Papirex
Jun 5, 2004, 3:14 PM
Post #1 of 14
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There has been a lot of discussion on these forums lately about how these forums should be conducted. It seems to me that most of the complaints are being made by members that have never read The Guidelines or The policies and conditions of use for this site. Those sections were available to read before you subscribed. You can still read them now. Many of the conditions now being complained of are addressed thoroughly in those sections.
One of the things mentioned that can cause a post to be deleted is if it is deemed to be libelous under Mexican law. Many people don’t realize the import of that section. It is understandable that ex pats would not be familiar with the Mexican law on libel. If one is to write anything derogatory about any person or institution In Mexico, it would be prudent to familiarize oneself with that law.
In The U.S. libel is a civil matter. If a person can prove they have actually been damaged, loss of employment, reduction or loss of income, etc. by the untrue statements, writings, or actions of another, they may sue for damages.
This is Mexico. Libel is a criminal offense here. The Mexican law says that if a person has been offended by another they may file a complaint. It doesn’t matter if the statements or writings about the offended party are true or untrue.
Any person or entity that facilitates libel may be included in the complaint by the offended party. This site is a Mexican business, and has a vested interest in trying to assure that anything that may be construed as libelous under Mexican law is eliminated. So do the individual posters, even if they do not know it. The policies and conditions section clearly states that we can be identified, and in a criminal case your ISP may be required to reveal your identity.
We do not have the same level of freedom of speech here that we are used to in our home countries. That is not necessarily bad, just different. Be aware of it. There may be unpleasant consequences.
A personal rule I have set for myself is to wait 24 hours before responding to any post. I break this rule all the time, but not when it comes to a controversial post. Most of the time I end up not posting, usually other people have responded adequately, or the thread has become so silly replying is senseless. My personal rule also keeps me from starting any posts with “Dear Blockhead.” The down side is that sometimes when I do decide to reply, a really controversial thread has been locked. Not a bad thing. Maybe this thread will be locked tomorrow when I reread it before posting it.
The thread I was going to post this to, has indeed been locked. I’m putting this up as a new post, after editing it. (One of the advantages of writing my posts in MS Word Is the option to save them and edit them after a good nights rest.)
I was taught as a child to always be considerate of others. It seems that some people did not have the benefit of that kind of upbringing. Those are the folks that put up the insulting, or denigrating posts, and send similar PMs berating some of the moderators, and the people that are asking about living here on a low budget, working in Mexico, etc. It seems that giving helpful advice, is to some people making this a “feel good” site. It is actually one of the benefits of this site I believe.
It seems there are always 2 or 3 dozen people, half of them recent members, that think this site is their personal “chat room” it is not a chat room, it is a lot more than that, and it has a message board. The last time I saw the figures there are over 4400 members of Mexconnect. I think it is fair to say that most of them are paying members. Most of us are happy with it the way it is. Those of us that have been visiting this site for a few years have seen Mexconnect at its best, and at its worst. Right now it is at its best in my own opinion.
A couple of years ago, before the change to this format, bandwidth was an issue. All posts were destined to be eventually deleted. Some people used to bitch about that, accusing the moderators of targeting their posts deliberately. Some folks still seem to think their opinions carry more weight than anyone else’s. Sure, sometimes mistakes are made. Remember the old saying, “That’s why they put the rubber on the end of the pencil”?
Most of us that have been here a while have seen several other wide open unfettered message boards disappear, or discontinue their message boards, due to inadequate or no monitoring. Three were the old Parlor City Acapulco board, it is gone, Mexpatriate and The Mexico Channel have disabled their message boards. There were several more, but just those three come to mind immediately. We should learn from their mistakes, an uncontrolled message board dooms itself.
I don’t think that those of us that have been visiting and using this site for several years should have any more voice or privileges than any newbie. I do feel that it would be prudent for some of the new folks to observe a little more of what the site is all about before trying to take it over. Most of the complaints lately have been gone over and discussed several times in years past.
If there is a real need, and demand for a different kind of message board someone will create it. If the need is really there, and it is viable, it will succeed. If not, it will fail. Like all the others.
Unlax folks. If things here aren’t just the way each of us would like it to be each day, the world will keep spinning. Be mellow, it doesn’t cost a thing, and it is good for your heart.
Rex
"The supreme happiness of life is the conviction that we are loved" - Victor Hugo
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