Posted on 10/26/2009 4:32:01 PM PDT by Admin Moderator
This is a public service announcement from your friendly neighborhood Admin Moderators (Sidebar gave us some attitude so we shoved him in the closet for a while. He never recovered from the Yacht incident) For a while, we have noticed some things happening that we need your help with. The Free Republic community is strong; we are almost a family, albeit very dysfunctional at times. Like any community, we have new members joining us daily. Unfortunately, the air of suspicion and the desire to keep things “the way they are” has fostered a feeling of distrust with new members. Almost every day, we see new members join, then, because of comments of suspicion, they often don’t return. For any community to thrive, it must grow. Because of this, we are asking for your help. Here are some important things you should know:
The Internet has changed greatly since Free Republic first started. When we formed, few people had their own websites, now, everyone has their own blog. With this, there is an attitude change where someone who doesn’t understand how our community works may be more interested in self-promotion than we have been used to in the past. We don’t want to change the overall feel of this site- it is about our shared values, not about self promotion, however, we don’t want to drive people away simply because they link to their own blog. There are blog “pimps” who want nothing more than to promote their own sites, but for most people, it is simply how they start out sharing their thoughts on a matter. Encourage these members to take part in existing discussions.
Many new members may not communicate well what they believe and it gives the appearance they are not 100% kosher in their Conservative beliefs. This may have nothing to do with their Conservative credentials but simply how they are communicating their beliefs or how the media/pop culture has told them what to think. Be an example and discuss what you think is wrong. A liberal troll’s true colors will reveal themselves while a new member who is honest, but may not communicate well, may learn from the conversation.
Remember, how you respond to a topic not only reflects your thoughts, but also is a reflection of the community and Conservative values. We need to be an example of positive conservative values when responding to members, especially new ones. As mods, we make a strong attempt to screen all new members. Every new sign-up goes through a period where their posts are reviewed. This helps us eliminate most trolls, porn and commercial spammers, and those who don’t fit in with our Conservative values. This isn’t a perfect system, but it does help us make sure that by the time a new member reaches the community, there is a greater chance this person is the type we want around. Some slip through, yes, and you can always help us by hitting the abuse button. (of course, we do let some world class morons through every once in a while as “Live Chow”- after all, the kitties have to have toys.)
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With all that said, we need to grow. We need to be far more welcoming to new members and guide them into how to use our community best. With this said, we are issuing a challenge to our long time Freeper family. We would like to start up a ‘welcome wagon’ type of ping list or group whose job it is to welcome new members, show them the ropes, and guide them through our community. This could be as simply as giving new members a kind welcome, guiding them to how to post topics or replies, or just making the experience pleasant.
As this is your community, we would like your thoughts, ideas, and most importantly, for some of you to step up and help us with this.
We are passing the ball to you. What do you think?
That was sweet! Thanks!
Correction to my post 617: that would be ANNE Applebaum, not Jane Applebaum. No brains, just a sense of humor. ;o]
No, I haven’t got Mein Kampf, but it’s on my wish list at Amazon. It seems to get longer instead of shorter, for some reason.
I hate when that happens.
LOL!
Yup, very cute, eh?
Yep. You had to love her courage.
I LIKE that!!
All the Undeaders need something like that...
Good morning (while it still is). Wanted to stay home today due to cough, but telecon&meeting pulled me into office.
Thanks!
Afternoon! We’re on our way out, in a nasty cold rain, to pick up a book at a friend’s house, buy a gift card at “Stein Mart,” and leave 4 kids at gymnastics. Seeya!
I hope it helps. If you want, I can do the searches for you. Let me know by FReepmail.
I mailed off some packages this morning, and that’s the extent of my “outing” until tomorrow.
And Friday, I’ll mail another one to my hero grandson.
Which grandson, by the way, has been selected to speak with Zero. After I told him what was on my mind, I told him to be polite.
:o]
Selected to speak with Zero? Wow!
Yah. At first, I said, “Give ‘em hell!” Then I said, “Be polite.” I suspect it will be somewhere in between.
I can hardly wait to see if he makes the editing.
“Give him hell, politely,” is a reasonable approach!
Rain and more rain. Leftovers heating on the stove. Now I need to feed Frank again!
I’m sending him a pocket-sized book of hymns and some chocolate chip cookies. He said he’s good to go with hand warmers and baby wipes, and that whatever else was in the box was going to be GOOD!!
He said the hole he went into was deep, but I got the impression it was not the first time. He said he wasn’t scared. I’m so PROUD!!
Thanks. Short day but a long time. At least the coughs have stopped — for now.
This is good for a Happy. Tissues may or may not be required.
http://www.womansday.com/Articles/Entertainment/Feel-Good-Video-of-the-Week-Warm-Welcome
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