A note from the mods

dressedcheeseside

Helluva Engineer
Messages
14,027
I really haven’t seen anyone down on every aspect of the new staff. For example, there are several new approaches I’m very excited about, but there’s a thing or two I’m not super stoked about. We should be able to have respectful discussions among ourselves without hateful or insulting commentary.

It is possible to feel good about the general direction of the program without being in love with every aspect of that direction.

We should be allowed to express a contrary opinion as long as it’s a) respectfully presented and b) not redundant.
 

GTRX7

Helluva Engineer
Messages
1,508
Location
Atlanta
I really haven’t seen anyone down on every aspect of the new staff. For example, there are several new approaches I’m very excited about, but there’s a thing or two I’m not super stoked about. We should be able to have respectful discussions among ourselves without hateful or insulting commentary.

It is possible to feel good about the general direction of the program without being in love with every aspect of that direction.

We should be allowed to express a contrary opinion as long as it’s a) respectfully presented and b) not redundant.

Agreed. But maybe do it in a way that doesn't directly make the criticism of the new staff by comparing what happened under CPJ. And, recognize, this is not necessarily directed to you. If you have criticisms of the new staff and are not doing it in a way that compares to CPJ, I am 100% okay with that. I am not saying we all need to hold hands and sing kumbaya, but we should try to avoid the "real fans" vs "fake fans" discussion. We all care about Tech and all want Tech to win. That is why we are here. If we all agree we share this same viewpoint, I think that will go a long way :)
 

Towaliga

Helluva Engineer
Messages
1,006
I’ve been away from GT Swarm for a week or so and I’m not sure exactly what is going on. I will say that I’m thankful for the site, the moderators, and I’m interested in all opinions as long as nobody is being attacked. Honestly, I welcome differing points of view and I don’t want to spend my time listening to people that echo my own thoughts. Healthy discussion is the goal...


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I too like hearing from both sides, those that agree with me and those that are wrong! Seriously, though, I have been disappointed lately in the tones that some posters have been using, so thanks mods for stepping in. I’m a pro-CPJ and pro-CGC fan of GT by choice, and I’m excited about what the future may hold.
 

BilldGopher

Jolly Good Fellow
Messages
167
Still lurking around and saw OP note from the Mods.

For what it is worth this type of thing is common at open fansites when there's a significant change at the top...usually most intense for changes with the HC or AD. Consider the decade plus from CPJ as both a blessing and curse in this regard. You've been spared until now.

For us the hiring of PJ Fleck was not only of a coach...but also a trademarked slogan a.k.a. "Row the Boat" that had to be bought from Western Michigan...and even a ESPN series "Knowing PJ Fleck" before the first ball was snapped. His "overboard" style and marketing every single minute is still ruffling fur up here and we're into year 3. For the "ruffled fur" crowd most have decided if we get performance on the field then they can stomach the rest. But we're still getting comparisons with the previous regime(s), and it does indeed get testy.

What GT does have going for it is a very decisive move to replace the retiring HC by a new coach who obviously wants to head GT. No search committees or candidates saying "no"...been there, done that on both as a Gopher. Until you have more data all you can do is wait it out.

When Coach Jerry Kill was hired to UM, that hire too was very controversial from the train-wreck he replaced (Tim Brewster). Some of us said "it is what it is" and came up with "In Kill We Trust" and that was our mantra. Right now that's been changed to "In Fleck We Trust" because fact is we as fans have no other choice.

Again, good luck. No one comes to this site without passion for GT football. That's a great thing.
 

AE 87

Helluva Engineer
Messages
13,015
While I've said it privately in the past, I will say again that I appreciate the difficult work that the moderators do. I meant that and mean that.

However, I have disagreed with their approach, and the results of the last few weeks are exactly what I predicted would happen based on the decisions they've made in the past.

For example, I have reported trolling posts with no consequences. And, I've responded to the content of posts which I considered a troll by asking for specific examples or some supporting evidence. On several occasions, the "troll" responded with a personal attack against me. When I then responded to these attacks, the "moderator" labelled this as if I were on the same level of making personal attacks. At a later attempt to simply report the "troll," the same moderator suggested that I should have just asked them to support their claim -- the very thing I had done previously to no effect.

When the moderators made the decision to make GTSwarm a safe space for trolls, they really shouldn't complain too much with the results. That's just my opinion. While I appreciate that some of the moderators may have thought that my earlier complaints came from a lack of appreciation for their efforts, I hope that some may newly appreciate that I had their interests and the interests of the forum in mind.

I was one of the earliest fans to join the forum, and I've probably been one of the most active contributors. I still appreciate it, but we'll see if the football forum will again become a place where I can actively participate. It's not now.
 
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