[Reality]

Originally Posted by DallasCowpoke

Wow, talk about opening a door, then slamming it shut because you don't like the pimples being pointed out!

This thread still remains open and you are here posting your views on things so I would say the door is a long way from being slammed as you put it. WoodysGirl simply pointed out that this is a feedback thread where we will listen and consider the comments of users on a variety of areas as long as they are constructive and well thought out, but we make no promises as to any specific changes.

superpunk makes some valid points. Echoes ones I've bumped heads on with a lot of you repeatedly. And to say banning members is a "joint decision" is purely, a bold-face lie. I've been banned more than once, within a 5 min window of posting something that was "interpreted" as offensive. Sorry, but stating it's a decision that's put to some kind of "vote", is laughable.

Any moderator can ban a user just like any person can walk up to someone on the street and hit them. We never claimed that a user cannot be temporarily suspended or banned without a staff vote because that is simply impossible as the entire staff is never on the site at the same time. What we said, and what is absolutely true, is that all actions of moderators including bans are viewable and reviewable by the entire staff. If the staff disagrees with the action of a moderator, it will be reversed.

There have been several cases where an action taken by a moderator was overruled by the staff. That has even happened to me with actions I have taken against users. I understand most sites do not operate this way so it is a foreign concept to most people, but this is how we have done things here for years.

The "forum policies" y'all reference as "gospel", are so open-ended, and subject to such vague, self-serving interpretation, it's hard to believe y'all use them as arguments when trying to justify your actions, with a straight face.

We try our best to be fair and we have enough diversity on our staff that we usually do a good job of being fair. Of course the users who receive infractions or account suspensions are going to consider them unfair, but that is human nature. If I was on the receiving end, I would likely think the same thing.

The rules state, no religious/political posts or references of any kind, PERIOD. Yet you allow members to use links in their sigs that OPENLY promote these. Acting like y'all DON'T show favoritism is insulting.

We are in the process of resolving issues like this, I assure you. The updated Forum Rules have been simplified to make this process more straight-forward with the staff and our members. We are discussing the things as a staff though and it will take a little time, but we are working on it.

This policy right here .. is probably the most telling of how this site sees itself. Good GAWD, do y'all REALLY hold yourselves in such self-aggrandizing regard!?

If believing in what we do and how we run CowboysZone means we hold ourselves in such self-aggrandizing regard, then I guess we are guilty. I am very proud of the site, the staff and our members.

I honestly do enjoy reading/posting on this site, but for gosh sakes, STOP TAKING YOURSELVES SO SERIOUSLY! It's a forum board after all. I'm more than mildly confident, if it went away tonight @ 11:59, it would be nothing more than an occasional mention in the multitude of others that exist within a shockingly short period or time.

As a staff, we rarely take things seriously. We have been a family-friendly site since the beginning and it has served us well. There are plenty of other forum sites that provide moderator-free or low-moderation environments out there, but few that offer a family-friendly environment like CowboysZone does.

All I can say is that I am proud of what we have here and I understand and respect that not everyone will feel that way. I never put CowboysZone online to be popular. I put it online because I wanted Cowboys fans to have a place where they could get together and talk about our favorite team in a family-friendly environment.

#reality