Threatening email from Admins

[fgoodwin]

Over the last few weeks, I've gotten two different messages threatening me with termination if I don't update my profile to include my Council name.

My profile has included my council name for sometime, so I finally decided this was a mass-email that didn't apply directly to me.

It would be nice ("A Scout is courteous") if the next time the Admins send such a mass-email, including to those whom it does not apply, if the message would include a qualifier that it is going to all members, even those to whom it may not apply.

Thanx

[wagionvigil]

It is next to impossible to exclude the good scouters I must apologize if it offended you but it is the only way to contact so many. Either Individual or all and with the number we have on here I opted for the Everyone. FYI we will be making changes here shortly for the better so it might be an option then.

[joat]

Why is it important that the council name be displayed such that without it a member would be terminated?

[Quailman]

I think it's a way to control spambots, which register to bulletin boards where they do not belong, but that's not why I am posting here. Mostly you need to do it because the admins said so.

I can sympathize with fgoodwin. The e-mails did sound a tad harsh, especially since I had put my own council name in when I registered.

[scouter01]

I dont check the email I made the account with, so make sure you post everything important here.

[FrankJ]

Thanks moderators & Optimist for making this forum available. Like most of scouting it is run by volunteers who use their own money.

I was a little confused by the email at first, but then realized it was addressed to the whole list. As for as the tonality, if you are not blunt sometimes, the ones taken off the the list will wonder why you did not warn them first.

[PaulSWolf]

One suggestion I'd make is, on any future messages, add this to make it clearer:

This is being sent to every account on the Meritbadge.net discussion board mailing list.
If you've already added the Council Name to your profile, you may disregard this message.

[wagionvigil]

I will consider that Paul. AS some know I was a High School Band Director for 35 years and have a tendancy to be very Blunt

[joat]

Spambots are not folks that have been posting for years. The registration process for new members includes a “fuzzy image” confirmation code that the new member must re-type. That control should eliminate spambots from registering. The “location” field is not a required field to open an account, and there is no mention on the registration page that the council name must be entered. So there must be some other reason for requiring the council name.

[wagionvigil]

It is in the FAQ, and when we update the Board to the New Version there will be many required slots Council included.
There are several reasons for the requirement.
1. We get about 50-100 request for membership every day and I delete probably 99% of those as they are not real and are usually porn or selling something.
2. If you cannot put your council. what are you trying to hide?
3. If you operate a Scout Program according to BSA Policy and the G2SS you have nothing to fear.
4. FYI There is a Lawsuit ongoing I read about that would make Names Like wagionvigil illegal. That you would have to use your real name in any type of forum.
5. If you have not noticed on www.scouting.org there is a survey. They BSA is asking how they compare in quality of information to other sites and this is one they are asking about. SO we need to hold ourselves to a higher level of quality. So I guess this forum is looked at by the poswers that be at Irving.

[Anon E Mouse]

Test post.

[jr56]

Thanks for the explanation wagion. I have wondered about the e-mails myself in the past. I have double checked my profile to make sure it has my council name in it. I also finally concluded that it was a generic e-mail.

[wagionvigil]

Also for everyones information this new system stops bots from registering. There are several reasons to require your council. To make sure you are who you say, To stop you from doing anything unscoutlike! So scouters from each council may find someone from their council or a neighboring council. Etc ETc.

[joat]

Since "location" is not a required field on the registration page, it doesn't prevent anyone bot or otherwise from opening an account. With the new software update, location is no longer a search term and there is no way practical way to find fellow council members. The fact that we're all posting kinda sorta proves we're not bots does it not? If I had a mind to do something un-Scoutlike, whatever I put in the "location" field is hardly a deterent. Nor does it prove I am really "joat". The only way anyone else could masquerade as me would be to guess my forum password.
joat
Jack-of-all-Trades "I am not a bot"