I have decided to quit the board as the tone and content have deteriorated to more full of attitude than affinity for other Buellers. I realize fully that as the board participation grows, it will encompass a wider variety of personalities, but suggest that if there is no generally accepted standard for what is appropriate on the board, its decline is inevitable.

I believe most of the problems stem from participation by individuals that are under the influence of what I've come to know as the "Halloween Syndrome." In this affliction, persons that would normally interact with a sense of respect and consideration become confrontational, belligerent and destructive believing they will not be held responsible for their actions as no one knows who they are.

As before, I believe the BWB board's critical value to the Buell community is in both the camaraderie it fosters and the information it relays. When individuals use BWB as a platform to flame, insult and confront those that are there to make constructive additions, it destroys the value and interest of the board for me.

At the risk of being overly simplistic, the entire problem could be almost entirely resolved by taking two steps. The first would be to publish a list of "Acceptable Use Standards" and ask participants to follow it. The second would be to permit posting only by registered users that can be responded to by verified email addresses.

I am reluctant to return to the site until some sense of community and respect is restored there.

In my opinion, after several years of participating, the board is at its best when it encourages participation from all Buellers. The Buell owner demographics seem to favor males heading toward gray/balding/expanding waistline type. Although I feel very comfortable in that crowd, as they are me, I would very much like to see the Buell experience expand to include more participation from a wider base of enthusiasts. The BWB can be instrumental in this if it can be guided toward a more "all comers welcome" tone. My personal barometer for this goal has been to note the number of female contributors.

I have always believed that since my computer sits in a family home, the web pages I access on it are in a sense "guests" in my home. I believe BWB has been remarkable amongst the motorcycle related sites I have visited in providing critical resources without bringing along with it the "men's magazine" behaviors favored by a minority of motorcyclists. Your efforts, particularly in the use of the profanity blocking, have been a primary force in this very unique characteristic of the BWB.

Although my advocacy for a "family and workplace friendly" BWB has given some people cause to see me as a prude, I feel the label is not entirely
accurate. I spent too many years in the bar business to be shocked or offended by anyone's off-color behaviors, and in many cases I am as entertained by the outrageousness as much as anyone else. I have always believed that the best of the postings on the board have offered insights, opinions and information mixed liberally with a sense of humor and with the intention of offering no real offense to any reader.

I feel that BWB has always been able and willing to absorb and encourage a much wider variety of opinions than other Buell specific discussion boards. This is a huge point in BWB's favor and again speaks to your benign guidance and moderation. Although there has been an occasional straying into long debates on non-Buell topics (gun control comes to mind), it speaks for the resiliency of the BWB that after all the opinions were laid out, everyone agrees to be friends and goes back to discussing more Buellish topics.

I have seen a substantial shift in the editorial position of other Buell specific discussion boards, as they seem to have sold out objectivity in exchange for an "insider" track to BMC. They have embarked on what appears to be actively discouraging any posts critical of Buell up to and including deletion of contributions that Buell might find embarrassing. To a lesser degree, there has also been an incremental increase in the "love it or leave it" attitude on on the popular Buell discussion boards.

For varying reasons some Buell owners feel threatened by anyone finding fault with their Buell or the corporation behind it. Although this is not new phenomenon, I have perceived less willingness on the part of more moderate BWBers to suggest that all opinions and experiences are welcome at BWB. I believe this is one component of the change in "tone" at BWB.

My biggest concern, however, is the increase in rude, insulting and confrontational posts and the uploading of "adults only" photographs. Although there is plenty of gray area here, those that were most objectionable had absolutely nothing to do with anything Buell and were posted in a gratuitous and irresponsible manner.

Several of the long term BWBers attempted to remind the board that you had previously outlined that non-Buell related and pornographic photos were not appropriate and that they made viewing of the site a significant risk for those accessing from work or in a location where children might see the screen. It was also mentioned that you had previously posted a request for only "Buell related, no visible, below the waist pubic hair or mucous membrane" photos. Although the photos were not appropriate and were detrimental to the BWB, the persons responsible may not have been aware of the previous incidents and may have felt there was nothing wrong with their actions.

In my opinion, there were far too many contributors that fell into the "no censorship, 1st Amendment right to freedom of expression, if you don't like it scroll down or go away" type of response. In the absence of any authoritive - corrective input (but I really am glad that you enjoyed a great riding vacation summer), the board took a noticeable turn toward the sleazy and self-involved tastes of a very vocal few. I think virtually all badwebr's would more appreciate the board as a gathering point and clearing house for Buell/Bueller related interests and jovial cameraderie.

My suggestion is that you take steps to encourage responsible contributions to the site and discourage objectionable, abusive, hostile, insulting or destructive behavior by its participants. In my opinion, making each contributor personally responsible for their posts is critical to this effort. I also believe that providing a clearly written and enforceable set of standards for postings will keep our written contributions to bwb on track, entertaining, and productive.

I think the first task will be to remind anyone accessing the board that although access is open, posting to the board is a privilege and subject to
revocation under conditions determined by the board moderator. There seem to be more than just a few people, mostly new to bwb, that feel they are entitled to post whatever they want without regard to what anyone else says and without taking any personal responsibility for what they submit. I am sure some of this comes from a lack of perspective on where the BWB originated and how much some of us came to rely upon it for Buell related contact. I am also convinced that those that never went through the Buell "Dark Ages" have no idea why I am so concerned about where the board is headed.

As I mentioned previously, I have concerns as to whether any anonymous or untraceable IDs serve the general interests of the BWB community as much as they encourage destructive behavior. Although I have no real information to support my contention, I have to think there is a way to have all postings linked to a real world name and email address without eliminating the rare occasion where a responsible participant needs to protect his identity ("Anon R" for instance).

I am sure that any "Acceptable Standards" or change in the open posting/anonymous posting provision on BWB will meet with plenty of loud protest from the "no censorship" group intent upon protecting their delusional belief that it is their inalienable "right to post" as they so choose on BWB. There may also be accusations of making BWB exclusionary or elitist. These individuals will need to be reminded that if BWB is to be accessible to all Buell enthusiasts, it needs to accommodate a wide set of sensibilities.

Any change in this direction will also require more monitoring and participation from BWB moderators. It may be necessary to solicit the voluntary services of some person or persons willing to become the dreaded "web police." The whole subject of enforcement is a cyber minefield, but without providing some sort of repercussions for irresponsibility, no effort will have any long lasting results.

Although I have no compelling desire to hold myself up as the poster child for a more middle of the road BWB, I will be happy to assist in whatever way I can. I say this knowing that my opinions on the subject may have put me in a small minority. There is an excellent case for letting me and my opinions head off toward finding a site more suitable for our delicate
sensibilities.

Sorry for the length of the message. Although I have never been accused of being sparing with my verbiage, the BWB and its place in the Buell community is a subject on which I have very strong feelings and more than just a little to rant about.