Where and Who are the current Moderators on this site?

[SYZ]

I asked this question a couple of days ago...

Just maybe, the poor moderation, or the total lack thereof
might be the reason Atheist Discussion—as a relevant
debating and discussion forum—may explain why so many
former members have disappeared, and why we're only
getting a dozen or more new posts every day lately.

  Can I ask who, by user name, is actively moderating this forum?

What's the big secret?  Surely people who take the time and
make the effort to post interesting, meaningful comments and
responses should at the least receive the courtesy of knowing
who is moderating theirs and others comments?

And why, all too often, debates degrade into off-topic, petty
slanging matches and juvenile name calling—and so disrupt
the flow of what're usually worthwhile threads?

[pattylt]

The only one I know is @Mathilda who’s listed as administrator. But, I’m a newer member. I also remember a member that dropped off the forum and whereabouts are unknown. Perhaps long timers will know more.

[TheGentlemanBastard]

I asked this question a couple of days ago...

Just maybe, the poor moderation, or the total lack thereof
might be the reason Atheist Discussion—as a relevant
debating and discussion forum—may explain why so many
former members have disappeared, and why we're only
getting a dozen or more new posts every day lately.

  Can I ask who, by user name, is actively moderating this forum?

What's the big secret?  Surely people who take the time and
make the effort to post interesting, meaningful comments and
responses should at the least receive the courtesy of knowing
who is moderating theirs and others comments?

And why, all too often, debates degrade into off-topic, petty
slanging matches and juvenile name calling—and so disrupt
the flow of what're usually worthwhile threads?

It was @Dom, @Mathilda, @abaris, and @Aliza.

It's feared Dom has passed on and abaris and Aliza have bee MIA for quite some time, leaving only Mathilda. Perhaps it's time to add some staff members.

[Inkubus]

I asked this question a couple of days ago...


  Can I ask who, by user name, is actively moderating this forum?

What's the big secret?  Surely people who take the time and
make the effort to post interesting, meaningful comments and
responses should at the least receive the courtesy of knowing
who is moderating theirs and others comments?

And why, all too often, debates degrade into off-topic, petty
slanging matches and juvenile name calling—and so disrupt
the flow of what're usually worthwhile threads?

It was @Dom, @Mathilda, @abaris, and @Aliza.

It's feared Dom has passed on and abaris and Aliza have bee MIA for quite some time, leaving only Mathilda. Perhaps it's time to add some staff members.

I vote Dānu and Thumpalumpacus.

[SYZ]

It's feared Dom has passed on...

Seriously? Feared by whom?    And why in particular?

I certainly hope not, and I know some members just
choose, for personal reasons, to stop posting on forums,
and without any "formal" goodbyes.

[Fireball]

Dom (admin) is presumed dead, for no other reason than that she simply disappeared. Abaris (mod) hasn't posted in a little less than a year. He could be dead too, for all we know. Jdog (sp) is a moderator and hasn't posted but infrequently. Pablo is also a moderator and again, posts infrequently. I haven't seen a post from Aliza in quite some time. The place has been humming along without a lot of troll activity, so maybe the management hasn't seen fit to weigh in?

[Thumpalumpacus]

It's feared Dom has passed on...

Seriously?  Feared by whom?     And why in particular?

She was elderly, and lived alone, so that her sudden stoppage in posting makes dying a natural concern. Feared by whom? Many posters, myself included. Be it noted that I stopped posting here for quite a while based on her treatment of me, but given her activity and pre-eminence in moderating when I was around before, a sudden and long-term lapse of attention on her part would not in my opinion be explained by a change in mood or inclination.

In short, she was very involved in this forum from its inception in 2018 until the ceasing of her posting sometime last year.

It's a shame privacy concerns make finding out details about her or others unavailable, but it's understandable that posting PoC info isn't doable. I'm not putting my sister's info online, right. Perhaps a mod-only thread for contact info for check-ins might work, I don't know.

[Cavebear]

It was @Dom, @Mathilda, @abaris, and @Aliza.

It's feared Dom has passed on and abaris and Aliza have bee MIA for quite some time, leaving only Mathilda. Perhaps it's time to add some staff members.

I vote Dānu and Thumpalumpacus.

Participants in all discussion forums come and go. I miss several who used to be here, one of whom even brought this site to my attention.

But the forum maybe does need a couple of Moderators to help Mathida. That's up to her though. And certainly not me. But Dānu and Thumpalumpacus? Please no. Like me, they are both far too contentious. A Moderator should be calm, negotiating, and discussive, not aggressive in style and content.

I miss Dom, and have always wondered why she left. She was someone I could PM about misunderstandings about other participants. And she would explain how I misunderstood where some other participants were "coming from", how/why they misunderstood what I was saying, and how to possibly deal with them. She specifically said "everyone gets the Thump treatment sometimes". I appreciated that.

Abaris and Aliza were good too. I hope Mathilda (if she decides she needs Moderators) finds people more like those 3.

[brewerb]

Revenant77x

[Fireball]

I had forgotten about the Rev.   He hasn't been here in a dog's age, either.

[brewerb]

I had forgotten about the Rev.   He hasn't been here in a dog's age, either.

Speak of the devil and look what happens.

You can't see it but I'm genuflecting.

[Revenant77x]

I generally check the site once or twice a day and deal with any reports or pending new members. Mathilda is also around and when we have any issues we tend to discuss it and jointly decide on a course of action.

[SYZ]

Thanks mate.    Appreciate it.    

[Mathilda]

I only really came back because Dom died and the forum needed rescuing again. Yeah we don't know what happened to her but we do know that she wouldn't have left without saying a word. She cared too much about the forum to not at least say something to someone. She was very particular about how the forum was moderated which didn't leave any room for disagreement. But that's OK as she was the one who put the time and effort into the daily grind of moderating.

I personally no longer have the means to put in the attention I did before and certainly have no spare capacity to deal with any stress from this place so I'm now far less tolerant of trolls or those obviously intent on disrupting the forum than I used to be. Aliza is taking care of the server costs now so I wouldn't want to impose on her any further.

If you think that moderation is lacking then you'll need to use the report function to bring it to our attention otherwise things are likely to go unnoticed. If the forum members think that this isn't enough then we'll need to recruit more moderators.

[SYZ]

I only really came back because Dom died and the forum needed rescuing again...

I'm truly upset to hear about the wonderful person
who was Dom is no longer with us.  I always enjoyed
her practical and genuinely caring attitude towards the
forum overall, and to each of us as members.  I also
loved her wry and sometimes self-deprecating sense
of humour.

And I thank you too Mathilda for your ongoing support
of the forum, and the time and effort you personally
contribute to the site.   It's most appreciated.

   Thank you.