Council has voted to remove and suspend some members

mod · January 16, 2012

The council has voted on a few peoples memberships who we feel are responsible for most of the problems over the last year. Some members have made the site hostile and unwelcoming and we believe we have identified these individuals and we are asking some to leave and giving others a vacation.

This letter will be sent to those individuals and posted here for all to review.

Dear Member.

We wish to be absolutely clear about what the board will no longer tolerate. Unacceptable behaviour includes, but is not limited to:

The use of hostile and inflammatory language;

Trying to goad other members, and "push other member's buttons";

Being quick to take offence and quick to point out that you are so offended and to scold people for it;

Twisting the words of others in the least charitable way so as to imply that they have ill intent or dishonest motives;

Twisting the words of others so as to misrepresent them, in order to artificially set them up as targets for scoring your own political points;

Attempting to shout down the opinions of others, and attempting to bully them into silence by ganging-up with other members in concerted tactics of intimidation ("piling-on");

Making personal remarks about others that belittles them - including such things as accusing them of being "passive-aggressive", "acting like a four-year old", "after what you've said no lady will see you now", "you don't belong on Cerb", etc.

Rejecting someone's apology after they've made a mistake, because it is deemed to be somehow insincere

Council is not saying that you yourself have engaged in all these behaviours, but you have engaged in a number of them. These are examples of the specific types of hostile and unfriendly behaviour that cannot be allowed to continue, because it is driving good members of the board away and hurting everyone's business.

Please notice that we are not discouraging you or anyone from freely sharing their opinions on the board - but members must accept that not everyone will share their own opinions, and that other members and their opinions must be respected and treated with the same friendliness and toleration with which you expect yourself and your own opinions to be treated. There's plenty of room for constructive debate and discussion while keeping within these guidelines

The issue of these counterproductive patterns of behaviour by several members has recently reached a tipping point of vocal discontent among other members. This has prompted us to now understand that it would have been preferable for the board to have acted earlier. However, we cannot turn back the clock on this oversight. The best the board can do is take this action now, even though it would better have been dealt with at the time that your offences occurred. We apologize about the late timing of these sanctions.

(IF THE MEMBER WAS SUSPENDED AND NOT BANNED THIS WOULD FOLLOW)

We look forward to your return to the board after your suspension has been served. We believe you can continue to make valuable contributions to the Cerb community at that time, while also adhering to the requirements of the board as explained above.

(IF THE MEMBER WAS BANNED THIS WOULD FOLLOW)

We are sorry but at this time we must ask you not to return to cerb. Your membership here has been terminated and by vote from the council it has been decided that you are no longer welcome as a member in our community.