testuser sanely stated:
When everyone carries their ball home (Admin removing legitimate posts, and members by withholding patronage) because of perceived grievances the general Mac community loses a valuable resource.
I suggest that someone create a "kiss and make up" thread. Making-up is one of the best parts of any relationship.
I've been trying to stay quiet through this whole issue, but I wanted to raise some points.
In my mind, the Mac community has already lost a valuable resource. When Mac users are resorting to name calling and fighting amongst themselves, it is not a valuable resource.
I am leaving this community, but not with anger. I sincerely regret this decision, but I am not comfortable in this environment any longer.
There are really two issues in this thread, that should be separated into two threads. The problem is that the information is wound up together, so extracting the two from each other would be a tedious process. The two issues are, of course, Press3 certifications and the administration of this forum.
I'm not prepared to speak at length about the Press3 certifications. I do, however, feel that even if I haven't taken them I can most certainly discuss them rationally. If I see someone else criticizing these tests, I can turn to the people who run the tests and say "What about this? Is this true?". I can discuss differing testing methodologies without having direct experience with the tests in question.
What I do want to address is the method in which this site is run. I don't feel that I understand Admin's actions at all. I have had plenty of times in my life when I am stressed, but I would never react the same way. Which is not really the issue, we are all different people.
What I am still completely confused about is why it is taking Admin so long to discuss these issues with the members of this site. I know he said he would be taking a week off. It's been a week, and I see no explanations. This is not an issue that will merely go away, no matter how much we may wish otherwise.
I have never felt that Admin has explained his actions before this, and in most cases I don't feel that he's needed to. But when a number of members are asking for a direct explanation, I don't feel that silence is appropriate.
I have now been to other forums on the net, and I am glad. I enjoy those other places significantly more than I enjoy this forum. When I come back (I have been reading this thread for some time now) there is an air of reluctance which I do not feel on other forums. I don't know where I stand when I post here. I don't know if the full moderation of these boards will be reinstated. I don't even know if this post will see the boards until after I hit the submit button.
I am not trying to point fingers, or lay any sort of blame. But when the situation becomes "Us vs Them", I prefer to find somewhere else to post. And like it or not, there are definitely (at least) three sides to this argument. People who side with Admin and his actions, people who disagree, and people who are neutral to the whole scenario.
And just to make sure everyone understands where I stand on the issue, I have been in strong disagreement with Admin's actions since I first heard about them. Which is why my avatar remains "Gone".
I would love to see a "Kiss and make up" thread. But at this point of the game the spark is gone for me. I don't stay in relationships which cause me pain, nor do I post to forums I am uncomfortable with.
When I can no longer rationally discuss a topic without being flamed, I leave. And think about it. We had a long discussion about one of the most controversial subjects in history: religion. And where people did step out of line, they promptly apologized and we continued to speak rationally. And yet we cannot discuss simple certification tests without resorting to name calling.
I apologize for the length of this thread, and the rambling contained therein. But since I feel that this is my last post here, I wanted to make sure I cover everything.