If I have a bone to pick

[champagne1982]

I have a bone to pick... Yep! You heard me right. I've been gnawing at this gristly bit of contention ever since I noticed that the new poems thread was being moderated tighter than a snare drum skin and starved skinnier than hell as a moderators' sticky.

I have noticed a phenomena that should come as no surprise to you all. If a new poem has the good fortune to appeal to that day's reviewer or someone who moseys on through, it gets mentioned on the thread. By that virtue, it gleans votes and when it comes down to being a winner on this site, it's a fact that you don't qualify for any awards or contests if you don't get the pre-requisite votes.

So, another gnashing of my teeth may just get me to the marrow inside this bone...

I think the New Poems Review sticky makes an already uneven playing field even more tilted. You can argue that that's not so, but as my rebuttal I'll ask you all, do you read all of the new poems every day or do you read the reviews and click on the recommended links, especially if you're pressed for time? De-stick that sucker and lower the implied importance of the reviewers comments in that thread. There's enough activity on it that I promise it won't fall out of notice.

 

[Angeline]

I have a bone to pick... Yep! You heard me right. I've been gnawing at this gristly bit of contention ever since I noticed that the new poems thread was being moderated tighter than a snare drum skin and starved skinnier than hell as a moderators' sticky.

I have noticed a phenomena that should come as no surprise to you all. If a new poem has the good fortune to appeal to that day's reviewer or someone who moseys on through, it gets mentioned on the thread. By that virtue, it gleans votes and when it comes down to being a winner on this site, it's a fact that you don't qualify for any awards or contests if you don't get the pre-requisite votes.

So, another gnashing of my teeth may just get me to the marrow inside this bone...

I think the New Poems Review sticky makes an already uneven playing field even more tilted. You can argue that that's not so, but as my rebuttal I'll ask you all, do you read all of the new poems every day or do you read the reviews and click on the recommended links, especially if you're pressed for time? De-stick that sucker and lower the implied importance of the reviewers comments in that thread. There's enough activity on it that I promise it won't fall out of notice.

I hear what you're saying. This aspect of recommending poems has always bothered me bacause no matter how many times you say a recommendation is a personal preference, the very nature of the thread pulls people to the poems that are picked. This happens even though--at least since I've been around--we've said anyone can make recommendations in that thread, which argues against making it sticky.

I don't think anyone's recommendations are intrinsically better than mine--when I recommended poems, I just picked what I liked. I tried to emphasize that. Problem is, unless you do away with the thread entirely, I think folks will read recommended poems more. I honestly don't have time to read them all now though--not every day, especially when there are 20 or more. Your point is well taken, but the situation is rather a catch-22, to me.


A.

 

[Lauren Hynde]

Before the existence of the New Poems thread, in any of its versions, there were a number of formidable poems that went by completely unnoticed, mostly the ones by people who never post on this board. That is why the daily reviews started.

One thing that I have noticed since the moment Public Comments were introduced is that over 2 thirds of the votes my poems get in the first week were cast before the reviews were posted. Those making public comments, at least, do read the new poems list and vote. Those who do as you say and simply follow the links, wouldn't have read any of the new poems otherwise, or even worst: pressed for time, they would go to the new poems list and read only the poems of authors they know.

As to it being a sticky or not, I stuck it up there because there are two New Poems threads currently active. As soon as the old one disappears into page 2, I see no reason why it can't be unstuck.

 

[Guest]

The only way to solve that problem is to take away the "competetive" aspect of the points system.

No matter what the intent - it will always cause a feeling of need. It's human nature to want to shine in others' eyes.

I think it should be enough to receive the recommendations and not have to faff around with points. I suppose - in turn - it would mean the demise of the Winners.

Discuss?

 

[champagne1982]

<snip>As to it being a sticky or not, I stuck it up there because there are two New Poems threads currently active. As soon as the old one disappears into page 2, I see no reason why it can't be unstuck.

Pssst, can't you change the title of the thread?

 

[champagne1982]

The only way to solve that problem is to take away the "competetive" aspect of the points system.

No matter what the intent - it will always cause a feeling of need. It's human nature to want to shine in others' eyes.

I think it should be enough to receive the recommendations and not have to faff around with points. I suppose - in turn - it would mean the demise of the Winners.

Discuss?

I don't want to even suggest that anyone's opinion is more valuable than another's, but in all honesty, there are some poets out there whose opinions, to me, are more valued than most.

Regardless of that, the intent of the new poems thread was to make certain that at least one person read the poems out there, the review was always secondary, I thought. Perhaps we should stop dropping links, maybe? Get the readers out there to look through the damned list and find them on their own.

 

[Lauren Hynde]

The intent of the thread was for someone to read them AND come back here to tell us. I simply don't have time to read 30 poems per day, seven days per week. More importantly, I don't have the patience to go through 29 pieces of crap to find that one worthwhile poem, as was often the case in the past, and I trust some of the reviewers enough to save me from the pain and agony.

If we stop dropping links what happens is:

- Those who already read every poem and leave public comments and votes will continue to do so;
- Those who don't have time to read every poem will read only poems from authors they know and like.

So, the (un)balance shifts from favouring those mentioned by someone in the thread - i.e. the poems that someone whose opinion we value liked, regardless of the author - to favouring known authors and friendly votes.

Between the two, I'd rather stick with the first.

 

[Lauren Hynde]

Pssst, can't you change the title of the thread?

Between changing the title of a 5000 posts thread, making it unsearchable, and sticking a 10 posts thread for a few of days, I thought the choice was obvious...

 

[WickedEve]

I don't pay much attention to the new poems thread when it comes to choosing what to read. I read down through the list and vote and leave lots of PC. PC has been great for getting more readers out there on the new poems list.

I like that we have the thread, though. It's nice for those who want recommendations on what to read. And it's even nicer when the thread is at the top and easy to find and not filled with so much talk that you have to surf back 3 or 4 pages to find the review. We have plenty of threads for talking about poetry.

Actually, anyone can make a new poems thread and start suggesting poems and commenting. That's fine, but it will get confusing to have a dozen new poems threads. But we should still have one that's "lean" enough for some poets/readers to cruise through without tripping over talk, talk, talk.

So, for the time being, the new poems thread will stay at the top, and everyone is welcome to go in and recommend any and all poems.

 

[darkmaas]

Thrice blessed

This started out as such a nice thread, with a timely discussion of orthopaedics.

So let's talk New Poems.

It's impossible to read all the poems every day. It's also bad for one's health. The act of sifting means a value judgement of sorts. It seems self evident that some value judgements have more value than others. It isn't pretty but it's better than the alternatives.

The entire voting thingy doesn't work, so get over it and focus on the reviews and the public message things. That means giving up the "H"s and the competative aspect of the game. Until they sort out a voting system that has some statistical merit... God I sound like Senna.

I'm suspicious of the "E" ratings because they are only one rather faceless opinion. Give me a half dozen critical comments any day.

On the subject of the graffitti that piles up (particularly on the "new poems" and "passion" threads), I personally find them annoying to wade through. But as they say, "It's a free country" and one man's graffitti is another's attempt to communicate. Might I suggest rhyming couplets as a minimum for highjacking the passion thread?

Tata for now,

darkmaas

 

[WickedEve]

Re: Thrice blessed

This started out as such a nice thread, with a timely discussion of orthopaedics.

So let's talk New Poems.

It's impossible to read all the poems every day. It's also bad for one's health. The act of sifting means a value judgement of sorts. It seems self evident that some value judgements have more value than others. It isn't pretty but it's better than the alternatives.

The entire voting thingy doesn't work, so get over it and focus on the reviews and the public message things. That means giving up the "H"s and the competative aspect of the game. Until they sort out a voting system that has some statistical merit... God I sound like Senna.

I'm suspicious of the "E" ratings because they are only one rather faceless opinion. Give me a half dozen critical comments any day.

On the subject of the graffitti that piles up (particularly on the "new poems" and "passion" threads), I personally find them annoying to wade through. But as they say, "It's a free country" and one man's graffitti is another's attempt to communicate. Might I suggest rhyming couplets as a minimum for highjacking the passion thread?

Tata for now,

darkmaas

The E is slapped on some good poems, but not on some even better ones. The one I got today is appreciated but a bit embarrassing. That's an older poem that's interesting, but nothing more than that. I simply wanted to submit some older poems so they'd have a safe home--a lost a lot of data recently when my computer was wiped out.

The passion thread is being "cleaned." about 6 pages of chat are now moved, but that's just a drop in the bucket. And I'm sure I'll get hell for going in and sweeping up. lol

 

[darkmaas]

And I'm sure I'll get hell for going in and sweeping up. lol

Bless you.

BTW. Nice hat!

 

[WickedEve]

Bless you.

BTW. Nice hat!

Oh, God, was that a southern blessing?

There's a bad hair day under the hat.

 

[Tathagata]

Oh, God, was that a southern blessing?

There's a bad hair day under the hat.

what's under the snazzy yellow t shirt??

 

[Tathagata]

"The E is slapped on some good poems, but not on some even better ones. The one I got today is appreciated but a bit embarrassing"

What was it you said to me yesterday??
Oh yeah
" You just want praise you know it's a good poem shut up and take"
Or.......something like that
the "shut up and take it" part might have been wishful thinking on my part...
.


oh........is it ok to chat here??
if not I'll delete this

 

[WickedEve]

what's under the snazzy yellow t shirt??

nothing, well, something, but nothing on the something.

 

[WickedEve]

What was it you said to me yesterday??
Oh yeah
" You just want praise you know it's a good poem shut up and take"
Or.......something like that
the "shut up and take it" part might have been wishful thinking on my part...
.


oh........is it ok to chat here??
if not I'll delete this

chat?
I don't know. lol
I think if we keep the clutter down on the new poems and suddenly thread, then we're okay.

"Shut up and take it," is a lovely phrase to hear in the middle of sweaty night.


boner in, boner out,
Eve

(I mention bones to keep in the spirit of this thread.)