Some of you might see my account logged in here most hours of the day and be given the impression I spend tons of time on Hunt Talk. This time of year, it is usually not me. It is often Mrs. Fin monitoring things under my account. I have other jobs and responsibilities that require most all of my time, especially right now. I will cruise threads when Mrs. Fin sends me a notice, or if I need a break from my other adult responsibilities. Usually I try to chime in over morning coffee or in the evening.
Lately, many here cannot keep threads on track. You want to talk about things that have nothing to do with public land hunting and conservation. I don't have time for that. The forum and the purpose of why we keep this going does not benefit from the continual ranting and raving about topics having nothing to do with hunting, access, conservation, or public lands.
Like many small businesses, things in the outdoor media space are pretty ugly right now. This forum is a money loser, always has been and likely always will be. When each day is more phone calls of companies laying off employees and cutting budgets, keeping this money losing part of our platforms around makes less and less sense (cents).
I keep Hunt Talk around because it is a huge benefit to the WHY of our operation - "To promote self-guided public land hunting and create advocates for that cause." To justify keeping this cash drain called Hunt Talk going, the non-financial benefits had better be there. For the last month or two, too much of the discussion is going the wrong direction.
That leaves me two options; 1) close it down, or 2) make changes that get it back to being beneficial.
Since I've already invested over a decade of funding this forum, option #1 is not a consideration. Option #2 is the path I am taking. And it will result in some changes; changes bound to piss off a few people, but changes I will make nonetheless.
To make it easier on some of you, here are a few ideas that might help keep your account active.
1. Add something valuable and useful to the discussion. That is the purpose of this forum. Add value to that. If you can't do that, go to a different part of the WWW. Go for a walk. Go shoot your bow. Go do some hunting research. Being negative, combative, confrontational, is not going to change one single mind on this forum. And it does nothing to benefit the discussion.
2. Start threads that have something to do with public land hunting and conservation. Ancillary threads, those with high propensity for derailment will be deleted as soon as I see them. And the accounts of those who want to continually start such threads will be deleted.
3. Understand what a discussion is. It is sharing of perspectives, information, and stories that help. A discussion is not an effort to make sure everyone agrees with you.
4. Understand that everyone has a different life experience and therefore those experiences create a different lens through which others see the world. There is nothing in the forum rules that say you have to accost anyone with a different perspective on a topic. May I suggest you think about what the other person wrote and try to figure out what life experiences might have brought them to a perspective different from yours.
5. If someone posts a request for advice or input either give them advice or move along to a different thread. There is no rule that says you have to pitch a fit and act like an ass if someone asks for information. Either share something or go find a thread/post to which you can post something helpful.
Pretty easy guidelines to help keep this forum moving along. I've got a stack of tax returns to get to. Thanks for listening and thanks for making positive contributions to the bigger discussions on public lands and conservation.
Lately, many here cannot keep threads on track. You want to talk about things that have nothing to do with public land hunting and conservation. I don't have time for that. The forum and the purpose of why we keep this going does not benefit from the continual ranting and raving about topics having nothing to do with hunting, access, conservation, or public lands.
Like many small businesses, things in the outdoor media space are pretty ugly right now. This forum is a money loser, always has been and likely always will be. When each day is more phone calls of companies laying off employees and cutting budgets, keeping this money losing part of our platforms around makes less and less sense (cents).
I keep Hunt Talk around because it is a huge benefit to the WHY of our operation - "To promote self-guided public land hunting and create advocates for that cause." To justify keeping this cash drain called Hunt Talk going, the non-financial benefits had better be there. For the last month or two, too much of the discussion is going the wrong direction.
That leaves me two options; 1) close it down, or 2) make changes that get it back to being beneficial.
Since I've already invested over a decade of funding this forum, option #1 is not a consideration. Option #2 is the path I am taking. And it will result in some changes; changes bound to piss off a few people, but changes I will make nonetheless.
To make it easier on some of you, here are a few ideas that might help keep your account active.
1. Add something valuable and useful to the discussion. That is the purpose of this forum. Add value to that. If you can't do that, go to a different part of the WWW. Go for a walk. Go shoot your bow. Go do some hunting research. Being negative, combative, confrontational, is not going to change one single mind on this forum. And it does nothing to benefit the discussion.
2. Start threads that have something to do with public land hunting and conservation. Ancillary threads, those with high propensity for derailment will be deleted as soon as I see them. And the accounts of those who want to continually start such threads will be deleted.
3. Understand what a discussion is. It is sharing of perspectives, information, and stories that help. A discussion is not an effort to make sure everyone agrees with you.
4. Understand that everyone has a different life experience and therefore those experiences create a different lens through which others see the world. There is nothing in the forum rules that say you have to accost anyone with a different perspective on a topic. May I suggest you think about what the other person wrote and try to figure out what life experiences might have brought them to a perspective different from yours.
5. If someone posts a request for advice or input either give them advice or move along to a different thread. There is no rule that says you have to pitch a fit and act like an ass if someone asks for information. Either share something or go find a thread/post to which you can post something helpful.
Pretty easy guidelines to help keep this forum moving along. I've got a stack of tax returns to get to. Thanks for listening and thanks for making positive contributions to the bigger discussions on public lands and conservation.
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