Posted by Jen Star on July 15, 2005, at 9:50:00
In reply to Administration - Education and Support, posted by Nickengland on July 15, 2005, at 8:55:26
hi Nick,
For myself, I don't feel that admin is primarily about support or education. For me, it's more a lesson in patience, the lack of patience, and how each affects me & others. It's a place to find people who know how to push the civility guidelines to the very brink, testing the boundaries.It's a great case study (if I'm able to think about it dispassionately) in human nature, prickly relationships, and power struggles. I think it's interesting to see how people interact, who supports whom, who irritates whom, and how the dynamics play out. Of course it seems less than fascinating when I am embroiled in one of the spats. But if I'm feeling "Outsider-ish" I think it's very interesting to see how it all plays out. There is a lot of drama here, a lot of action, a lot of sentiment running high.
It's a place to which people seem drawn irresistably -- we all seem to feel the urge to post, just as we feel the urge to look at a gory roadside accident (even if part of us knows it won't be good!)
But of course the board also contains the odd snippet of help & assistance for those who can't get a password, need to change names, have questions on where to find something, etc -- so there is that kind of "education" too.
I DO think that much of the conversations start here because it's the one and only place where people can elicit a response from Dr. Bob. Part of me believes (in a way) that when a person wants attention from an authority figure, they will get it any way they can -- and some of those ways here include rebukes, PBC's, and multiple requests for determination. It's a way to force a relationship, weak as it is, with someone who is otherwise completely unaccessible. It's a way to get attention and notoriety, a kind of status.And then other posters respond to those "attention seeking" requests and things spiral out of control.
What do YOU think?
JenStar
poster:Jen Star
thread:527956
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/admin/20050628/msgs/527979.html