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Dealing with Professing Believers Walking in Sin in Online Boards

JonC

Moderator
Moderator
Jon, we had a fella on here who was diagnosed by a psychiatrist and prescribed certain drugs for some mental and emotional problems he was having. Long story short we had some on this very board who advised him scripturally to ignore his doctor, so he went off the rails and eventually killed himself. Sad to say the least!
That is sad. And that is one way (an extreme way) these boards can be dangerous.
 

MartyF

Well-Known Member
Jon, we had a fella on here who was diagnosed by a psychiatrist and prescribed certain drugs for some mental and emotional problems he was having. Long story short we had some on this very board who advised him scripturally to ignore his doctor, so he went off the rails and eventually killed himself. Sad to say the least!

Link?
 

MartyF

Well-Known Member
Jon, we had a fella on here who was diagnosed by a psychiatrist and prescribed certain drugs for some mental and emotional problems he was having. Long story short we had some on this very board who advised him scripturally to ignore his doctor, so he went off the rails and eventually killed himself. Sad to say the least!

That is sad. And that is one way (an extreme way) these boards can be dangerous.

This is why people who downplay mental health as a spiritual issue only make my blood boil

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Al three of you have now supported a accusation of murder without evidence.

Exodus 20:16
 

Van

Well-Known Member
Site Supporter
I did not read past the OP in this thread. But for a long long time, I have been bewildered that forum moderation and administration allows trolls to consistently derail thread after thread, inhibiting any actual discussion of scripture. They disparage the poster rather than the position. They misrepresent the position of others, creating strawman arguments to score against. For example, I say because we have eternal life spiritually, in heaven we may eat to enjoy, but will not need to eat to sustain life. The response is to imply I said no eating will occur in heaven. With such behavior, discussion of scripture is impossible.

We have posted rules, yet they are not enforced. I have been called a liar in multiple posts recently, yet no action was taken.

How many times has a Calvinist leaning poster posted something obviously off the mark, yet no other Calvinist leaning poster refutes the error? The unchristian behavior is systemic.
 

JonC

Moderator
Moderator
Al three of you have now supported a accusation of murder without evidence.

Exodus 20:16
I have not. I said that it was sad (I am not sure if anyone would say it is happy). And I said that such is an extreme way that boards can be dangerous. I think that this is evident with contemporary examples where this type of thing has occurred via social media (people have killed themselves related to interaction with other people via an online format).

I do not know of any of this happening with the Baptist Board. But @Earth Wind and Fire did not make an accusation, so I do not think it matters. He stated something as a fact (I am unaware if it is) but there was no accusation against an online board or any person.

I have seen (in the past) members on this board suggest that medication should not be taken for mental illness because they related such things to demonic activity. So I do know such things have been said on this forum. If you doubt this you may want to try the search feature.

I do not know of anyone who killed themselves, but I am sure that suicide does occur and it is very possible someone who has been on this board has killed themselves.

The post does not state that someone killed themselves because of this board.
 

JonC

Moderator
Moderator
I did not read past the OP in this thread. But for a long long time, I have been bewildered that forum moderation and administration allows trolls to consistently derail thread after thread, inhibiting any actual discussion of scripture. They disparage the poster rather than the position. They misrepresent the position of others, creating strawman arguments to score against. For example, I say because we have eternal life spiritually, in heaven we may eat to enjoy, but will not need to eat to sustain life. The response is to imply I said no eating will occur in heaven. With such behavior, discussion of scripture is impossible.

We have posted rules, yet they are not enforced. I have been called a liar in multiple posts recently, yet no action was taken.

How many times has a Calvinist leaning poster posted something obviously off the mark, yet no other Calvinist leaning poster refutes the error? The unchristian behavior is systemic.
Use the report feature. The Administration will see the report and decide to act on it or reject it.

For my part, I have always acted on reports where one person is called a liar. But if it is not reported then I did not read it.

I've had a member repeatedly call me a liar and make false accusations against me. I do not report him (I don't act on the issue either because I would see that as a conflict of interest). I just ignore him because I do not care what he thinks about me. But if I did care then I would contact the Administration with my issue. If I did not contact the Staff then I do not see a reason to complain that they did not act on what offended me.

But I have thick skin, and this is just an online forum which is a discussion with people I do not even know. So I really don't care (I let fools be fools and their foolishness remain on the public forum for the board to see).
 

Van

Well-Known Member
Site Supporter
I have reported with no result dozens of times, the fault does not lie within the posters but in the leadership. If we allow "discretionary" enforcement of rules, we do not have rules, but tyranny.

Scripture says give unto Caesar, and thus we are to be law abiding. Those who knowingly violate the rules over and over are clearly making no attempt to become Christ-like. They seem to be tares, and it reflects a lack of love to not rebuke them.
 

evenifigoalone

Well-Known Member
I have reported with no result dozens of times, the fault does not lie within the posters but in the leadership. If we allow "discretionary" enforcement of rules, we do not have rules, but tyranny.

Scripture says give unto Caesar, and thus we are to be law abiding. Those who knowingly violate the rules over and over are clearly making no attempt to become Christ-like. They seem to be tares, and it reflects a lack of love to not rebuke them.
Same, a few months ago I was being blatantly attacked by two people in a thread. Those posts are still up. I reported those, and if anything was ever done about it (such as giving the person a talking to, at least), I was not told.

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atpollard

Well-Known Member
I have reported with no result dozens of times, the fault does not lie within the posters but in the leadership. If we allow "discretionary" enforcement of rules, we do not have rules, but tyranny.

Scripture says give unto Caesar, and thus we are to be law abiding. Those who knowingly violate the rules over and over are clearly making no attempt to become Christ-like. They seem to be tares, and it reflects a lack of love to not rebuke them.

Same, a few months ago I was being blatantly attacked by two people in a thread. Those posts are still up. I reported those, and if anything was ever done about it (such as giving the person a talking to, at least), I was not told.
I will allow the BB Staff to respond for their specific board, but I can offer some input based on my experience as a moderator on another board.
  1. Moderation is an unpleasant task. Those complaining are certain that you are doing too little and those you "punish" are certain that you are doing too much. There is no pay and there is no glory associated with it. I do it where I am a moderator for the satisfaction that comes from helping to prevent "my board" from becoming an internet cesspool.
  2. Actions taken by moderators are between the moderator and the recipient of the action. Moderator actions are not generally for public consumption. What I am saying is that it is none of your or my business what action a moderator took with another poster.
  3. There are people that attempt to use "reporting posts" as a weapon against other posters. Moderators are forced to do their best to determine whether a report represents someone being legitimately offended, or someone just "crying wolf". Hopefully they get it right most of the time, but they are not infallible and will probably get some calls wrong.
  4. Many people are not aware that Moderators actually talk to each other to get a second opinion about cases that are close to the line, or which they question their personal objectivity on. Thus many decisions are not just the opinion of ONE moderator but the consensus of many counselors.
  5. If a post was reported and not deleted, then a moderator has ruled that it may require a warning, but does not require deletion. They may also have determined that the post did not require a warning. The banning of a user is a harsh step that no moderator wants to take except as a last resort.
Take care that your expectation from volunteers doing their best to serve everyone, is actually reasonable.
 

evenifigoalone

Well-Known Member
I will allow the BB Staff to respond for their specific board, but I can offer some input based on my experience as a moderator on another board.
  1. Moderation is an unpleasant task. Those complaining are certain that you are doing too little and those you "punish" are certain that you are doing too much. There is no pay and there is no glory associated with it. I do it where I am a moderator for the satisfaction that comes from helping to prevent "my board" from becoming an internet cesspool.
  2. Actions taken by moderators are between the moderator and the recipient of the action. Moderator actions are not generally for public consumption. What I am saying is that it is none of your or my business what action a moderator took with another poster.
  3. There are people that attempt to use "reporting posts" as a weapon against other posters. Moderators are forced to do their best to determine whether a report represents someone being legitimately offended, or someone just "crying wolf". Hopefully they get it right most of the time, but they are not infallible and will probably get some calls wrong.
  4. Many people are not aware that Moderators actually talk to each other to get a second opinion about cases that are close to the line, or which they question their personal objectivity on. Thus many decisions are not just the opinion of ONE moderator but the consensus of many counselors.
  5. If a post was reported and not deleted, then a moderator has ruled that it may require a warning, but does not require deletion. They may also have determined that the post did not require a warning. The banning of a user is a harsh step that no moderator wants to take except as a last resort.
Take care that your expectation from volunteers doing their best to serve everyone, is actually reasonable.
I was a mod on another forum for 8 years, I am well aware.
The posts in question that I am talking about, included a doxxing threat, multiple threats actually. Those posts are still up

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Earth Wind and Fire

Well-Known Member
Site Supporter
But I do not know that it has not happened either (I am not the one who said it did occur). So please do not take my ignorance to an affirmation something did not occur.
You can verify this through Annse who was a moderator at the time and was attempting to work with the guy who offed himself. I recall the guy being from Maine. Like I would make this crap up!
 
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atpollard

Well-Known Member
The posts in question that I am talking about, included a doxxing threat, multiple threats actually. Those posts are still up
I can only speak for what I have done. If I feel that a post requires some action taken (like deleting), then I report the post with a note on the specific rule that I feel has been violated and the action that I would request be taken (like "deletion of post" or "remove the last paragraph").

It at least clearly communicates your concerns to the Moderator without making them "guess" about anything.
Then I shrug and move on because "life is short and the internet is full of challenging interactions". :)
 
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