Erk. Didn't mean for it to be snotty, really really. It had just occurred to me all of a sudden, and as is my wont, I posted without thinking how it sounded.

I think I'll stop posting here.

No, no! That's the whole point -- don't stop posting, just clarify. See how it works? Now we all know.

Nice work, Dana. I'm always happy to leave writing chores to others more capable than I. I are an engineer, afterall.

Sean, Steph - y'all are getting all riled up and bringing the hot rhetoric. That's your prerogative, but I'm getting more heat than light at the moment.

Yeah. I know. Sorry. Sorry, everyone. I've taken up whacking my fingers really hard with a hammer when they reach for the key board to post in this thread.

I'm not sure how I made this post, though. Probably with my nose.

QUESTION THAT HAS NOTHING WHATSOEVER TO DO WITH THE LAST ELEVENTY BAJILLION POSTS

If I have a problem with something in a thread, and it does not involve me directly, would it be better to say something in-thread, risking a giant kerfuffle, or should I go about it backchannel?

edited to spell eleventy right because misspelling fake words is wrong.

I'm not sure how I made this post, though. Probably with my nose.

That could explain the snotty tone...

Kidding! Seriously. Except about your nose. Dude, it's called a handkerchief. Broken fingers are no excuse.

These people left for a variety of reasons, not solely and specifically because of a more aggressive posting style.

Hell, *I* left for a while in part because of John H.'s aggressive and combatative posting style.

Aimee, you're entitled to say something in thread. For one thing, if handled properly, it keeps the enforcement of social norms public, which I think is a good thing, particularly in light of the current discussion. You can choose to take it backchannel, of course.

What Hec's points said to me:

Matt's history of the Bronze

Suggests that some form of policing is necessary. I can't say I'm in love with our current informal style, but anything more formal would likely be worse. Power is too easy to misuse, and giving anyone formal policing power creates risks to the board that I'd rather not have. (I vaguely remember having suggested something at one point that contradicts the above. My opinions evolve.)

Shawn's Good Citizenship

There's a corollary, and that is that newbies, pretty much by definition, don't have social capital. I tend not to dismiss newbies out of hand -- outsiderness can have a valuable perspective that insiders are too wrapped up in the situation to have. But newbies haven't built up the credibility that longtime posters have. If longtime posters X, Y, or Z say something, I have a context to place their comments into. Unlike with newbies A, B, or C.

there's nothing at all wrong with aspiring to some level of graciousness

Even something as simple as posting, "Hi, Newbie!"

Thanks, Suela!

By the way, loving Hecubus and Nutty and Robin and Matt particularly today. Good, thoughtful, generous posts.

And Dana, who went forward and drafted new language for the FAQ. I think a recognition that the slower-moving threads are often good shallow water for beginners is a nice point.