I'm really quite slack-jawed at the moment. 

I started this thread: 

http://cakecentral.com/t/753735/why-so-many-moved-and-private-holding-area-threads

some 20 hours ago.  I don't start a thread unless I think an issue is important.

It would appear that strong opinions which question current authority are no longer welcome for discussion.

I've been an active part of this community for nearly 8 years.  I've really enjoyed all of the information, education, and sharing that occurred previously.  I've made CC a part of my daily routine, but no more.

To those of you who say, "Good-bye and good riddance."--rejoice.

To the rest, I wish you all the best.

Happy Decorating!

Love ya'

Rae

AWhat?!

AHonestly, I don't blame you. The staff's reaction to constructive criticism leaves a lot to be desired.

bye, Rae, happy & blessed baking

maybe just take a break for a while

but whatever is best for you of course

miss yah already

best of the best to you!

♥

You will be missed, Rae. Good luck.

Why leave?  You've done nothing wrong.  If you continue to stick around you'll be able to further your opinions/voice and OWN it!

I also noticed the very day when "new" moderators arrived.  It's not pleasant reading threats to close a thread, treating members like children who are about to get their hand slapped -- a little too involved, throwing their weight around, IMO.
 

Rae,

I hope you re-consider. You have given so much advice, myself included. But, at the same time I can see where you are coming from. :( Thank you for all the advice and time you have given to CC. You will be missed.

XO,

Flor

Fully understand why you feel you must go, but know that you will be missed.  Know also that your going will make CC a much poorer site. 

Oh, Please don't leave. I was off for a few years because I couldn't stand all the pettiness. I see most of the "oldies" are gone. You are one of the reasons I decided to stay on. Right now my attitude is to sift the wheat from the chaff. 

I, too, hate to see you go, but it's your decision.  I've loved reading your posts since I joined and appreciate the information you  shared with all of us.  Here's hoping you'll just take a much needed break and be back soon to again share your knowledge and talent with us.  Be happy, productive, successful and blessed!

I'm really upset reading all the hate threads started directed towards us "new" mods.  I wish - I mean I really wish - I could post the threads that are in the Mod forums and the PMs that have been going behind the scenes about all this stuff.

There are no written rules anywhere for us to follow about what is and is not allowed.  What recently changed?  An old mod popped back on after being gone for a very long time.  She moved all the threads in the Events forum going back 2 years, overruled calls we newbies made, told us a bunch of "rules" we were supposed to be following, then told us we were wrong when we followed them.  Posts I made were edited, posts Eva made were edited,  infractions and warnings were sent to people that didn't deserve them, mod calls both Eva and I made were altered to be more severe...  The list goes on and on.

We are working on it.  

I have been PMing Jackie and Heath trying to get the Events situation changed since this is a policy that hasn't been enforced since at least 2009 and I didn't even know about it in the first place - why on earth that forum was chosen to be scrubbed by the old mod is completely beyond me except to make us new mods look like jerks since we are the faces of "The Mods".  The stuff was incorrectly moved into "private holding" - an area we newbies didn't even know about until that mod decided to move them - then we got scolded by that person for not doing our jobs.  For the record, I immediately PMed everyone in the higher ups asking for an explanation, complaining about the policy and saying it's antiquated, needs to be changed ASAP and asking for those events to be re-instated, especially since this is a rule that apparently hasn't been enforced very well since 2009 (maybe even more 0 that's as far back as I went) - which is way before my time.  As Jackie said, the policy is being worked on.  

I'm not one to point fingers but the fact that I use my real name, I run a real business and everyone knows who I am is forcing me to attempt to save some face here because others don't use their real names so they are not effected by the mod decisions they make - and for all intents and purposes, are ghosts.

Now, I may suck at this or people may not like this or that, but I'll take my lumps on stuff I did while winging it - not on the stuff done by others with malicious intent against us newbies simply for being chosen as replacements.  

I ask that all of you understand there is a learning curve and mass confusion that we are really, really trying to figure out.  I have already chucked the "rules" sent to me by the old mod and am doing stuff the way I was before in hopes that I'm being as fair as possible while still watching out for the interests of CC.  It's the best I can do.

You will be sadly missed.    I know it's a little late and I wish I had posted this to you a long time ago, I for one appreciate your willingness to help others and have learned a lot from your post.   A heartfelt thank you for your contributions to this site and hoping you will change your mind.

AI don't think anyone is directing hate at the new mods, it's more frustration about the moderation system in general. Why all this stuff is happening behind closed doors without a written set of rules is beyond me, you would think that the staff would want to engage the community in the rules-making process and have those rules posted publicly.

Kudos to you, Jen, for being open about what's going on.

I deleted my post - I should not have aired that.  Please pretend I didn't and lets get back on to bashing us.  Get it all out.  :D

PS - I don't know how my "Hall Monitor" title got changed to MODERATOR.  I changed it back.  Too right, that was loud.

AYeah, I had a feeling that post wouldn't stay up for long. :lol:

Blakescakes,  I do hope you reconsider.  There are many of us on this site that may not say much (lack of confidence for me) but read and soak up every bit of knowledge that old timers, regulars, some newbies, and moderators share.  We value experience and even depend on tough words to push us another step forward.  Whether you intended to become an instructor of sorts or not, the fact is you are and you have many students who will miss your lessons.

Blue Hue said it best " dont walk away... it will leave a gap..."

Jeanne

Well, my attempt at humor went over like a fart in a car, so I'll be serious.

I am trying to diplomatically give an explanation - and there are many - as to why things have very recently become they way they did.  In a frustrated rant I aired some laundry to attempt to shed some light on stuff, however after I posted it I realized I was basically bus chucking and that is uncool.  But I do feel that an explanation should be made so I will attempt to post some facts and hope I will not get into trouble.

The site has had no moderation for over a year, perhaps longer.  There were people with the Mod title, but for whatever reason they were not moderating the site.  Not forums, not photos, not comments.  In fact, as long as I've been an active member I can't hardly remember being moderated at all.

When the new site switched over, Eva and I were tapped to be Mods.  We were given no written guidelines on what is and is not allowed so her and I discussed, came up with a plan, and for months her and I had been using our best judgement here based on what we though the forums needed and didn't need.  We had no idea that there are actual things that were not supposed to be allowed.

We have been moderating like that for months and for the most part, you all liked us just fine.

You have all very recently noticed a change.  That is because an old Mod re-took her moderator duties.  She had a way of doing things and a personal list of do's and don'ts.  This list was completely new to Eva and I.  She had never trained on the new site - we had never trained on the old site.  She started moderating like she was in the old system (i.e. private holding), we were trying to figure out what she was doing (i.e., never having seen private holding).  She flagged posts, we followed the action she flagged the post with an infraction that she said it was.  Many things I did because I was told this or that was a no-no.  Long story short, there was massive mis-communication among us.

We attempted to follow this list and the old way of moderating despite not understanding or agreeing with certain things.  This lasted a whole week, maybe 10 days.  Unfortunately, that week-to-10-days has left an extremely bad taste in everyone's mouths about us and now we look like jerks.  I felt jerk-y moderating that way but I was told that was what I was supposed to do.

After several talks with Jackie we have chucked that list and have gone back to moderating as we were before, only with a little more clarification on what they, the owners of the site, actually want.

Haven't you noticed things have gone back to normal over the past few days?  We are working on getting a formal list, coordinating better, being a united front, and not being Fascists. I don't have the time or inclination to read each and every post and correct spelling or to make sure you post sound like it came from Disneyland.   Many of you know, the LAST person that should be spell checking ANYTHING is me.  Many of you have personalities I have come to love and respect, even if it's snarky, snotty, kooky or whatever.  As long as you keep it civil, don't be too mean, don't gang up on new members, don't gang up on a clearly disabled person, don't try and circumvent CC's banned website filter, and don't post your personal email address (which is to protect you from spam), I'm cool.  Maybe there are a few other things but for the most part, I want things to get back to normal too.  

Obviously some of you that were pals now think I'm a douche.  All I can say is mea culpa, mea culpa, mea cupla - I hope you can forgive the calamity and just give it a little more time for us to work out these final kinks.  We really don't suck.

I think that I qualify as snarky, snotty and kooky, so I have a comment! 

Based on a comparison between Cake Central and the other forums I participate in that have nothing to do with cake, the new moderators here have been doing a good job. It isn't unusual to have a mod tell someone in a public thread that they're out of line or off-topic, to post a list of posting guidelines, and to lock the thread when they start to get pointless. FromScratch has also communicated with me when I had an issue with the confusion that happened when the situation that she wrote about was happening, so it isn't like they're trying to be totally secretive. If you have a question ask or send them a message. 

Nobody has to post anywhere on any forum, and the are plenty that I don't bother posting on. If you don't like it there's no law that says you have to read or post anything. Or start your own, that's always an option.

A

That was really uncalled for, unnecessary, & downright mean. It was also ...harsh, hostile, & downright unpleasant.

A

/agree