Iravati, I am an occasional lurker, so don't visit any forum regularly including this one. No, I don't have any chatty thread here or anywhere. I have just 20 posts here shows I am not chatty. I like to raise questions when I see the need. A forum like this where majority come to vent their problem or to get a workable solution for a problem they could not find solution themselves, a sympathetic reply would be the finest post. Or the posts suggesting multiple solutions to their problem(s). Many posters who take a slice of their valuable time to help a fellow member on a regular/every day basis are all winners in my view. So this Junior, Senior, Silver, Gold, Platinum, IL hall of fame, FP winner, type ribbons and designations might be needed for KG/Pre School audience but not in a mature forum like this where most posters are college educated and beyond. Such unnecessary hierarchy might end up cheapening genuine helper's value. I might have upset the authorities for speaking my mind, so if this post disappears, I understand why. I have read few of Satchidananda's posts in snippet section. A gifted writer like her is burdened with reading every month several nominations just to pick two winners. Her own contribution suffers while doing this assessment which is mostly unneeded and her posts cannot be FP winners, I find such exercise an unneeded red tape which could be avoided in online fora!
That's reasonable. True. Every sympathetic reply that mitigates or cheers a reader's anxiety deserves to be acclaimed as a winning contribution. The FP tag only embroiders the process that such writing or advice exists in the forum, say a waymark to guide the newbies, though I am part sceptical if the waymark should be more to "assimilate" the new comers than to "guide" the new comers. Why assimilate? Below. I don't know how the arbitration of slant posts is done in IL. I am not a staff member nor have I ever reported any post. However, I see no reason why your frank opinion should warrant such cull. Nevertheless this is what I feel. I am chatty, profusely chatty, even in my close-knit real life. I chew away ears till they bleed. I am also cliquish which means I blend with people and conversations that I can relate to. I tend to cling to stuff that matters in my life. Other goings-on are too remote or I am unfamiliar with that cultural setup hence I don't poke my head broadly. Imagine a forum with all Iravatis. This is where events like FP play a role in uniting the community. It's like that festal celebration where people indulge in games like Tambola to foster solidarity. This is vital to assimilate new comers and make them feel a part of the community. Bringing their posts to a wider audience by nominating or rejoicing their contribution through a win is the only time when hermetic creatures like me ever venture out of their arcane shells. Hence, I emphasise on picking new talent on these FP hotseats to assimilate them into the forum. Members get to know the sprouting winners and winners get to socialise with the entrenched members. I reckon events like FP from community point of view rather than insular affirmations. Imagine again a forum with all Iravatis, they would ruthlessly carve a focused archipelago out of a cooperative continent. I see the need for FP sentiment to knit community spirit even if it appears to breed individual talent. Thereby, it is the event that matters and not the tenor aftermath. More so, my relentless effort to shed the ribbon as the purpose is served. I had hobnobbed with members in my FP "crowning" ceremony whom I would not have come across in my routine and "cliquish" banter. Remember those games and sports in friendly tenements from the yore. Don't remind me. I hated caroms and cross words. We always lost. I have seen only two members with that "fora". What does it say? Dude, you must write more, you have a senseful voice.
It should be on for 6 months. Let me check if anything has been missed. Thank you for letting me know. We will also consider the option of reducing the time interval to less than 6 months. Will revert with an update.
