11-16-2012, 02:09 AM
Don't panic! No insult perceived at this end. I don't intend to rake up old posts to illustrate my point. Instead I would ask everybody a rhetorical question:
Suppose a guy turned up at a reenactment full of enthusiasm and wanting to join you society, in full kit that wasn't up to your groups standards.
Would you
A - Welcome him, get to know him, and gradually work on getting his kit right in a positive and non derogatory way?
B - Tell him that he can't join in as his kit is wrong. Gossip about him afterwards.
C - Point him out to the rest of your group and laugh at his dreadful kit, pointing out everything that it wrong with it.
If you answered A, that is where RAT aspires to be.
If you answered B, that is where RAT seems to be at.
If you answered C, then all this is falling on deaf ears!
RAT does have some great reference material, and some excellent contributors, but too many 'answer B's with the occasional 'C' thrown in too. Even if you can back your comments up with evidence, that shouldn't make it okay to trash someone else's efforts: Calling someone's wife fat and ugly will rightly get you a black eye from her husband, even if you're not entirely wrong. You wouldn't upset such a lady, so why do you think it's okay to behave like that on here?
It's a great pity that it's taken the loss of one of your long time contributors to raise this issue (as opposed to the historic baiting of nonentities like me, and the countless other people who don't post on here for the same reasons).
Suppose a guy turned up at a reenactment full of enthusiasm and wanting to join you society, in full kit that wasn't up to your groups standards.
Would you
A - Welcome him, get to know him, and gradually work on getting his kit right in a positive and non derogatory way?
B - Tell him that he can't join in as his kit is wrong. Gossip about him afterwards.
C - Point him out to the rest of your group and laugh at his dreadful kit, pointing out everything that it wrong with it.
If you answered A, that is where RAT aspires to be.
If you answered B, that is where RAT seems to be at.
If you answered C, then all this is falling on deaf ears!
RAT does have some great reference material, and some excellent contributors, but too many 'answer B's with the occasional 'C' thrown in too. Even if you can back your comments up with evidence, that shouldn't make it okay to trash someone else's efforts: Calling someone's wife fat and ugly will rightly get you a black eye from her husband, even if you're not entirely wrong. You wouldn't upset such a lady, so why do you think it's okay to behave like that on here?
It's a great pity that it's taken the loss of one of your long time contributors to raise this issue (as opposed to the historic baiting of nonentities like me, and the countless other people who don't post on here for the same reasons).
