Harringay online

Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!

The following has been removed from a posting about an incident on Pemberton Road since I do not feel that posting is an appropriate place for this discussion. I am however happy to respond to any concerns here

Matt, a member wrote:

I would like to add that there needs to be more professionalism from admin on this site. The lack of it has been very worrying. If you want to run a site porporting to represent and serve this community it must be done so with the upmost integrity.

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:)
James, you're no more than a pseudo- proto-Troll (or should that be a proto- pseudo-Troll?) !
If you want to run a site porporting to represent and serve this community it must be done so with the upmost integrity.

Matt, the site does not represent the community - it is the members of the site that do that. No individual user (or adminstrator) of the site is seen as a community representaive. Discussions normally attempt to generate some kind of consensus. I think it's grossly unfair for any of us to demand an individual takes reponsibility for what is said on the site. I think of it as somewhere that is self policing - with members challenging posts and comments if they think they are incorrect.

I'm very gateful for the massive amount of work Hugh, Liz and lots of other put in, most of it not even noticed by the rest of us, but the site works because of the community who use it, not the other way around.
For all the supportiveness of most posts here, is there a danger of "a rush to consensus" which may sideline a valued member of this site - Matt. Reminds me a little of too many school staff meetings where when someone voiced a criticism (albeit too stridently) s/he was immediately steamrollered by a gush of support for management.
N made several valuable points above, and John also. I'd just add: stand back a little and give a bit of space.

@ Clive (on that side point): A nom de plume is normally not about confidence or the lack of it. Maybe more to do with a persona or role or means of adopting a more chameleonic view of the all too po-faced world we inhabit.
I'd just like to second that sentiment.
Matt you have a point. But this site is not a professional site, run by people paid to do this as a job. I do think that Hugh and co do an excellent job but this is not their day job and I dont think we can criticise too much if some postings that go up are perhaps inappropriate. As a community site, these discussions are own own and we have to take responsibility for what we say and how these are handled. The discussions are usually organic, they start on thing like traffic coming out of Sainsburys, and end up discussing the relative snob value attached to shopping or not shppoing at Iceland, for example.
People got scared about the Pemberton road incident and I think were sharing their fears, anxieties and yes, probably bits of rumour and gossip as well. But with the police not giving out details, then this is bound to happen. I think overall that the tone of the discussion and sharing of info was acceptable. Plus I dont think the site adminstrators have ever claimed to speak on behalf of the community, they have never purported to represent the community. This is a website and people chat about things.
all the very best
Ruth C
Thanks for the comment Ruth. To help my understanding of your viewpoint, and to enable us to adjust our style if necessary, can I check what you're referring to when you say "you have a point". Many thanks.
I am glad you picked me up on that because after I clicked add reply, I regretted it. To be honest Hugh, I was trying to be tactful with respect to Matt by starting off like that. Its like when marking bad student essays, I try to start off by saying something positive. I didnt want to upset anyone. So in the usual lets try to be nice and not be too blunt English manner, I ended up saying something I dont really feel as a result. I dont think he has a point. No, I dont think he has at all so I retract that remark. I think you do a great job, all in your own time, and if Matt or anyone else wants to have a go at it, then let them try. Or pay for a professional service which would then be commercial and be really not what we want. Sorry my trying to be tactful was unfair to you and I didnt mean to do that! Carry on doing a good job. I wish people wouldnt make the important issues we discuss always come back to themselves... I dont know how you cope. GOod luck.
Oops, sorry Ruth. I missed that. I truly respect and approve of your tact to Matt, but thanks for coming back to me.

Thanks also to you and everyone for your feedback.

What I'm after is to act in a way that will enhance and develop what I believe can be a fantastic community tool. That's all, plain and simple. No political agendas or anything. I really encourage folks to get involved in having a say on how the site runs through the HoL group online and offline. I'm wary of having too many of these discussions - or at least letting them dominate the site - because I believe that most people just aren't interested.
This may be a good time to remind people of the ways in which they can offer feedback, comments and voice concerns.

1.You can of course open a thread under the About the Website category and write up your ideas, concerns. Examples from this thread might be: the validity of information sources; safety and online details (a global issue and not one confined to HOL); the use of 'nom de plumes' and avatars over photos and real names. This would of course entail you taking a little responsibility for your authorship of the thread and perhaps suggesting good ideas for how to overcome problems as well as highlighting them.

I would not advise opening a new discussion or airing a problem in an existing thread, especially if that involves something sensitive, as it may detract from the original poster's points or even hijack their thread. It would be like listening to someone talk about something important to them for a couple of minutes and then saying 'yes okay, never mind that, this is far more interesting'; impolite in real life, impolite online. Another point about open debate is that while you and those that know you may understand where you are coming from, others who do not know you may take things you say in an entirely different way. Be prepared for that, it happens to anyone who authors on the net (be it a post, a comment or a throwaway comment on Twitter) and don't be surprised if the impression you are giving is taken a different way from the one in your head! e.g. you think you are making a jokey comment and someone lays into you and calls you a Yummy Mummy (happened to me).

Finally an issue that is important to you may be missed by admin if you plonk it into something else as contrary to popular belief we don't read absolutely everything that is posted on here. We don't want people to go away feeling fed up that we don't care but it if you bury your concerns in a thread about Sainsbury's we may not pick up on it

2. You may comment privately using the feedback mechanisms accesible from the front page left hand side. Don't gripe to your neighbours! Gripe to us, help us to make the site what you want and avoid it becoming something you dislike. All comments will be treated in confidence. Any community can become frustrated and negativity creep in if people do not express their feelings about what is going on it. It can become dominated by a few if the many simply turn away. This would be a disaster for any community, online ones included.

There is much to do in this community from HMOs to fly tipping to building for the future. We want this site to be a way of bringing a voice to those who wish to speak, a place to find out what to do when something is going wrong and perhaps most importantly a place to suggest ways to bring about change. Pointing out problems is not enough...what's the next step should always be in the back of your mind, what do we do about it? Who can help us bring about what we want? Bring us solutions to the table! Don't judge the person or think you know where they are coming from based on a big book of stereotypes e.g. right-winger, Guardian reader, yummy mummy; assess their ideas, build on their thoughts and suggest ways forward.

If people feel valued they will contribute, if they feel belittled, judged and labelled they will walk away. They should not have to fight for a place at the debating table, its is theirs by right. If you care about this community, listen to every voice without prejudice and without assumption and let them speak without taking them apart.
If I may say... some very good points Liz, we are all so very different, and we all learn from each other. IMO 'Intention' is the key point in any form of communication, not always easy to gauge, unless we know another extremely well.
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