Taking a breather from rv.net

Bob Landry wrote:
No, they are not all like this and they do not have to be. An example is the IDPA Forum. Gun enthusiasts and competition shooters will know what that is. Everyone is required to sign their posts with their real name, either in signature or simply at the end of the post. It keeps everyone civil and what should be a conversation with exchange of ideas does not erupt into a battle. Most important. If someone doesn't have knowledge of the topic, they don't post just for the sake of posting something. Also, the mods keep a very close eye on it and squabbles simply are not allowed to manifest into a full scale fight.

Having strong moderators does help for sure. I do think this forum is better than most, though obviously, there are those who have gotten upset. IMHO, until it happens to you, it is easy to dismiss it as trivial. Again, this is just my opinion.

I do know of three cases...not this forum. None of them involved me directly, but I participated in the forums, so saw much of it first hand.

Once case, physical violence was threatened. Several posters were claiming they were going to visit an individual's house and beat them to a pulp. That is how mad those people got... The threatened person hired an attorney to go after those individuals. Took them to court claiming harassment and did get some type of restraining order. I never heard what the settlement was, but I do know the arguments stopped. And all that sprung from just postings on a forum.

Another example I witnessed involved a forum founder, who was continually harassed and called names. This went on for a year or so. The individuals would simply change their user names and continue. Eventually, the forum had to be shut down.