Razorback339, you posed a very interesting question towards the “end” of your first thread … (paraphrased) “What, if anything, can be done to end the divide between the two camps of posters on this board and end up with a better online community.” (Hope I got the gist of it.)
The fact that you mentioned you were “sad” we had to come to this, and asked what could be done to remedy the situation, implies you believe there would be value in reaching your desired end-state … and I both understand and appreciate your position.
I simply happen to have a very different opinion concerning these message boards. Personally, I think way too much time and energy is wasted by “The Editor” and his staff trying to maintain these boards (and posters) in a civil state.
My original motivation for joining the online HI community was NOT for the message board, exactly. I joined so that I could get the latest, most up-to-date information about my beloved Hawgs from the Insiders. (This was extremely important to me, as I had no access to any other Razorback information out here on the West coast.) Having said that, the message board WAS a nice way of posing specific questions to the Insiders. Back in the day, most posts on the board read this way: “Question for Clay”, “? for Otis”, Question for Don", “? for Dudley”, … you get the drift. The Insiders would bring their answers back to the board; sometimes those Q&As would even lead to columns in the print magazine.
Bottom Line: If Clay simply shut the boards down, I would never really miss them; mostly because there are times where it’s simply too time-consuming and painful to sift through all the vitriol to get the nuggets of information I’m really interested in. And when I DID have a specific question, I could simply click on one of the Insiders’ names and get an answer.
I suspect there are quite a few folks out there (especially those who are active posters) who definitely do NOT share my opinion on this, but I’d also wager there are many who DO.
You’re 100% correct in my opinion. I tune in for information but don’t have time to wade through every thread to find the Insider’s posts. At the risk of beating a dead horse, thread view would resolve this issue.
SIDE Note
LA Hog, I have always liked your posts. This is just a side note to let you know I appreciate your input.I think of being out west and really wander “What” you hear about the Hogs!
Your post IMO hits the nail with a hammer on my thoughts.
One thought I keep having is the level of play for FB and BB has just left us with not that much exciting to really talk about. As an example remember the time when we were just wondering how high will we be seeded in the NCAA tournament? There is nothing like March Madness. Can anybody remember when that is all we thought about after FB. Now it’s just a hope and a prayer to even make the darn thing.
This year looked like a for sure deal. Now I don’t know. I’m not trying to be a Debbie Downer but we have some work to to with the schedule we have. After 34 years of season ticket and health reason I had to let them go. My thoughts after looking at each team that after that LSU loss (the venue where you didn’t beat us at home) we have got to improve or we’re going to be in trouble.
I also agree that we are missing some key posters that just added VALUE to the board. It just seems like to me that we have lost our way like the team over the past 10-15 years. I would call it dysfunctional. There was a time when I could not wait to read about the latest news about the Hogs. And yes it takes time to post really good factual information about the Hogs.
Having said all that You sir stated my thoughts better than myself. But I feel helpless to help get us going again. Some people may just say I’m off base but you get my vote for a very well thought out statement as to where we are as an HI board. I’m not trying to make Clay and his staff mad, just pointing out something is just not right. IMO
Anybody agree, disagree? Or have some actual information as to help the situation?
I started coming to this board many, many moons ago to get information from Clay and Dudley, and Dog and even Otis once upon a time. I started posting at the same time because I thought I could contribute something to reasonable discussions, including a historical perspective. I still do. But it seems the reasonable discussions have become less and less frequent. Not something I can fix as a mod; all I can do is clean up some of the mess and boot out the worst offenders.
I am a less than frequent poster who enjoys reading with an occasional comment about something I feel is a contribution. Having been slammed a few times for my thoughts I feel like it’s not worth the effort. I have seen many others who have opinions that seem to require an effort on my part to try to be civil. I have quite a few who I enjoy reading but it’s getting to be like Facebook on here. Commercials and less and less content. I have learned to live without it
for the most part you’ve done an admirable job with our online community. I have especially enjoyed your “historical perspective”, in that you frequently remind me of events I had forgotten all about … or that I don’t always recollect them as they actually occurred. And you are correct in that, even as an all-powerful moderator, you can’t “fix” the boards. Here’s where I’m going with this. And again, I have no data to back this opinion, it’s simply my observation (and yes, I could be completely off base):
It seems to me the people doing the preponderance of the posting have changed in a fundamental way. They no longer come here to share and compare perspectives and opinions. They consider their own viewpoints to be factual, while dismissing other viewpoints as ignorance. They fiercely defend their positions, while aggressively attacking opposing viewpoints … or worse yet, attacking the opposing posters, themselves.
In short, it just seems as though posters have become less tolerant of one another. I have no idea whether it’s their keyboard personalities coming though, or if the US is becoming that way … and our posters simply reflect the larger population.
Bottom Line: If my observation has any merit, you probably have little hope of “fixing” the board; the “fix” will have to come from the posters, themselves.
I agree with the people posting have changed. Since I joined the old HI board (back in 07), some of the more knowledgeable posters (I’ll use RazorAg as an example) seem to have scaled back what they used to post. Heck, I’ve seen Ag say things about a basketball recruit (and he would know about them) get smashed for putting the info out. You’ve also had people (such as BHH and FS) who had grandchildren and children and decided there were more important things in life than arguing on a sports board. Think we can all agree, we’ve also had guys/gals move and guys/gals that have passed away.
I believe that is an issue with America, everyone has an opinion and their opinion is always right. You can’t disagree or you’re a (insert word here). This is something we have gone to. I see it every day, just walking into a gas station to buy a drink, you can hear the arguments over nothing, really.
I don’t think there will ever be a “fix.” Either to the board or society. Sorry, my political statement for today
I agree with you, LAHog. I wish there would be a way to stop the name calling of other posters and of coaches. Keep it civil. I love reading opinions and strong ideas, but nobody–not me nor anyone else–is entitled to their own facts. Their own opinions, yes; their own facts, no. Debate on the issues of the day concerning Razorback sports should be encouraged. Name-calling and intentional attempts to get under people’s skins should be discouraged.
This aspect of American society is probably the most objectionable thing of all to me. It applies here, it applies in politics. George Orwell was right, but for the wrong reasons. He thought government would tell you that 2+2=5. Nope. People reject that 2+2=4 and substitute their own “reality” Which isn’t real at all.
I’m a recent poster to this board and for the most part I like the balance. I know some posters go way overboard, but the Razorback nation is a very passionate group. Furthermore, our two major sports program, in my estimation, have been very mediocre as of late. Therefore, our fans have expressed strong opinions on the direction of both programs. I don’t mind it if a fan posts his/ her opinion. I have my opinions/frustrations and hope all fans can continue to have the freedom to post.
Freedom to post is fine. As I said earlier in the thread, we want reasonable discussions. Keep it reasonable, you can express your opinions freely. The name calling, the abrasive tone, that’s what we don’t want, but we get far too often. I’ll absolutely concede that sometimes I don’t help matters, that I fight fire with fire. I’m going to work on that, but we need more people to work on moderating themselves.
Every poster has the freedom to post their opinion. I don’t think anybody has an issue with that. I know I don’t. But respect for one another and for the people running our programs should be the very least we should respect. Yes, call them out when they are underperforming, but call them out on the basis of their job performance, not with personal attacks on their names or their looks. Bret Bielema, for instance, did not win enough games. Attack that and offer reasonable opinions as to why that happened, but don’t make it personal. I really doubt he came to anyone’s house and slapped their mother, so don’t make it personal. And when you do, your reasonable opinion about why things went south will likely be met with reasonable and respectable debate.
I agree with LosAngeles hog. I used to be excited to come here for information from the insiders. There seems to be less of that and more general debate the past few years. Maybe it’s apathy over the sports programs. I don’t have have any answers but I agree with LAHog’s assessment.
