Some have asked why they haven't seen me on the boards lately.

Well I decided to take a break from the boards. An indefinite break.

The reason: it's getting so tiring to seeing the flaming wars and the personal attacks and other stuff (Commander Catcop criticism for example... the eurotrash remark which aggrevated me... and I"m not European.)

People putting their own editorial judgements on things. The comments about the cliques (I know they are directed at me and I'm accused of being "teh president of the Flyertalk clique.")

I won't go on. But I sense a feeling of chilliness and nastiness that I felt could happens as the board grows. But I'm not comfortable with it.

I think NJDavid and others have made good points..l. like a code of conduct and EVERYONE GIVING E-MAIL ADDRESSES (SO WE CAN RESPOND PRIVATELY IF A REMARK OFFENDS US.)

I will probably lurk from time to time. When I'm coming back... who knows?

But until things calm down I don't see a place for myself on this board.

And it's not like my absense will be felt. You got plenty of people to fill my paws.

Randy, I'll be in touch. And i'll see some of you at the FAQ and some even sooner.

Have a MEOWY DAY!


[This message has been edited by Catman (edited 07-11-2000).]

:-(

When the cat's away, the mice get despondent...

Sorry to see you go -- clique or not. No one should allow others to force him off the board -- of course unless the others are Randy Petersen or other Flyertalk staff.

Hey Gato Magnifico,

Let all this Nay saying roll off your fur man. A real cat is independent and the center of his own world. He makes vermin his play things. A cat is meant to prowl the Boards, and while a cat is loving, a cat has claws and teeth for a reason. Luckily, cats have nine lives, so I know that you�ll be back.

I suspect the "Eurotrash" person you mention will move on:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/Forum50/HTML/002355.html

Been very quiet after this post above. Forget him.

And for what its worth, I agree with you - needing to supply a real email address, (not a hotmail or yahoo freemail etc) stops a LOT of that kind of posting. There are many 1000's of posters each day on the various eBay chat boards and EVERY one of them abides by that rule, as well as name, address and phone # all being on file in case it is needed legitimately.

[This message has been edited by ozstamps (edited 07-11-2000).]

Catman,

I am not a "newbie" nor am I a "veteran" FTer. However, I have sensed a change for the worse here on the boards lately. Your presence will be missed. You are a great contributor to this community and I personally hope you reconsider.

-RKG

One of the disadvantages of written communication (as opposed to live interaction) is that subtleties are often lost.

I wrote up an account of a meeting here at work just yesterday. I had a point of view, and that came through in my account. If I were delivering the summary verbally, you could detect a bit of a tongue-in-cheek attitude. I got a comment back from someone on my written account -- "too strident". I responded to his written account, "not strident enough".

In that same way, I think a very small minority of people misinterpreted the good-natured Commander Catcop stuff as being too strident. I think some of the other flames going on are as a result of misintrepation of satire/humor. (I wasn't offended by "eurotrash" because I thought the person who wrote that wasn't being serious -- he was more Archie Bunker than John Rocker. And my wife is German). I know my own sense of humor is an acquired taste (my wife is still working on acquiring it after 8 years).

As for cliques: I like to see people being friends and liking each other, nothing wrong with that. It can't really be a clique if you post everything in public, anyway.

I haven't met you yet, Catman (we've chatted a few times on the Live Chat), but I'm sure I'll like you (I'll be at the FAQ, maybe you can prove me wrong )

And I enjoy your contributions to the board (even though I'm horribly allergic to cats), capital letters and all.


[This message has been edited by opus17 (edited 07-11-2000).]

My dear Catman:

Perhaps we all need to take a little catnap.

ZZZZZZZZzzzzzzz.......ZZZZZzzzzz

Catman, surely you will reconsider!

C'mon, as you well know, I've endured FAR worse!

Please don't let the crap get you down!

Few, if any on this board, are nearly as well liked and appreciated as you, Catman!

I must fess up and admit guilt. I am the idiot that started the "Record poster" thread because I was ticked off at a new member 'Cam' posting useless comment in every single forum that s/he's ever heard of, I didn't expect the bloodbath that ensued. Althought I am not an "Evangelist", I have been here a while, and do value Catman's postings. Yes, please, do reconsider.

FWIW: I tried to shut down that thread much earlier, but as some of you know, that function does not work. Again, my bad for contributing to this mess.

el gato hombre,

arturo es hinging aroun hear jus two sea wat hapins. yu kan hinge aroun hear two an postie sumthin guud lik yu doo.

------------------
Loving, Caring, Honest, Intelligent, Empathetic, Creative, and Giving.

The words of wise opus ring so true in my ears. A large problem with online communications is that you don't get to see the person talking. Their tone and mannerisms make a large difference in how your receive their attitude. Just as an example, eurotrash. I don't know if the guy was being sarcastic or serious, and he didn't use the only attempt we have at determining this (the or is used to show sarcasim and the like). Nonetheless, better safe than sorry, so I say don't post something like that since people likely won't know you were kidding.

When I joined FlyerTalk at the start of this year, I was amazed at what I saw. A great group of travelers who unite to discuss their true passion in a comfortable setting. I arrived just before the newbie crush, and as frequent fliers increase and the board becomes more known, our population too increases. We now "know" fewer FlyerTalkers, and this can account for some problems. For example, many know Nick Merry is often very sarcastic, but if you didn't see enough of his posts, you might think he was mean or rude. He has no malintent, but if you don't know his style, you might think that.

Nonetheless, I feel that some problems will take away the finest, most interesting, greatest FlyerTalkers. I ask everyone to use judgement. Think before you bash someone. Ignore their posts and replies. If you need to get something out to them, try e-mail. If we all use judgement, we can keep this a clean place.

Enough said.


[This message has been edited by BostonBoy (edited 07-11-2000).]

Say it ain't so El Gato buddy!! I agree that the flame wars and trash talk have to stop but don't let them push you away. I for one and I'm sure for all say we need you on this board as a steadying factor and a true friend. I'm looking forward to our Sept meeting at the Red Green show so please don't take a hiatus from your true buds on the board.


------------------
Cheers Scott

Catman,

Let me add my voice to all those asking you to reconsider. I can't claim to have read all your posts, but I've certainly appreciated those that I have.

I too am appalled by the flaming; can only hope it will die down.

As to the cliques, I haven't seen those posts, but I have to disagree strongly. A short time after my first post, you posted a very nice welcome. While I haven't attended any of the FT get-togethers, your posts make it clear that all are invited, and I certainly feel welcome.

Please don't think your absence won't be felt. Come back - it's just not the same without you.