The status of Seil Chat and Seil Island Online

[NickB]

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I have received some correspondence from a concerned citizen who does not like the fact that Seil Chat - like most internet forums - allows people to post without revealing their true identity. In that correspondence they have indicated that they believe the Community Council should do something about it.

It is my belief that allowing people to post anonymously permits the voicing of opinions that - for one reason or another - they would otherwise be unwilling to voice. There have been suggestions that people should only be allowed to post under their 'real' names, and that I should vet all members to check that they are who they say they are. Needless to say this is never going to happen, for a whole raft of reasons.

Seil Chat has no connection with the Community Council other than the link from here to the Community Council page. It is not on the same server or domain as Seil Island Online. Seil Island Online itself has little connection with the Community Council either, particularly in recent months. Since the last change of secretary I no longer receive the minutes, and I have not received any updates to the actual information on the page for many months.

The original site, Seil Island Online, was set up by me as an information site before we even moved here in 2003. When the Community Council let it be known in 2004 that they were looking for a web presence I suggested that they make use of the existing directory and information site, which was already getting known. Originally an editing system was put in place that would allow the Community Council to edit their own page, and that would also allow other groups - such as the hall - to edit their own sections of the site. In fact no-one ever used the editing system, they just sent me updates, which I then formatted and uploaded for them. Since the last change of secretary I have not heard from the Community Council, which is why there are no up to date minutes posted on the Community Council page.

For the record, no money has ever changed hands. The Seil Island Online website does not even carry advertising - other than a few Amazon links - and has been run for the last nine years entirely at my own expense.

I know that there are those on the Community Council who do not like any Council business or information being hosted on Seil island Online, because they feel that it in some way associates the Community Council with Seil Chat. Firstly, let me repeat for anyone still in doubt that there is no connection between Seil Chat and the Community Council or any other body. Secondly, I made an offer some time ago to create a separate website in Wordpress for the Community Concil that would have a completely separate identity and be entirely under their control. I have since done this for the Hall, who are making good use of their new website, but the Community Council have chosen not to take me up on the offer.

The hall website was built and is hosted for as long as the Hall Committee want it free of charge and free of influence other than technical support, unfettered by any association with Seil Island Online or Seil Chat other than a link to it. The new Community Council website, should they ever choose to take me up on the offer, would be created on the same basis. I made this clear to the Community Council a year ago. Should the Community Council wish their archived material to be removed from the Seil Island Online server in the interim then I am happy to do so - but at the moment I am regularly asked where the minutes are, and why the details of the next meeting do not always appear on time.

I realise that Seil Chat sometimes makes people feel uncomfortable. It has certainly made me feel uncomfortable on occasion. There have been mistakes made on my part in the administration of this forum in the past, one of which I particularly regret as it resulted in the withdrawal of a member of the local community whose involvement could have been invaluable. We live and learn. Herby and I try to make sure that the rules, such as they are, are followed, and will continue to do so.

I do not however intend to change the way this site is run because of intimidation from people who don't like the expression of views they disagree with. All are welcome to express their views here provided they keep the debate polite, avoid personal attacks that fall outwith the cut and thrust of civilised debate and do not stray outside the rules clearly laid down here.

[Foxglove]

Hear hear!!!

[MonaLott]

Well said, Nick.

[longshanks]

I largely agree with what you say NickB.
It is clear that many people do think that there is a close connection between the Community Council and this website. From what you have said it is now clear that there is no such thing and whatever informal relationship there may have been has broken down.
The obvious way forward is for you to remove anything to do with the Community Council from the website, make it obvious that there is no connection, and, probably, make it clear that this is a private website run in their spare time and paid for by a person who lives on Seil.
I certainly agree about anonymity and the reasons why it makes the forum run better, and although others may object to you having multiple anonymous personalities on here I do actually understand why you would wish to.

Who complained? If they're so worried about anonymity then name them.

ps I am no fan of The Community Council because the majority of its members were never elected to it and I fail to see what they have achieved since formation.

A.A. Shanks (incognito by choice)

[NickB]

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If the Community Council want their existing information removed from Seil Island Online then they only have to ask. I can't unilaterally delete peoples' information.

Personally I think it would be a shame if the Community Council had no online presence, and as I said above they are welcome to a free, no strings attached website with its own clear identity. I can register (eg) seillcc.org.uk to them and would be more than happy to spend a couple of days of my time putting the new site together and advising on keeping it up to date (a piece of cake with Wordpress). There would be no charge and no obligation of any kind.

If the Community Council want to keep the existing arrangement then I am equally happy to put a prominent disclaimer on the front page of Seil Online - they only have to ask.

[spiderman]

Wouldn't it have been nice if the Community Council, instead of complaining about this site, had actually embraced it, used it to disseminate info and to seek and express opinion, and hence improved it? Using the modern available IT pathways is surely what an open forward-looking council would do and you have provided all the IT facilities expertly and free of charge. Wake up, CC, smell the roses and get interactive and modern.

[solesurvivor]

the community council are a joke they just like to get together for tea and cakes
moan about the things they cant do
and body swerve the things they can do
ps how can i join my type of night lol

[jimcee]

Having read this thread since it's inception, it would appear that it is making a mountain out of a molehill.
In the very first (lengthy) instalment, ONE single objector complains that everyone should post under their own name, and suggests that the Community Council should do something to stop people hiding under the cloak of anonymity.
Firstly, The CC has no jurisdiction over the site to say what it can and can't do, so the ONE SINGLE OBJECTOR is misguided.
Secondly, in a community of 500+, there are bound to be a few people who have a desire to nit-pick to relieve their frustrations, and provided they are in a minority of ONE, their pronouncements can be treated as aberrations to the norm, and largely ignored.
Thirdly, if people wish to post under the cloak of anonymity to express views which might not be popular with their neighbours, and result in ostracism, then it does allow for the expression of free speech, which is a tenet worth maintaining.
The few of us who post under a recognisable avatar? do run the risk of upsetting people completely unknown to us, but so far, there has been no brick through the window, or car tyres slashed, so it does suggest a tolerance which is not universal in these British Isles.
Message to the moderator - do not get your knickers in a twist over one adverse comment and keep your hand steady on the helm (that's a bit of nautical advice).