it anyway. 😁

-Steve

briskjackal5 said:I don't think you can take one person's experience—say, with someone like Jason Richardson5—and apply it to everyone else.

Go ahead, list out twenty other regulars and see if any of them have ever spoken to you that way.
Nobody really gave a damn. 😁

-Steve

People weren't exactly eager to write much when I was around there, and things turned into a complete circus once.
Credit to the exceptions, though.

☕

Even Thomas Campbell5 seemed likable at one point, until things went south.

Don't play the martyr, Steve.🥳

I'm in the middle of a book right now.🙂

👋

Maria Johnson said:Hold on a second. I was in that thread too, and I didn't feel welcome at all, so I left. You guys were constantly mocking people just to drive them away—including dustypilot11.
Major props to Milivojka, Bugica, and Tvuk, but some of you are just unbearable.

And dustypilot11 is just collateral damage here. I'm watching this closely; there’s plenty of drama and downright malicious mocking happening even without her involvement.

Stop whining, individuals. Milivojka, I love you. 😬

And then you try to belittle me just because I posted pictures on MK—pictures that you all obsess over every single day. You're acting like total newbies. Give me a break.

Nobody is freaking out about dustypilot11 here; they're reacting to the way things are being moderated. You personally, and dustypilot11 too, were talking much nastier in that chat, yet you weren't banned—though you probably should have been. It's a chat room; people joke around. It's not some high-stakes legal debate.😉 Now look at you, standing in a trash chat claiming everyone except Milivojek, Bugica, and Tvuk is terrible. What now? Should we hand you a ban card? No. You have an opinion, and that's that.
And now you're coming in here saying we're whining. A ban?!

Jack Ward82 said:Nobody here is actually targeting Anid; the issue is the way things are being moderated. You personally, much like Anid, have said plenty of things on that chat that were far more abrasive, yet you weren't banned—and honestly, you shouldn't be either. It’s a chat room; people are supposed to mess around. It isn't some high-stakes formal debate. 😉 Even now, on the off-topic chat, you're claiming everyone except Milivojek, Bugica, and Tvuk is terrible. So what, do you need a ban for having an opinion? No. You have your view, and that’s that.

Go ahead, find one single post where I've actually been rude or acted out of line.☕
They aren't necessarily "bad," they just pretend to be better than they actually are. Take yourself, for example—you aren't some saint, mostly because you aren't exactly being sincere, but whatever. At the end of the day, it's all just forums, sports, and music.😬

There are probably a few others who are alright, but I'd need to sit down and analyze them, and I don't have the time right now.☕
But yeah, you guys have definitely turned this thread into your own private club.

I’m officially signing this appeal against the moderation.
I hope Steve doesn't take this personally, but I feel like I need to post this here too...

briskjackal5 said:Daniel Gomez10... Come on, don't go ruining the whole thread for everyone over nothing.

There's an old saying that one bad apple spoils the whole bunch.

When someone shows up and starts picking fights with everyone from day one—regardless of the photos or whatever else is happening—how long does it take you to connect the dots?
I'm going to point this out politely and I won't dig any deeper, because there's always a chance things can be fixed. Why not...
But the permanent fact remains: that's just how it is. And we've seen this pattern before.

If you join a group specifically to argue with people, you basically have no business being here. It's common sense. And the community is going to react negatively to that.
On the flip side, if the community really wants to indulge these kinds of antics, why deny us that?

What part of this is so hard to grasp? And how do you expect to moderate if you don't get it?

Honestly, if you just didn't moderate at all, it would probably be better than what you're doing right now.

Forums, communities, and threads aren't just a checklist of rules. Viewing them that way is shallow and honestly pretty poor judgment.
And any moderation that ignores the bigger picture is just bad moderation.

-Steve

Maria Johnson said:honestly, they didn't really feel like writing much when I was there, and one time everything just turned into a total mess.

Well, okay then, I guess... should you really be forcing the cultural crew to post just because you happen to be hanging out there? And honestly, how does that even have anything to do with moderation? 😁

You're tripping.

-Steve

So, what's the deal with October? Honestly, October is pretty chill to everyone. In its own weird way, I guess. 🤣