Poll - How to Handle a Disruptive Member

[tsptalk]

Disruptive or unruly members can cause other, more productive posting members to avoid the message board. What do you think? Should we ban these members or let them continue to post?

[ou81200]

Tom---

Unfortunately when you get a forum started, you get many individuals with different personalities. As the administrator, you have the authority to set the standard. If you want my opinion. Give the individuals involved a written warning first. Then temporarily ban them from the site if the infraction continues. If the person involved still continues then ban them permenently. If I seem forward, I apologize for it, but I see this on other financial boards. What you here is a good thing and I would like to see it continue as such. After all,we're all here for the same purpose.

[cowboy]

My thought is,MT in my opinion knows a lot about the market as he has called the shots twice and was 100% correct. Even though I played it somewhat wrong. I say he should beable to post as I think he can help the lot of us, and give us a heads up. I also believe Milk_man has some good points too! I do wish there was a way to keep the posts in perspective and I feel it is only courteous to respect others and their views and systems. Bottum line is I'm looking for help, not one person bashing the others system it ruins the creditabity of the forum. There is a lot more creditability in the person who is stating where their funds are positioned or where they would be positioned.My opinion is that you can look like a genious if you make a call every two weeks but what are you doing in between time. I stayed out of S knowing full well what MT had stated and should have stayed inI fundone day longerand made the mistake of going S to quick. But maybe tomorrow I may be in the right place again and others will be G when market is going up. Who knows?

[GTO1970]

Tom,

My thoughts are you should get a board of directors together and let them help decidecourses of action for such things andnot put yourneck on the line. I've been there, and it can get very uglyif you walking theline by yourself.

We are all guests in your house!

GTO

[smine]

I personally like to hear MT's take on things. I have written him a message to that effect. I believe he is more "gloom and doom" whereas others are more optimistic. The results is a balance. People don't need to use name calling, such as moron, or idiot nor do they need to judge harshly. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. Your practice of maintaing your own site is good so those of us who value M_M or others can look at it. MT just needs his own site. I would certainly take it into account before making a decision. He obviously knows something. FYI: One can see that some original subscribers have left. Perhaps the ignoring of some replies or just plan ugly responses to some have run off some interesting people. I think you need to get Tom's advice, then others, then make up your own mind. I would never just flat out follow just one person's suggestions. That's why I NEVER put all in something without having a little (at least 25% in G). Call me crazy...call me 55. Whatever. Just call me retired in a few......I was making money before tsptalk and I'll be here until the end.

[Major_investor]

Tom,

I'll stick my nose in here as one who has benefitted tremendously the last couple of months from this website.

Lots of forums don't allow "flaming" or "fueding,"though it's a pain to enforce.

However, if you post this up front that it's not tolerated, then it's up to each member to decide by their actions whether they want to keep their voice on the forum or lose it.

Bottom line, I like diversity and thought the opposing views were healthy. After all, if there weren't opposing views, we wouldn't have a market, would we? :u

Thanks for all you're doing.

[tsptalk]

Thanks Major_i, and the rest, for your input. I appreciate it. I would really hate to ban anyone and I would never do it because of their opinions. Blatant lack of respect for others will do it however. Particularly if it causes others to leave.

[Spaf]

Tom
I am very sympathetic with your concerns. I have a similiar problem on my farm with a particular goose. Thanksgiving is in the near future, and my menu options are considering ...........

[tsptalk]

:l

Let me know how that works out.

[TheProphet]

Ignore Them... Hope they will leave the wedside on their own... If it become unacceptable and persistant give them a warner and then eliminate them...

Hey Tom,

I don't mind MT being around to be honest, makes me look better..........:P

My feeling is that if someone wants to make a comment about someone's strategy or whatever, do it in their own account, not someone else's. I know I haven't always followed this myself, but I will from now on. Unless of course I get directly attacked again, then I may forget where I'm at........;)

Three strikes you're out?

Thanks for all your work Tom,

M_M

[cowboy]

tsptalk wrote:
Thanks Major_i, and the rest, for your input. I appreciate it. I would really hate to ban anyone and I would never do it because of their opinions. Blatant lack of respect for others will do it however. Particularly if it causes others to leave.



My opinion is even if they don't post on the forum their still watching it!

[eukrate]

Tom
Everyone should be allowed to have their say. I welcome
views which appear to be non-mainstream - that's where the
nuggets are found. The problem your board is experiencing is due to members critcizing other PEOPLE and not just others' IDEAS. I think too this forum is at a critical juncture; the next few weeks will tell if members abandon it.

Tom,

Ban me!

This is my last time coming to this board.

Good luck all!

Dr Bill

P.S. Ban the guy that really knows what is going on in the market - smart move!



tsptalk wrote:

Disruptive or unruly members can cause other, more productive posting members to avoid the message board. What do you think? Should we ban these members or let them continue to post?

[Cinderella]

Diverse ideas...OK, but they must be posted within the account moves and/or account talk thread. We need productive posting members, not Monday morning quarterbacks. How is that helping anyone? Disruptive, unruly members who cannot abide by the rules of this forum should be banned.

[tsptalk]

eukrate wrote:
Tom
Everyone should be allowed to have their say. I welcome
views which appear to be non-mainstream - that's where the
nuggets are found. The problem your board is experiencing is due to members critcizing other PEOPLE and not just others' IDEAS. I think too this forum is at a critical juncture; the next few weeks will tell if members abandon it.
Hi eukrate -
Thanks for your input. I know we lost you for the most part because of posts you didn't like several months ago. Most of what is said doesn't bother me but it does bother others. Iwould rather I wasn't put in a position to make a decision like this but I hate to lose rational members.

I do have to edit some posts when a member usesfonts the size of Nebraska to belittle someone else. And I've been on boards long enough to know they don't leave. This feeds their egos. But unfortunately people like you do leave because you are not here to make yourself look good but rather to discuss ideas. When the ideas turn intoridicule,it just ain't cool.

I enjoy the different views as well. I just hate looking for those nuggets in Nebraska. :) I'll see how things go.

[VictorPR]

I believe that frustration starting to get to some of you. I welcome comments andsuggestionsas we are all here with one purpose, to beat and increase the the value of our TSP, none of us can do it by ourselves otherwise we will be in some tropical island enjoying the sun. Lets respect others opinions and concentrate on our common opponent, the stock market. I have learned a great deal over the past 9 months and continue to learn on a daily basis. Tom, thank you for all your work.

[tsptalk]

You're welcomeVictor!

[Dakota]

we are all here for the same purpose. Maybe a slight disagreement in the logic of trading is educating us all, But personal attacks should not be tolerated.:U

[Mike]

Suggestion: how about adding an ignore functionality to the site? I.e. if one particular member is really bothering you, you can click on "ignore" and that person's posts won't be visible to you. I've seen this on other boards, and it has worked extremely well.

In any case, I don't see the point in people getting so personal about things here. We're all invested in Thrift, and we all want to maximize our returns - we just have different ways of going about it. We're all adults here - can we not be civil with one another? I know it's a heated political season and all - but we should all be able to put aside the nonsense and try to make money together.

My own returns aren't tearing things up this year, but they're better than they would have been had I stuck with the buy-hold approach. That would not have happened without this board. Thank you Tom, and thanks to those timers out there who have slowly converted me into a hybrid holder/timer. :^

[tsptalk]

Mike wrote:
Suggestion: how about adding an ignore functionality to the site? I.e. if one particular member is really bothering you, you can click on "ignore" and that person's posts won't be visible to you. I've seen this on other boards, and it has worked extremely well.
Good idea :i

This message board software doesn't currently have the ignorefeature but I just found outthe next version will.

[jeeperspeepers]

The concensus here seems to be, some members are disrespectful, but their opinions are often valid. I agree 100%. I like reading the diversity in everyone's replies. However, when it become combative and disrespectful it adds an element which I do not want to be exposed to. As a union representative I am in this confrontational position far more often then I like. I do not want to be exposed to it on this board.

Tom, my complements to you. You have a great board here that has helped me tremendously. I hope you do not become weary of all this negativity, you don't need all this. Please keep up the good work.

[tsptalk]

Thanks jeepers!

[tsptalk]

I agree we need a variety of opinions here so I do hate to ban someone. What I will do for nowis delete posts I feel are disrespectful, derogatory, useless andhave no benefit. That should discourage someone from wasting their time belittling others.

[Spaf]

Your right Tom! My problem with the goose is the same. You Know, if my wife hadn't "named it" it might have been on the menu. But, when someone asks where's "Big Boy"? And your reply is, thats who you are eating. Well it's not quite the same, if you get my meaning.

[tsptalk]

I think I do. :l

[Mike]

"All the negativity in this town sucks!" :D

Spaf, there are so many directions I can go with that one... I think I'll keep my yap shut this time, though. :shock:

[Show-me]

My .02 cents,

I appreciate everyone's post and opinions. I will determine if I will make moves with my TSP based on what ever system, advice, news, or gut feeling I chose. Taking personel shots at each other is a waste of everyone's alreadylimited time.

Again I really look forward to everyone's opinion including MM and MT.:^

[Spaf]

Tom. Suggestion: This topic has reached a conclusion. Please,consider deleating it. We can all move on (to greener pastures).

[beaverlaker]

It's your mail list, you have the delete key. Throw 'em out!!

[FundSurfer]

I guess I just have thicker skin than most. I've read a bunch of post and I haven't seen anything that I couldn't just ignore (even if it was pointed at me which it wasn't). I have been a poster at several boards over the years and this board is pretty tame by comparison. I like the ignore button but really for other reasons. I've run into boards where obnoxious posters just post volumonous amounts of crap and those are who you want to screen out.

If someone says something obnoxious every now and again, I just chalk it up to differences in character, especially if that person is making a genuine attempt to be a part of the discussion. It is a big world out there and people are different.

The best way to deal with someone who irritates you is to ignore them.

[tsptalk]

FundSurfer wrote:
I guess I just have thicker skin than most. I've read a bunch of post and I haven't seen anything that I couldn't just ignore (even if it was pointed at me which it wasn't). I have been a poster at several boards over the years and this board is pretty tame by comparison. I like the ignore button but really for other reasons. I've run into boards where obnoxious posters just post volumonous amounts of crap and those are who you want to screen out.

If someone says something obnoxious every now and again, I just chalk it up to differences in character, especially if that person is making a genuine attempt to be a part of the discussion. It is a big world out there and people are different.

The best way to deal with someone who irritates you is to ignore them.

I agree FS. I have seen those other boards and this one has been relatively tame. I don't mind the BS too much, but I want to protect our members, especially the ones not use to the obnoxious onslaught of others. If someone threatens to leave, it gets my attention. As you said, ignoring them is the key. Thanks.

[ou81200]

Hello Everyone---

This IS a tame board compared to other boards:). One of the reasons is because there are no pumpers or bashers here. We are all here for the same agenda. I personally do not put people on ignore (iggy), because I like to get a overall opinion. However, when it is taken to a personal level, the line should be drawn.

I hav'nt been on this board long and I appreciate being welcomed here. I do however have experience on other boards and am able to hang with the best of them. But when you go to that level, you end up not talking about the market or more particulary, your DD. You end up talking about each other. This is of no benefit.

I guess what I'm trying to say is we got a good thing here and I would'nt like to see it go down the tubes. Thanks everyone.



Chuck

[smine]

Doesn't matter. MT left. Everyone happy now?

[Timer]

Cinderella wrote:
Diverse ideas...OK, but they must be posted within the account moves and/or account talk thread. We need productive posting members, not Monday morning quarterbacks. How is that helping anyone? Disruptive, unruly members who cannot abide by the rules of this forum should be banned.Well said Cindy. Very articulate.

[Cinderella]

Articulate?...have to watch my words...don't want to get banned from this board. :)

"Well done is better than well said" Ben Franklin

And Spaf, I don't think Ben was talking about "Big Boy" :D

[Rod]

smine wrote:
Doesn't matter. MT left. Everyone happy now?
He sure did...:(

[Pete1]

Hi folks,

Igot caught up in the name calling and apologized to MT for doing so. It really doesn't help anyone. I am considering leaving the board because as a buy and holder, I really don't have much to contribute in terms of timing your accounts. The focus of the board is market timing rather than long-term, diversified buy and hold and so, not sure that I can really say too much more than I already have that will help anybody here out with their accounts. If others are interested in diversified buy and hold, I would highly recommend William Bernstein's books, "The Intelligent Asset Allocator" and "The Four Pillars of Investing" as well as visiting Diehards.org and CoffehouseInvestor.com.

One point I feel that I need to make. I have seen members over the last week or so seemingly very frustrated about how the market was down for a few days.The market goes up 5-6% and everybody is happy, the market goes down 5-6% and everybody is heading for the exits (well maybe not everybody). Investing is for a lifetime and for me personally, it's a marathon, not the 100 yard dash. Professional money managers agree.

Ted Aronson,professional money manager, holds a 70/30 allocation of index funds in his families' personal account. He does not tweak it.His basic allocation is: 20% large, 20% small, 30% international, and 30% fixed income. His profession is to go out andbeat the market via timing and yet, for his own families'accounts, hemaintains a diversified portfolio of index funds.Warren Buffett maintains thatmost amateur investors would be better served buying and holding a diversified portfolio of index funds. Who am I to argue.

Peace to all and goodluck with your accounts.

Pete

[tsptalk]

Spaf wrote:
Tom. Suggestion: This topic has reached a conclusion. Please,consider deleating it. We can all move on (to greener pastures).
OK. Nuf said. I'll close it out.