Originally Posted by 1P

Am I the only one who thought to myself "Here is one arrogant so-and-so, telling us upfront that he is going to do things his way and stuff the rest of us" ? As if that were not enough, he reiterates the warning, not once but twice at least. And so — I couldn't bring myself to look at the TR which, indeed, as I skimmed through to the bottom, has entirely too many pictures. Should I report OP to the moderators for provocation? Or is this all a matter of taste? This is a serious question. I think warnings like this should be prohibited.

Originally Posted by zcat18

This thought crossed my mind too. I've got mixed feelings. The disclaimer is unnecessary and, clearly, is inviting/provoking just the sort of commentary that the OP claims to wish to avoid. To some degree, this "disclaimer" applies to all TRs posted here: the unwritten rule is generally that it's YMMV, not everybody is going to like every TR, and if you don't like it, then it's usually best to just move on and not read it rather than inviting conflict with what is usually unnecessary criticism. In this case, however, I think--at long last--criticism is certainly warranted.

I've read this poster's TRs since he started posting them. I've been quietly rooting for him to become a great trip reporter and for people to take him seriously (I believe that the latter is the case for the most part, and the former will come with time and patience). I think we need enthusiastic young blood with different perspectives in this hobby. I really do appreciate his enthusiasm, and I think he provides a valuable service to the FT community. There is certainly a very real niche need for reports on short-haul products.

However, all of that said, the reports have become increasingly difficult to navigate, and while I realize that it is out of his control, there seems to be a maturity level issue that prevents him from leaving some insults unpunished. The results are trip reports that are overwhelmingly self-serving and that (deliberately?) over-utilize many of the devices and stylistic issues that have turned people off in the past.

From a purely practical standpoint, the overwhelming number of photos take an absurd amount of time to load--even on the very fast network that I use day-to-day. This, plus the increasingly provocative, sometimes almost vindictive tone (which includes the disclaimers), will prevent me from reading this poster's reports from now on. That said, I don't think it warrants interaction with the mods. They pay close enough attention that I believe they would step in if he were running afoul of the "rules," and I trust their judgment. That said, I had the same reaction you did.

Originally Posted by matthandy

I've read through some of the responses on this thread and have to point out that the OP is quite young and therefore that should be taken into account. Having said that, criticism is healthy and valuable so there's nothing wrong with posting comments as long as they are respectful.

Some of the comments have gone a little too far although I accept that they may have been prompted by postings made by the OP.

Please lets keep the comments respectful and constructive rather than personal.

Thanks,

matthandy
Moderator: Trip Reports