Yes, 'muting' posts in a community is a thing, but it is usually reserved for blatant infraction of the rules. Examples of such might be posting a fictional writing to a travel community, or posting about crypto to a foodie community. Those things I can understand. However, I have no clue why your post might have been muted in SilverBloggers. Even though I am much older than many people in that community, I never joined because of one rule in their introductory post:
"Important Notice: This is NOT a Geriatric Society so no talk of Dentures, Hearing Aids, Spectacles, Pills and the like will be tolerated; member will be muted if found guilty of this offence;)"
As I can't guarantee that I will never mention my arthritis or failing eyesight in a post, I feel it safer to refrain from joining so I don't accidentally post there. I have worked much-too-hard on my account for the past four years than to jeopardize having a post muted or heavily downvoted for a simple rule infraction.
There is also a photo community here which I will never join. Posts are frequently muted in that community if they do not meet a certain abstract "quality" as determined by the Admins. I have seen many muted posts that contain [what I consider, at least] decent shots. But then again, perhaps that's why I am not a real "photographer" like they are.
Similar to your thinking, first-time offenders should probably be "warned" gently, in comments about not posting such in that community again, rather than having their post muted or downvoted. Repeat offenders can certainly be dealt with more sharply. The only times I have muted posts in communities where I am Admin is when they have been plagiarized, and then I post a comment to let them know why their post is receiving such treatment.
I will echo sentiment similar to what others have already said... You're a good writer and I enjoy your posts. You have a lot of good content to offer the platform. You seem to have a great personality. So, hopefully, you will reconsider leaving, but I respect your decision whatever it may be.
Thank you @thekittygirl you have echoed much what I was going to say. I saw your post when I was not at my keyboard, @harlowjourney, and am now here. I have read the other comments and endorse many of them.
First, to the elephant in the room: your having been muted in the SBC was a consequence of some pressure on the founder - from other quarters. Least said about that, the better. I am also an admin in that community and didn't know about it, and once our mutual friend, @wesphilbin, reached out, we dealt with it. Please do accept my unreserved apology. As it so happens we also investigated and found other accounts muted and we have no idea why. So, I also need to thank you because you made us revisit a few things. But still, urgh!! And again, I am sorry and lessons learned.
This brings me to what I do want to share: I, too, have been
aroundon this blockchain since mid-2017. My first six months - well they didn't happen - I was too overwhelmed. I returned and at some point also got caught in whale crossfire. There was another incident and about which I was oblivious until it was drawn to my attention, and which I'll not labour. Suffice it to say that all of it was, to put it mildly, horrible and upsetting and very, very stressful. I considered leaving. I received overwhelming support from my blog pals and quietly changed my strategy. For the most part, and until just over a year ago, just really kept my head down and engaged with "my peeps".By and large, the Hive is a kinder place than S******t. I will say, though, that in the last month or two, there has been a bit of a shift and because I'm involved with an onboarding programme, I see it. This is in the number of scam and puppet and just gamer accounts that are being registered. By the 100s. The quality of writing/post and the amount of plagiarism, well, is of great concern. As a consequence, some folk are hyper vigilant on one hand, and others, have a knee jerk reaction on the other. My sense (and experience tells me) that this will settle again. I also know, that if you allow that, and find your niche, you will flourish.
Again, and on behalf of Silver Bloggers, our unreserved apology an an invitation to join us.
Thank you @fionasfavourites. The way you worded this, it sounds like there was pressure on the founder to mute ME, which seems odd and implausible. I just don't feel like I could be that important to anyone. Lol. So, I think I must have misunderstood. Either that or someone is out to get me and I have not been sufficiently paranoid. (Again, lol.)
I really appreciate your reaching out. I am perhaps oversensitive at times. I try to have a thick skin, but I thought what I wrote was reasonable and it seemed appropriate to the silver bloggers community.
I have tried researching how I can tell whether I have been muted in a community, but I have not found the answer to this yet.
Thanks again for taking the time to set things straight.
You're very welcome and I do hope that we have a clean slate. I do hope that you will join our community. Please feel free to tag me when you next post there :D
I think the more said about this the better. I. The interests of transparency, why are people who create a community being pressurised to censor other members. Who are these other quarters and why this member?
Please read my response explaining the muting @thekittygirl; it certainly was not aimed at the user, but rather the fact that the post in question was a #dreamchallenge meant for another community, the ThoughtfulDailyPost community. Once I realised this was a new user, I immediately unmuted it and in fact promoted it on Twitter, in OCD and on my own personal feed.
Thank you for explaining! It sounds like an unfortunate incident, indeed, and I am glad all is sorted now! 🙂
@thekittygirl Thank you for your suggestions and supportive words. In light of all the overwhelming support, I feel a bit silly, to be honest. I genuinely expected to hear crickets chirping in response to my post, but I had to get some things off my chest before leaving.
Now, I feel I should give this another solid try, at the very least another week. The community here is amazing. I have never experienced anything like this. Thanks again.
So,lady, now you know that Hive has some amazing community spirit, I'm going to strongly suggest you do what you'd do offline. You'll go where the good is and consider the bad as the 'other side of the tracks'. Kick the negative nellys to the curb and still with the good folk.
Thank you. Excellent advice as always.
Very well said, @thekittygirl.
Hi @thekittygirl, I have responded to @harlowjourney and explained that the reason for muting that blog was that as a #dreamportchallenge it was meant to be posted in the ThoughtfulDailyPost Community.
I was warned just two days before that post to be careful not to allow content meant for other communities in our feed!
I had tweeted his post and shared it on my personal feed. Once I realised that he was a new user, I unmuted it in SIlver Bloggers and curated it for OCD as it was great content.
I would appreciate if you could read my response to @harlowjourney.
On the matter of that tongue-in-cheek Silver Bloggers rule, I am so sorry that it was taken seriously. I am over 68 and honestly thought that it would be seen as a light-hearted touch! It saddens me that this put off possible Silvers, but our actual rules can be found on our Silver Bloggers page!
you were warned? I know you want to kind and fair to others but I think that anyone who has the brass to be warning you, the owner of the community, about what can and can't be posted in your community needs to be shown the door.
Hi @shadowspub, 'warned' actually was the wrong term, it was merely advice from someone who has been a guiding hand. The particular blog was a challenge from another community, something a couple of bloggers have been doing to us of late. We commented as follows to this excellent blog before muting it, also gave the reason for muting it when actioning it. I was at fault for not realizing this was a new user, but all is ok now:
For example, I would not be posting a qurator foodie challenge in any other community but the one hosting the challenge, and that's what the problem was.
Many of the comments are by bloggers are not seeing the real picture with this muting and subsequent unmuting as most people skim comments and blogs, we're now the bad apples, but we have a real good bunch of active subscribers and it makes me sad that this is how we've been portrayed here.
Anyway, thank you for sharing your views. We were both part of the old thesteemengine run by @ethandsmith not so?
Hi @thekittygirl, I am so sorry that you took that 'tongue in cheek' response seriously.
I've done an edit to that blog as it really was not meant to be offensive, I am over 68 myself!
Just putting the record straight and the muting and subsequent unmuting was explained to the author as it was a ThoughtfulDailyPost Community challenge.
It really was not meant to be unkind!
All is understood now. Thank you for this! 💜
It's sad and scary when a single misplaced post which is good quality might ruin four years of work. Isn't there any way to appeal?
!PIZZA !LUV
<><
@thekittygirl, you've been given LUV from @wrestlingdesires.
Check the LUV in your H-E wallet. (1/1)
@thekittygirl! I sent you a slice of $PIZZA on behalf of @wrestlingdesires.
Learn more about $PIZZA Token at hive.pizza (10/10)