PLEASE READ: GROUP EXPECTATIONS
Dragonwolf
Posts: 5,600 Member
Due to drama in the main forums regarding our group, our group has been set to private. Because of these issues, we have to make clear the group's policy on trolling and/or negative posts.
If you encounter such behavior in the main forums or in PMs we ask that you please do not engage, but report the posts using MFP's reporting system (not the flags, but the actual report that requires you to qualify it and allows you to include notes) and alert one of the mods via PM with a link and/or screen-shot. If you encounter it here, please alert one of the Leaders.
Please note that, in addition to not engaging in arguments and negative behavior in the main forums, the following things can't be tolerated here in our group.
While we understand that the above usually represents angry venting and little more, it has been brought to our attention that it's not to be allowed here. In addition, please take a brief moment to review the Community Guidelines. In light of these developments, let's focus on the purpose of this group. That purpose is talking about low-carb diets and supporting those on them. Instead of focusing on the main group, let's focus on keeping our community strong.
Thank you all for your help and understanding during this. Please direct any comments or concerns to
If you encounter such behavior in the main forums or in PMs we ask that you please do not engage, but report the posts using MFP's reporting system (not the flags, but the actual report that requires you to qualify it and allows you to include notes) and alert one of the mods via PM with a link and/or screen-shot. If you encounter it here, please alert one of the Leaders.
Please note that, in addition to not engaging in arguments and negative behavior in the main forums, the following things can't be tolerated here in our group.
- Posts talking about other members and how they irritate you or wishing harm upon them.
- Insulting nicknames.
- Threads/posts complaining about or criticizing the general forums.
- Any links to discussions in the main forums.
- Posts complaining or insulting the moderation decisions in the main area or any of the moderators.
- Reposting any private messages or personal discussions in the group.
While we understand that the above usually represents angry venting and little more, it has been brought to our attention that it's not to be allowed here. In addition, please take a brief moment to review the Community Guidelines. In light of these developments, let's focus on the purpose of this group. That purpose is talking about low-carb diets and supporting those on them. Instead of focusing on the main group, let's focus on keeping our community strong.
Thank you all for your help and understanding during this. Please direct any comments or concerns to
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Replies
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The following are clarifications to questions or concerns that have been brought up. I have tried to annotate who said what. Some points may be repeated in slightly different ways from different leaders here.
Goat:wabmester wrote:No insulting nicks? Can we come up with something warm and fuzzy to call them? How about "Sugar Burners" to distinguish them from the Fat Burners? Kinda like the Hatfields and McCoys.
It would be best if we just don't refer to them at all. If we do reference non-low-carb diets and dieters, we should probably just be specific as to what their plan is (CICO, SAD, Starch-Solution, etc.) instead of making up names we find cute and amusing but that could possibly offend or irritate someone following that plan.
Goat:
You are welcome to participate in the main forums, if you wish. We strongly discourage you from engaging in negativity or responding to it. You should report it and let the mods deal with it. I am not saying that you should ignore their mocking others. I am saying that you shouldn't respond to it publicly. And, we can't have threads complaining about it here. We have to turn it over (through the reporting system) to the mods and allow them to handle it.
Come here for information, positivity, and support. If you want to help others learn about low carb, you can post in the main forums. But, we need to keep the two distinct and apart. Those posts can't be cross-linked with this group.
Dragonwolf:
Making the group private was largely for the safety of the members and is only temporary. There are a couple of people actually cyber-stalking members of the group. They've also pulled comments from the group into threads on the main forums for purposes of defaming the group.
You're welcome to talk about low carb in the threads that ask about it, but we ask that you try to refrain from taking flame bait and report the people who are trying to cause trouble.
FIT_Goat
I do want to clarify the position on links to this group. If someone asks, "what is a good group for low carb [whatever]?" or, "I really want some low carb friends" or anything of the sort... feel free to post the link to here directly in the thread. You are providing an answer to the OP's question.
If, on the other hand, someone posts a question about low carb, answer their question in the thread. If you feel they would benefit from joining this group, please send them a private message inviting them here.
Links going the other way (posted here linking to discussions outside the group) are strongly discouraged as it is hard to prove that the intent is benign and not meant to send leagues of low-carb commandos out to swarm and attack.
FIT_Goat:
[In response to a question about linking to a thread in the keto group.]
This is a good question. As it relates to the low carb community and isn't linking out to the general forums, I wouldn't see a problem with it. I am pretty sure the other group leaders wouldn't either. The way the guideline was written was a prohibition against linking to discussions in the main forums. It doesn't actually refer to linking to discussions in other groups. Obviously, if that link goes to a thread in a "Starch Solution" group then it would still be a problem even though it's not the main forums.
Many of us are active in various places on here. If someone is doing a c25k challenge thread in the c25k group, then I wouldn't see why they couldn't post encouraging people to sign on and get fit with them. Sadly, if that same challenge thread was posted in the main forums, it couldn't be linked to from here. Sad, but the intent is to reduce the friction between this group and the main forums.So if we PM another member of the general forums the link to this group and they click on it can they read posts or do they have to join our group to read the threads?
FIT_Goat:
I somehow missed this one before. Unfortunately, they won't be able to read the links without asking to join the group and getting approved by one of the group leaders first. The group leaders are working hard to keep a quick turn around on member applications (it seems there are a couple waiting every time I walk away). It's not an immediate turn around though. I realize that this barrier to access can discourage people from joining or reading links you would prefer to share. I wish there was a way to reduce/eliminate the hassle, but it's the way things are for the time being.
baconslave:
Is all this fair? Well, the site mods own the building, and we're renting space in it. So we have to follow the rules they set out. I want this group to stay active. MFP needs this group for its low-carb users. Period. And I want this group here and available for all the people who need support. So we do what they ask. It's a lot easier for group mods to crack down on those rules than the site mods. Where we only have in the ten thousands of members and the associated flying words in this little corner, they have in the millions of words to police daily. A much larger job, and in here we have people willing to cooperate. That isn't a perk the site mods have out in the main forum. And it isn't going to be civil out there for awhile yet. But we've seen signs that they are cracking down. Changes will move at a snail pace, because the task is akin to herding cats, but they are working on it.
Until then, we have our space here to be shining examples of behavior, and we can post our questions and concerns about our WOE without worry. It's better to act as if the main forum doesn't exist. They can't hurt us here, but we aren't allowed to talk about them in here. Terms of the lease.
As far as main forum participation:
We recommend, for your own sanity, that you don't visit the main forums,
But we certainly aren't forbidding you from participating. We just ask that you refrain from sinking to the level of behavior of the drama-perpetuators (flame-baiting or trolling or personal attacks), for the sake of the work-in-progress they are attempting at corralling the toxic environment over there.
If you see maligning of the group, as Dragonwolf and Goat have said, report it instead of getting in an argument with them. Olivia has expressed in the forum that discussion of issues that people have with groups is an inappropriate conversation, and it's to be taken to the mods. Let them give the warning to the offending user as well.
If you want a more civil main forum, act civil and report genuine violation of the guidelines.
We also would think it would be nice for you to limit mentioning the group to these occasions: to those who ask for support and PMs to an OP for an unsolicited plug. But don't involve or mention the group in conjunction with contention you may be having with another user.
Don't post links from the group, or cut and paste things said in the group, in the main forums.
That's what we are saying.
As far as the group:
Don't complain about the main forums in here.
Don't insult other MFP users in here.
Don't link to main forum threads in here.
Don't criticize the main forum mods or their actions in here
Don't repost PMs from mods in here.
Do support one another on this WOE.
Do ask questions of and learn from others.
Do post links to other groups like an exercise challenge group or the keto group as long as it isn't drama related.
Do talk about anything low-carb, videos, recipes, blogs, articles, or funny cartoons. Have fun.
You can complain about me to Dragonwolf and Goat if I start being a wicked witch, but try not to be too mean.
So in here, business as usual as it has been 99.9% of the time. Just leave the main forums out of it. No tracking mud in the door and getting it on the carpet. We want to have nice things. So we will keep it civil and nice.
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More Clarification on Mentioning/Complaining about the Main Forums:
The Site Admins indicated that we shouldn't discuss any negative aspects about the Main Forums period. They feel it opens the door to more strong vents/rants about it which in turn foments hostility, anger, and potential drama. The site admins have expressed strongly to the Group Mods that they do not want us discussing the divisive issues the Main Forums have at all. Otherwise, our group will be closed. They strongly expressed that they do not want us talking about threads in the Main Forum, or linking to them, either.
It is best to not bring up or discuss negative, unpleasant, or unfavorable experiences you have in the Main Forums in this Group. At all. Brief off-hand mention, as in an opening comment in a post to support/highlight how helpful the group has been for an individual is fine when used as a (again brief) comparison to the external environment of the Group. It's even fine to talk about how we are still very much the minority in the world in general in more detail. But to continue to highlight bad/unfriendly experiences in the Main Forums of MFP specifically is not ok. As per the site admins.
Hope that clears any residual questions up. If not, please PM us Group Mods, and we'll add more clarification.
Thanks for helping us to continue to keep this awesome group open for you guys.
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This discussion has been closed.