Hello,
@Mr. LPSG . Welcome. I decided some time ago to leave LPSG, and at the time, this was intended as a permanent move. I have been here a long time, active the whole time, until I left several weeks back. In fact, I joined before Rob_e's deal to purchase LPSG closed. I remember when there were no moderators. I remember why the outcry for enforced moderation went up. I remember early mistakes, and the changes (such as increased transparency) implemented to avoid similar disappointments in the future. I remember the backlash (and how that backlash was all but ignored) when that transparency was replaced by the current policy: Discussion of administrative and moderator decisions in open forum is not permitted, and may, or may not result in a ban, depending upon some whim.
Anyway, am I back? No. I'm lurking because you've taken over, Mr. LPSG, and I'm trying to have some faith in your ability to restore balance to a community I loved, and a space in which I felt honesty was safe.
How safe did I feel? For most of the time I've been here, members could see my face. I had it as an avatar in the beginning. Then, in my gallery when too much negative attention from men was a problem. How honest was I? Well, you liked one of my posts in which I was honest about the man I married, his struggle with orientation/self-acceptance, and its impact on me. I have always told my whole truth here, in ways I cannot elsewhere.
Over the past few years, I have been a bit disturbed by events. The TOS changed to include prohibition of hate speech. But that wasn't consistently enforced unless the writing slurred ethnic minorities, or members of the LGBTQ community. A post that was misogynistic was just fine. At least that's the message many of the women here understood.
Most recently, and most disturbingly, some of the women here have discussed amongst ourselves (because site policy and administration could not be discussed in public) that posts were being modified or deleted without any explanation nor indication from the moderator implementing the decision. Around that time, in a thread hyperlinked in a post above this, a member named Zaromski TWICE made threats of violence against me, and another long-time female member who appears to have also vacated these premises. He threatened beatings, and murder. The first time, they gave him a temp ban, and edited the offending posts. I could be wrong, but I think this ban lasted a week, maybe two. The second time, they simply removed his threats. We let the moderators know some of us had already seen them. Still, nothing was done. He still posts, though he's steered clear of the women here.
When I contrast that person's punishment, a week or two, and then just edited posts, with the punishment for annoying the moderators by sending reports to the mod forum (how is that a thing?!) being six months, I am bereft of any motivation to return. That isn't outrageous. It's disgusting. It's bullshit pettiness, which should be beneath the owner, the admins (if there are any left) and his team of moderators.
If I had any suggestions to make, they would be these. The place is yours. Consider the rules in place in the TOS, and consult with older members, and the mod team regarding why a rule became a rule before changing it. You have too few moderators, and no administrators. You should consider having at least three (and always an odd number of) mods per sub-forum, and a volunteer schedule of mods for chat. Chat moves fast. You may need three at a time in there. Moderators should be more concerned with the spirit of a rule, than with the letter, and take action accordingly. It should be the daily task of one or two people to comb over the logs from the mod forum, and check that every action taken has been reflected in a thread that makes members aware of moderator actions. The moderator responsible for taking the action (after the group vote) should update the thread as part of the action, but stuff happens, and the follow up moderators can update the thread with any actions that did not get documented. New volunteers should be sought every three years or so to replace a quarter of the moderators. A former mod should wait three years before applying again once their time is up.
Thank you for your warmth, openness, and good intentions. I wish you fun, financial success, and adventure. I'll peek in from time to time from the shadows. If it seems to be going well, I may return. Either way, it has been nice to "meet" you, Mr. LPSG.
