Regional Forums Moderator: Charles!

[rebeccajo 14]

#######? has any of the others..mox? who is this tay rivers/ never posts? and william is always gone...no offense to william or tay..i understand they have other things in their life..charles is here allot and as an organizer has been active and above board....

By that same set of criteria, then we could make anyone who hangs out and posts a lot a moderator.

Does CONGRATULATIONS ring any bells...?

I do think that having 'deputy' mods is a good idea on a forum this size -- global mods just cannot be everywhere all the time. I just think the choice is sort of, well, odd - to say the least. LOL. At least the part of the forum in question isn't heavily into immigration advice - because (sorry Charles!) but that doesn't seem to be his forte.

There is though - TONS of immigration advice in the Regional Forums. Some members don't even go out of their Regionals.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Well as it's Ewok's decision clearly we'll all have to abide by it - and the creation of other mod roles in the sub-forums is a good compromise.

I guess it remains to be see whether Mr Charles will be able to keep petty personal disputes out of his moderation decisions - even without the ability to suspend accounts there is a lot of passive-aggressive stuff that can be done with topic closures, making posts invisible etc.

I for one, have good reason to doubt his sincerity and honesty. Of course for anyone who thought Charles had about as much chance of becoming a mod as Eric, at this point it probably isn't a stretch to imagine a situation where he could be "promoted" to the next level as it were in the event that one of the global mods steps down.

[*julez* 124]

Well as it's Ewok's decision clearly we'll all have to abide by it - and the creation of other mod roles in the sub-forums is a good compromise.

I guess it remains to be see whether Mr Charles will be able to keep petty personal disputes out of his moderation decisions - even without the ability to suspend accounts there is a lot of passive-aggressive stuff that can be done with topic closures, making posts invisible etc.

I for one, have good reason to doubt his sincerity and honesty. Of course for anyone who thought Charles had about as much chance of becoming a mod as Eric, at this point it probably isn't a stretch to imagine a situation where he could be "promoted" to the next level as it were in the event that one of the global mods steps down.

He hasn't even been able to do that in this thread.

[TracyTN 237]

There is though - TONS of immigration advice in the Regional Forums. Some members don't even go out of their Regionals.

I guess I meant in comparison to all the other forums (save off topic).

[spookyturtle 9,466]

Congrats to Charles. I would like to request that he ban BY as his first official act.

[MonkeyJuice 3]

Congrats. Does this mean no more NOOB bashing?

[Chica Yeyé 41]

Congrats. Does this mean no more NOOB bashing?

what do you think????

[rebeccajo 14]

There is though - TONS of immigration advice in the Regional Forums. Some members don't even go out of their Regionals.

I guess I meant in comparison to all the other forums (save off topic).

I think you'd be surprised just how much "immi info" happens in the Regionals. So what's going to be moderated down there? Accuracy of the information? Or is Charles just a playground mod?

Solve the problem. Create Regional sub-forums underneath the Consular Forum.

If people want to keep a Regional Off-Topic forum in the General Discussion area, then fine. Have Charles move immigration topics then up to the proper forums.

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

Ewok seems to be pissing off half the usual suspects with the current appointment, and the other half with his last appointment, so I guess that means Admin is doing the right thing.

Chill and enjoy.

[TracyTN 237]

There is though - TONS of immigration advice in the Regional Forums. Some members don't even go out of their Regionals.

I guess I meant in comparison to all the other forums (save off topic).

I think you'd be surprised just how much "immi info" happens in the Regionals. So what's going to be moderated down there? Accuracy of the information? Or is Charles just a playground mod?

No, I wouldn't be surprised - I just meant if you compare it to, say, the AOS section (can't think of the exact name of that forum off the top of my head), it doesn't have nearly as much as that one does. Besides him moderating off topic (which I'm sure most would agree would be a bad idea!), I'm not sure of a more appropriate place he could mod.

I'm not the one to say what sort of mod he'd be - 'playground' or not. I do suspect he'll mod the same as the others - cool down arguments, sort out the wheat from the chaff, etc. At least I hope that's his aim.

[Chica Yeyé 41]

Ewok seems to be pissing off half the usual suspects with the current appointment, and the other half with his last appointment, so I guess that means Admin is doing the right thing.

Chill and enjoy.

You are wise

[mox 298]

Solve the problem. Create Regional sub-forums underneath the Consular Forum.

If people want to keep a Regional Off-Topic forum in the General Discussion area, then fine. Have Charles move immigration topics then up to the proper forums.

Well, you know I have to do this...I'll go on record as "disagreeing." Maybe it's different in other regionals, but the regional I call home has enough armchair experts to handle most immigration questions, especially as the pertain to the specific region.

But even if this kind of system were implemented, what in Charles' posting history indicates he has the ability to make the kinds of decisions it takes to properly "file" a tricky immigration question? This is not OT. This is not trying to decide if the topic "Hillary is a fat pig" belongs in the "Hillary is Fat," "Hillary is a Farm Animal," or "More Misogynistic Jokes From the Moderation Team and Other Hilarity" sub-forum. This, as you well know RJ, is serious stuff. It should be handled with somebody who's serious about more than just upping their post count.

Thanks for taking the time to reply Ewok, but no matter what kind of pretty bow you try to wrap this decision in, it's a slap in the face to the membership, and a kick in the groin to your moderation team. Having a diverse moderating team doesn't mean a mixture of qualified and unqualified mods, and I'm disappointed that you don't recognize this.

[LoriLawless 0]

Solve the problem. Create Regional sub-forums underneath the Consular Forum.

If people want to keep a Regional Off-Topic forum in the General Discussion area, then fine. Have Charles move immigration topics then up to the proper forums.

Well, you know I have to do this...I'll go on record as "disagreeing." Maybe it's different in other regionals, but the regional I call home has enough armchair experts to handle most immigration questions, especially as the pertain to the specific region.

But even if this kind of system were implemented, what in Charles' posting history indicates he has the ability to make the kinds of decisions it takes to properly "file" a tricky immigration question? This is not OT. This is not trying to decide if the topic "Hillary is a fat pig" belongs in the "Hillary is Fat," "Hillary is a Farm Animal," or "More Misogynistic Jokes From the Moderation Team and Other Hilarity" sub-forum. This, as you well know RJ, is serious stuff. It should be handled with somebody who's serious about more than just upping their post count.

Thanks for taking the time to reply Ewok, but no matter what kind of pretty bow you try to wrap this decision in, it's a slap in the face to the membership, and a kick in the groin to your moderation team. Having a diverse moderating team doesn't mean a mixture of qualified and unqualified mods, and I'm disappointed that you don't recognize this.

He posts for fun, this is different. When he organizes I don't see any references to off topic subjects, why would he do that as a deputy mod?

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

I think the argument is that if you're managing forums that require not only some cultural sensitivity but also a fairly up to date knowledge of the immigration process (I'm sure it isn't strictly "necessary" but it does help) - its a fair point to question whether someone (anyone) who spends nearly all of their time in O/T fits that profile.

Of course, most of the old members who are done with the immigration process hang out in O/T and/or the regionals.

[rebeccajo 14]

Solve the problem. Create Regional sub-forums underneath the Consular Forum.

If people want to keep a Regional Off-Topic forum in the General Discussion area, then fine. Have Charles move immigration topics then up to the proper forums.

Well, you know I have to do this...I'll go on record as "disagreeing." Maybe it's different in other regionals, but the regional I call home has enough armchair experts to handle most immigration questions, especially as the pertain to the specific region.

But even if this kind of system were implemented, what in Charles' posting history indicates he has the ability to make the kinds of decisions it takes to properly "file" a tricky immigration question? This is not OT. This is not trying to decide if the topic "Hillary is a fat pig" belongs in the "Hillary is Fat," "Hillary is a Farm Animal," or "More Misogynistic Jokes From the Moderation Team and Other Hilarity" sub-forum. This, as you well know RJ, is serious stuff. It should be handled with somebody who's serious about more than just upping their post count.

Thanks for taking the time to reply Ewok, but no matter what kind of pretty bow you try to wrap this decision in, it's a slap in the face to the membership, and a kick in the groin to your moderation team. Having a diverse moderating team doesn't mean a mixture of qualified and unqualified mods, and I'm disappointed that you don't recognize this.

Mox -

I'd like to see your armchair experts distributing their wisdom to the entire community - not just the Russian Forum.

The only time country specific issues arise in the immigration process is at the consulate.

I understand people seem to want areas of Vj for their specific country membership. So let's leave the Regionals where they are and let them serve as a gathering place. But let it be a gathering place for fellowship. Let the 'knowledge' go back to where it belongs - where it can serve all in the Upper forums.

I would really like to see a return of valuable information back to the Upper Forums. Regional Subforums in the Consulate section makes sense from that standpoint.

Isn't this a 'make sense' compromise to my usual contention of dissolving the Regionals altogether?