3129 Ciao for now...

Don't rightly know where this is coming from, yes there has been some unpleasantness but still on the whole I rather thought things were getting better here, especially over the past week.

If you feel this is the best thing for you to do I can only wish you good luck. If you decide to return it will be great to have you around on the forum.

I agree with you Sano, the last couple of weeks has seen a marked improvement in the whole atmosphere on the forum, we seem to have lost a few members lately, it would be sad to see another go...:o

:) it seems i have missed the action.....yet again!
it must be in the cooking section,as i don't usually look in there.dam..

Wistful - I really hope this isn't your Swan song - we have hardly had time to get to know each other :)

Perhaps we can only hope that as things get better, as they certainly seem to have done over the last week or so, more members will indeed start to post again, once the forum again becomes the friendly place it used to be.

....maybe, if we were as bothered that 80% of the registered members are not actively engaged in the forum, rather than getting wound up over one isolated flounce, this forum [b]would[/b] be a different & better place?

I've not entered into the ego-fuelled pi**ing contests that have started to dominate the forum of late (I just ignore them & post my simple, boring comments) but this thread is another self-centered ramble that helps no-one apart from the participants.

Let's get on with it, eh? Basta!

If anyone is so fragile and therefore unable to handle the bumps of the real world, he/she is better off not to converse on any forum. The forum these individuals yearn for does not exist.

For what it's worth, I just joined this forum the last few weeks, and I've found a lot of helpful information - people seem friendly enough. Of course, I guess since I haven't actually been to Italy yet, I haven't been posting a lot of opinions for people to not like. Maybe I'm just not reading the right parts.

[QUOTE=FrancisM]If anyone is so fragile and therefore unable to handle the bumps of the real world, he/she is better off not to converse on any forum. The forum these individuals yearn for does not exist.[/QUOTE]
Absolutely right FrancisM. One of the "alienated" deliberately chose to enter the chatoom in the manner of a Christian entering the lions' cage. Or that is my opinion if this post gets through uncensored.
Seems to me (from observation) that "general" offence was not given, and if a couple of individuals continue fighting the best thing for the rest of us is to simply ignore their partisan parries and continue chatting in the background.

Relaxed,
Your name should be practised by all on this forum.

There is a problem with all communication by email, and that is that inflection can not be expressed or picked up and no amount of smilies can compensate.

As this is the case, it is probably best for posts to be fairly basic and avoid sarcasm, which after all is the lowest form of wit.

It should be possible for all to use the forum to exchange experiences of Italy, in a friendly manner and without offending anyone. If that is too boring there are other places to indulge in written fisticuffs.

I think it is sad to lose any contributor so I hope Wishful Thinker will think again

[quote=Carol and Dave]There is a problem with all communication by email, and that is that inflection can not be expressed or picked up and no amount of smilies can compensate.

As this is the case, it is probably best for posts to be fairly basic and avoid sarcasm, which after all is the lowest form of wit.

It should be possible for all to use the forum to exchange experiences of Italy, in a friendly manner and without offending anyone. If that is too boring there are other places to indulge in written fisticuffs.

I think it is sad to lose any contributor so I hope Wishful Thinker will think again[/quote]

Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary says, among other things, "Sarcasm is another mode of humor that requires a master hand. - E.P.J. Corbett Therefore, sarcasm, in the hands of a master, is far from being the lowest form of wit; however, when used by the unskilled it may very well be.

Unfortunately, we all try our hands at it, one time or another, without being a master, hence, often, without intent of malice we tend to offend the sensitive.

Hi Francis M
My dictionary definition sets out my case rather well

"sarcasm

• noun the use of irony to mock or convey contempt.

— ORIGIN Greek sarkasmos, from sarkazein ‘tear flesh’, later ‘gnash the teeth, speak bitterly’." Oxford English Dictionary

I'm just not qualified to tell whether any sarcasm on the forum is being posted by a 'master' or not, which is why I suggested it best be avoided.
Carol

[QUOTE=Carol and Dave]There is a problem with all communication by email, and that is that inflection can not be expressed or picked up and no amount of smilies can compensate.

As this is the case, it is probably best for posts to be fairly basic and avoid sarcasm, which after all is the lowest form of wit.

It should be possible for all to use the forum to exchange experiences of Italy, in a friendly manner and without offending anyone. If that is too boring there are other places to indulge in written fisticuffs.

I think it is sad to lose any contributor so I hope Wishful Thinker will think again[/QUOTE]
C&D,
Re your second paragraph above, you haven't forgotten post no.7 on my thread 'nice to know' on the Introduce yourself section have you? Just a thought.

Play Nicely please.

[QUOTE=Rob]C&D,
Re your second paragraph above, you haven't forgotten post no.7 on my thread 'nice to know' on the Introduce yourself section have you? Just a thought.[/QUOTE]

Sorry Rob that you did not like me having an opinion. I still say your post number 1 on that thread was blatant advertising!

Further down the thread we find:

Originally Posted by Licciana
Quite irrelevant to the main point of the thread, but how on earth does one take a tractor to Italy, drive it there?

"Licciana, you gorgeous/handsome fool, you just sit in the one & only seat, hold the steering wheel, feet on the pedals & keep to the right!!......We're driving it out on a trailer dear......wait a minute Licciana, how would YOU get a tractor out to anywhere?"

I think it was you that wrote that Rob!

Dave (not Carol)

C'mon guys... listen to George!! He's in charge...

When did you say I could be in charge ??? :)
But, behaving towards one another in this way is the reason the forum degenerated in the first place, I was there, and contributed far more than I should have, now,

Please Play Nicely.

George,

You are quite right. I had been warned & I should not have bitten.

Dave

[QUOTE=Carol and Dave]George,

You are quite right. I had been warned & I should not have bitten.

Dave[/QUOTE]

:) Been there, done that:)

C&D,
Yes true enough, but i'm NOT the one coming over all sanctimonious, let he who is without sin etc, etc.

...and while we're at it, do you approve of the company banners that come up on some signatures when certain people post, or is that NOT blatant advertising?

Rob
Go and mow someones grass!

Kinders speel mooi, of iemand gaan 'n pak sla kry!

there are a few here who can translate if desired...

Quite correct.
(I simply read your post with a Geordie accent and it was crystal clear. I will have to try that trick again with an unfamiliar language - might work in Dutch don't you think!)

....can someone make them both sit on the [i]naughty step[/i], please?

We're getting nowhere!

I have removed one post here, please don't force me to close/delete this thread.

[quote=Carol and Dave]Hi Francis M
My dictionary definition sets out my case rather well

"sarcasm

• noun the use of irony to mock or convey contempt.

— ORIGIN Greek sarkasmos, from sarkazein ‘tear flesh’, later ‘gnash the teeth, speak bitterly’." Oxford English Dictionary

I'm just not qualified to tell whether any sarcasm on the forum is being posted by a 'master' or not, which is why I suggested it best be avoided.
Carol[/quote]

Hi Guys!
Perhaps the weakness or strength of the English language is the fact that a particular word may have several meanings, depending on context. And, it is this peculiar aspect of the language that makes for interesting exchanges of opinions.

So far I have read nothing, on this thread, that I would consider offensive, and therefore do not understand some of the cautions given. If we were to censure each other constantly, what boring discourse we would have, devoid of intellectual content. Let us not be so thin skinned constantly! My experience over the many years I lived has been, that often the most sensitive people have no problem dishing it out, but are very intolerant on the receiving end.

What's it all about??

OK - I thikn PAS's statement is clear enough. We might as well give this particular thread a well deserved rest ;)