Steve SweeneyAll: This is quickly becoming on off-topic topic. For the good of the order, I will re-title the original post. I will also lock this down on Friday about noon Central time. I will also start a new rail topic in General. Please watch for it. ~SS
And the "Wettest Blanket Award" goes to............
And there you go - taking the FUN out of the forum.
What is it you dislike about posters having FUN within a topic.
Forums are for the FUN of those that participate in them. NO FUN and they go elsewhere - is that your intent? Run people off the forum and then close it?
Never too old to have a happy childhood!
All: This is quickly becoming on off-topic topic. For the good of the order, I will re-title the original post. I will also lock this down now, sooner than expected. I will also start a new rail topic in General. Please watch for it. ~SS
Steve SweeneyDigital Editor, Hobby
Convicted OneIt also seemed like this place suffered major brain drain back when the moderation became a little heavy handed a few years back. There were a number of regular posters who managed to keep things interesting that are no longer here.
Some of whom, perhaps significantly, still regularly post to blog comments ... just not here.
I do think part of the problem is that some of the posters who helped foster a sense of community -- Jen and Ed being two -- have passed on, and others (wanswheel looming large) have been expediently banned for what I think are largely internal political reasons.
A large part is certainly the perceived acrimony, to which I have contributed probably more than my fair share. (And every time I try to cut back, I find there's more cutting back that needs to be done.) It is more than possible that some members who want this to be "their living room" get upset when Uncle Bob gets crotchety with Grandpa Charlie.
One other thing that I'll add. There are a couple posters here who, due to their non-conformist ideas, have become punching bags for the group I'll loosely identify as the "good ol' boy network".
If you think that type of "kangaroo court" behavior provides an inviting atmosphere to potential new members coming here for the first time and seeing that...then perhaps it's no coincidence that the "problem" here is so invisible to you
end of rant..
Flintlock76Have some former frequent posters died off? Maybe, but there's no way to know. Are some people too intimidated to jump in? I hope not. All newcomers whould be welcomed enthusiastically, and should understand "The only dumb question is the one you're afraid to ask!" I sincerely hope that newcomers aren't intimidated by the frequent posters who seem to dominate the discussions, myself included!* I do think a lot of frequent posters do so in a effort to keep things lively.
Just to share my thoughts, but perhaps there is a common root here?
I don't think that there is any doubt that the hobby is in decline, for a host of reasons. Could it be that even the long time members are finding difficulty maintaining focus on rail related matter, and therefore are drifting off into discussions about fighter aircraft, sailboats, wartime memories, and what not?
I think that at one time the "chatterbox" thread was first started to provide a venue for those who just had to bubble over into non-core subject matter, since then we've grown a humor thread, a sour grapes thread, a sour mash thread....
And I'm not faulting anyone for participating in those threads, I'm just pointing out that there might be some negative synergy going on that is less than obvious to those members who consider this place to be "their living room".
It also seemed like this place suffered major brain drain back when the moderation became a little heavy handed a few years back. There were a number of regular posters who managed to keep things interesting that are no longer here.
charlie hebdo The simple fact of the matter is that forum interest has waned, judging by the number of threads that quickly die and lack of participation. Why? There are fewer members than ever. Why? Lack of interesting subjects. Sure it's Kalmbach's free service, but the boredom level here does nothing to boost paid ciculation. Heavy-handed moderation may be •correct• but it loses sight of the bigger goal.
The simple fact of the matter is that forum interest has waned, judging by the number of threads that quickly die and lack of participation. Why? There are fewer members than ever. Why? Lack of interesting subjects. Sure it's Kalmbach's free service, but the boredom level here does nothing to boost paid ciculation. Heavy-handed moderation may be •correct• but it loses sight of the bigger goal.
.
Well then start some threads with some Railroad interest!
Things are rolling nicely over at Classic Trains despite a smaller cohort. We just had a hoot with Trains and Watermelons complete with many train songs with watermelons!
Take a look at 'once upon a time in Milwaukee' and give us your 2 cents on what those white things are.
Tons of history and loads of reading. Join in on the quiz, we need more participants.
I think it might help if they fixed, as promised, the Photo of the Day on Trains.
Just because you can, doesn't mean you should!
Steve Sweeney Folks: I'll be plain. We received a recent complaint about the Warbird thread. Because it's not a railroad topic, it's against the forum rules and I locked it. Four years is a good long time for an off-topic post to stick around and under the radar — pun intended. Kuddos to all of you who kept it clean and above board. And so you know, the editors are NOT out prowling to lock things down or get heavy handed, as one might suggest. No, the way I see it, we're doing the best we can and applying the rules as circumstances present themselves. I certainly hope you understand. All the best, Steve S.
Folks:
I'll be plain. We received a recent complaint about the Warbird thread.
Because it's not a railroad topic, it's against the forum rules and I locked it.
Four years is a good long time for an off-topic post to stick around and under the radar — pun intended. Kuddos to all of you who kept it clean and above board.
And so you know, the editors are NOT out prowling to lock things down or get heavy handed, as one might suggest. No, the way I see it, we're doing the best we can and applying the rules as circumstances present themselves.
I certainly hope you understand.
All the best,
Steve S.
There are other threads on here that are obviously OT, but apparently they don't get locked down because most forum members have enough community spirit that they don't report them to moderators.
Since this thread is off the cliff!
How much of our GDP depends upon the various 'Natural' Disasters - Flood, Earthquakes, Volcanoes, wild fires, hurricanes, flash floods and anything else that kills people and destroy's property?
How much would the economy 'contract' if expenditures to replace what nature has destroyed were eliminated? Does the economic welfare of the country DEPEND upon natural disasters?
"Men With Wings" is kind of an obscure film, and I don't know why. It was a spectacular Technicolor production for 1938, and the very interesting story line takes us through the history of flight from pre-World War One years up to the Thirties. It's got one of the best, if not the best, WW1 dogfights ever filmed. I've really got to get off my butt and go shopping for the DVD if it's available.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Men_With_Wings
I first saw it when I was 12, maybe 13 years old on good old WNEW, Channel 5 out of New York on one of their Sunday afternoon film festivals. It was on YouTube for a bit but it's been pulled. I think Turner Classic Movies owns it now, so they must have said something.
Yes, there are similarities between "Dawn Patrol" and "12 O'Clock High." The main difference is "12 O'Clock" is the first film I'm aware of that has a story line of the hard-nosed commander (who's really a great guy) given command of an underperforming unit with the purpose of whipping it into shape. The story line's become a cliche' by now, it's been done so often.
Strain of command, certainly. So well played by Basil Rathbone and Errol Flynn in "Dawn Patrol," some of Flynn's best work actually, and Gregory Peck in "12 O'Clock."
OH, WELL!! While we are on the TOPIC of being "Off Topic"
I would raise my hand, and say that while remembering that Clambake publishes a 'whole raft' of 'Other Interest Magazines'... IF one mentions another interest, and one is goin'to get to walk the plank' in their Forums?
That simple fact makes good sense that many readers have multiple interests! I'd say lasting 4 or so years, and those hundreds of numerous responses would make a strong argument that WARBIRDS Thread had a modicum of interest and lots of references for the interested to follow....
Those that were Not interested never looked int that Thread.
I wonder if 'Bergie' may occasionally still look in on this Forum, or has he lost his interest, and his "Buttons" ?
P.S. I still miss 'wanswheel', and this little happenstance reminds us all, that when we slip up; no popcorn, and it is off to the Publisher's Guillotine
I recall reading, maybe in Trains about a war film called, "The Yards at Essendorf" or something like that. It never was released as far as I know and was filmed in Western Canada.
Wayne, I'm sure you've noticed the similarities between Dawn Patrol and 12 O'clock High? Both are about the strain of command. I've never seen Men With Wngs, but I've seen all the others you listed. And yes, a steam locomotive with Spitfire accompaniment is a might fine thing!
Miningman Movie about the Railroads role in WWII, not airplanes! Perhaps 5-7 seperate storylines, a grand finale all coming together in Chicago.
Movie about the Railroads role in WWII, not airplanes! Perhaps 5-7 seperate storylines, a grand finale all coming together in Chicago.
That too! And no CGI! With the Big Boy back anything's possible!
Let's see, UP 4014, Milwaukee Road 261, Nickle Plate 765, N&W 611 (have to renumber that one for the film), Reading and Northern 425, Pere Marquette 1225 if the movie takes place around Christmastime...
Did I forget anyone? Most likely, I can't think of everything...
The Erie? That's a problem, no Erie steamers left. Have to re-mark existing Pacifics and Berks. Some nit-pickers would notice but I wouldn't mind.
And no damn stinky, smelly diesels! E or F units! I don't care if they're contemporary with WW2. Their time will come soon enough.
Unless they're hijacked by Nazi spies and saboteurs, then they can be "The Bad Guys!"
I will dangle the Erie as one of the stars for you Wayne. Berks and Pacifics galore. Of course 844 and Big Boy can be used realistically on the UP end. T1's and Q2's rolling out. NYCentral at Buffalo. Empire Builder running 6-7 sections. Rock Island doing its best. Cincinnati and Washington Union madhouses and loco servicing jam packed. Trains going everywhere.. well you get the idea. Tell it like it was.
CSSHEGEWISCH Flintlock76 Hey, I remember "The Blue Max," "Battle of Britain," and "Tora-Tora-Tora." I'm spoiled! I hope that you've seen "Twelve O'Clock High", probably the best one ever made.
Flintlock76 Hey, I remember "The Blue Max," "Battle of Britain," and "Tora-Tora-Tora." I'm spoiled!
Hey, I remember "The Blue Max," "Battle of Britain," and "Tora-Tora-Tora." I'm spoiled!
Oh, I have, I have. Not just the best aviation war film ever made, but one of the best war films ever made, bar none.
Some of the other great aviation films, in my opinion anyway are, and in no particular order, they're all good...
Wings (1927)
Hell's Angels (1930) Just for the spectacular flying. The back story's dopey.
Dawn Patrol (1938)
Men With Wings (1938)
Dive Bomber (1941)
I'll stop with those. I'd be here all day otherwise.
Did I say "No CGI?" You guys are gonna love this! 100 years ago...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n02RsKVxBqs
No-one's blaming you Vince, so relax.
Oh WOW! Look at those P-35's in that ad! Those were built when Republic was actually De Seversky Aviation, the name "Republic" came later.
If that's a wartime ad, and I'm guessing it is, Republic's not showing the (then) current P-47's. Of course, why let Adolf know what's coming?
There were P-35's in the Phillipines at the beginning of the war in the Pacific. Obsolescent by that time were no match for the Zeros and were slashed to ribbons. Sad.
I'd love to see another epic WW2 film, but the thing is it'd be all CGI. CGI's amazing now but it's still fake, you can tell. If there's going to be airplanes in the film I want the real things! Using CGI to fill in the background would be permissable though.
One added picture from Mike (WW) you know who.
I have never ever complained to a moderator. I'm a big Live and let live guy. I suspect it was personal against someone but maybe just a nerdy quirky railfan.
However... once again, if I received my monthly issue of Trains and it had 12 pages on WWI warplanes I would wonder ...what the heck is going on.
Mike's contributions in absentia show a very valid connection though and that would be ok.
They build 9,087 P-47's in Farmingdale on Long Island, Mikes home. Amazing.
Can you just imagine being an unseen time traveller for a year or two witnessing the railroads in North America during WWII and seeing all of this.
A full length grand epic movie needs to be made, especially now that we can recreate anything very realistically on the screen, before it's too late and no one cares.
Mike, does that mean they were on the wrong side of the cockpit?
Hey, I watched "The Train" with Burt Lancaster two weeks ago, and Burt was on the wrong side of the cab!
Look at this! I mean really...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_z_9w-Ffmo
PS: The Spitfire's an "Extra Added Attraction!"
It was nice to be able to indulge two of my passions in one place. But, this is Trains' and they can run it any way they like. At the risk of starting it all over again: I once read that the placement of throttles on French WWI aircraft was dictated by that on their locomotives.
Mike
York1, I concur. At any rate immigration, illegal or otherwise is one thing that definately shouldn't be discussed here. Illegal immigration is something that both parties are guilty of ignoring for the past thirty years, for reasons known to themselves. We can't fix it here, and there's no magic button to push to fix it, and it can't be fixed at this point without someone getting hurt. Shame on those who ignored it all these years. Best not to bring it up.
Anyway, politics as pertaining to railroads are just about unavoidable, but people should remember to approach the subject delicately. Politics can turn otherwise normal, reasonable people into werewoves, which is why I hate politics as much as I do. Enough on that.
54', glad you had such a great trip. Maybe I'll manage it one day. I'm such a homebody though!
PS: I just looked at the heading. 21 "Replies, but 408 "Views." Someone's looking in!
Superb! If you've never been to the big French train museum in Mulhouse, you must go! There was a Baldwin-built 141R Mikado there that was my favourite- there is so much to see. Also in Mulhouse is the Schlumpf collection of over 400 Bugattis (and others.) In Dresden you can take a commuter train (S-Bahn) to a steam powered narrow gauge railway called the Weisseritztalbahn and you can take a streetcar to another one on the other side of town that takes you to Radebeul, a small town. Both are run by the same company and there are a lot more NG lines south of there near the Czech border.
In Munich, the beer was amazing which was good because it was hotter than hell. In Berlin was a beer festival that was in the eastern part and over a mile long! It was situated on a soviet-era street between 3 subway stops. The streetcar system of Berlin is mainly in the east and north and is awesome as are the streetcar systems of every other city I visited especially Amsterdam where there's more streetcars than automobiles and more bicycles than both.
I drove my 1954 Citroen from Amsterdam to the 100th anniversary of Citroen event near Le Mans, then dropped the car off back in Amsterdam to be shipped home and went by train everywhere else. Nice to drive it on the two-lane roads it was built for. Northern France has 1914-1918 military cemetaries everywhere, all well maintained.
1st class from Berlin to Amsterdam this past Sunday- what a trip- in a 6-person compartment, yes they still have those but no spies were in it. If you've never experienced the railroads of Europe, you owe it to yourself to go! No fooling!
Flintlock76Anyway, I'd say to any possible poster sitting on the fence "Come on in! Don't be scared or intimidated! If your language skills aren't the best, if your spelling's not what it should be, if you never mastered sentence structure don't worry about it! No-one going to grade you on your contribution and if you have something good to say come on in and say it! A lot of us want to hear it!"
That's a nice sentiment.
"No-one is going to grade you on your contribution..."
Several days ago a discussion had devolved into a back-and-forth about illegal immigration. A poster stated that they believed illegal immigration suppressed wages and cost the government money.
The following is a direct quote to the person who had posted: "Document what you claimed or stop posting your nativist, right wing agitprop. Perhaps you are a Russian bot?"
Maybe its comments like that which stop people from posting.
York1 John
I asked my doctor if I gave up delicious food and all alcohol, would I live longer? He said, "No, but it will seem longer."
Welcome back 54'! How was it?
I've been in Europe for the last 3 weeks and all I can say is, "phooey!"
Thank you Mr. Steve, I appreciate your honesty.
I can't imagine who complained or why, but it doesn't matter. The complaint was made, and I suppose you had to act on it no matter how personally distasteful it may have been to you.
Again, thanks for the response.
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