Who gives a ?

Well, Gotta say I'm sorry you feel that way Al.

You may not be aware of how things are run around here, but the moderators are the ones with all the power around here. The admins pretty much just sweep up and make sure the lights are on. My comments came from me as a member, and are my opinion only.

The name of the place has 'Family' in it and is intended to be welcoming to all. I for one would like to see more participation from our female members and fail to see how misogynistic jokes will help encourage their participation.

I have no idea where the idea that we have 'favored' or 'regular' members comes from. Anybody who steps up and participates on a regular basis fits into that group. There's no secret handshake or 'special application' anyone has to fill out.

I understand for a lot of guys, keeping things 'family friendly' can be tough. If that's too difficult, I too will be sorry to see you go.

well Al, some of your comments are not substantiated in my opinion,, the select group one is one that has been mentioned before and has been brought up in the mod area, as was the post you mentioned to the provocative website.. one thing that has been mentioned, is for you to give a round in the mod job. its not all what its cracked up to be like stu said, what goes today might not tomorrow with the new group of mods opinions coming in. that way we as in the forum dont have the old way mentality even if i am from that mold i still listened to the new folk.. so if you are still of the mind set to leave, well i will to miss you and think of you each time the fall leaves turn color in the woods..

Al Launier said:

Further, regarding your additional comments:
1) Does this joke denigrate someone of a different race, color, creed, weight. If so, Don't post it. This posting was not intended as you described; it didn’t single out anyone, it was a joke whose basic content is familiar to many.;
2) Is this joke intended to offend some one not like me? If so, Don't post it. Again, it wasn’t intended to offend anyone!
3) Does this have anything to do with woodworking? Just saying, it probably doesn't need to be here. Then why have an Off-Topic section?

As has been stated before: “if you can’t say it in church, don’t say it”. Yet, it seems some “regulars” are granted license to violate this protocol and can be excluded from these “rules” without public admonishment. An example of this was the recent inclusion of a link in a posting to a provocative web site. This is church acceptable material? Why no criticism on this posting? Selective critiquing demonstrates favoritism which is inconsistent with what is preached and is inconsistent with the presumed tenants of FWW.

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Humor is subjective. What one may laugh at, at one time and place, would be different from another.
Carol as for fat guys, I've seen them laughed at all too often as well, so it also has to do with how one deals with what goes on around them (can't control everything in life).
Humor, even dark humor (not talking race), can be a way one deals with things.

As to the church comment, I can tell you this would be a joke I would hear in a church. Churches and their bibles are places FULL of double standards and religon has been one of the most harm causing things in the world. This is not a place to go into my experiences or knowledge of them.

I'll second each of Brent's comments and observations. In addition...

Al Launier said:

...Well the response was not unexpected, yet it would have been more appropriate in a PM rather than on a public forum...

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Yes, in most cases this would be addressed with a PM, although the past couple of years have shown that the PMs don't seem to have much of a lasting effect on your joke posting judgement.

Al Launier said:

...My comments below may appear to be sarcastic, but in reality they are the basis for what I’ve been thinking for several months, concluding that FWW is no longer the forum it once was - it’s gotten old!...

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It hasn't gotten "old". Family Woodworking has always been "old". It was started as, and has continues to be, a G-rated, Disney-esque place where members tend to be extra aware of what they are posting and how it might be taken by others. Personally, I've argued against some of the more puritanical stances taken by the forum, but in the end, it's the members who make the decisions, and they have continually affirmed that they want things to stay G-rated.

Regarding "favored" groups of members, I think most observers would consider you to be in that group, Al, since you have been a regular, active participant. You were maybe the somewhat crazy uncle who might tell inappropriate jokes at Thanksgiving*, but you were still part of the family.






*I can talk with authority about crazy uncles who say inappropriate things at Thanksgiving because I'm one of them.

Just my 2 cents.

In this Politically Correct world I can see how "fat chicks" may cause someone to be bothered. If the joke was about "fat dudes" I doubt anyone would of questioned it.

I think that it's a crying shame to lose an active member over something silly like this. All it would of taken is the Mods or the folks that were bothered by the post to send a quick PM asking him to change it to " big ladies" or something not so un-PC.
Being a 2 time mod I know that most active members would immediately respond to the mods by changing it. Even if the poster didn't respond at least you gave them the courtesy of making it right.

I suggest to all members that if any post bothers you, send the mods a pm and let them deal with it. Posting messages of outrage only fan the flames and we lose good active members.

Lastly, we are a family. Many of us here are good friends. We've met and known each other for years. You don't see this kind of camaraderie on many forums. I think that we are unique. That being said, because of the relationship many of us have I would think that a quick PM to a buddy instead of a public post would be the better course of action.

we need to lighten up kids, all of us. the one thing about jokes, or humor (humour for our english speaking friends (oops, i know, bad cheek)) in general, is that someone, somewhere, somehow (think laurel & hardy, marx brothers, abbott & costello) is going to be on the short end of the stick. being part polish, i've heard almost all of them, and like almost all of them, especially the ones about jablonski working at the sawmill (on topic?), and the one about the germans lighting the sticks of dynamite and throwing them back. now each group has their jokes about other groups, the stubborn germans, dumb polish, dour swedes and norwegians, etc. jokes can be a form of enlightenment, such as the moment when the waiter, after several attempts by the patron asking him to try the soup, realizes there is no spoon. now some may find some forms of humor offensive, well, the world is a pretty offensive place from time to time, and humor is how we deal with it. you can either roll with it and have a good laugh (better to laugh than to cry, or as my wife (uh oh, humor again) consoled me when my truck was stolen, that it was in such bad shape, that god did me a favor by having someone steal it, and this from a good, god fearing christian woman!), or one can be offended, pout, stomp feet, and go into hiding, while grousing about how insensitive others are. as red green says, we're all in it together, that, and we should have a good laugh, because none of use are getting out of this life alive.

The moderators closed this thread for two reasons:

1. The original post did not meet CoC guidlines.

2. It degraded into a series of personal attacks, something that has no place on FW.