What's happened to Gartom's goodbye message thread?

[streatham dave]

Even with people working full time how long does it take for someone to say that they removed the thread and a reason why. Logically one of three things has happened

Gareth himself removed or asked for post to be removed. If this is so why not say? I will ask him myself when I see him.
JR or someone at the club asked the thread to be removed. If this is so why not say?
A representative of the VSC removed it. If this is the case why not say? and why can't we be told by who and why? After all we don't live in North Korea.

The reason I believe that this thread is causing such a problem is that although Gareth did get some stick from some quarters (completely undeserved might I add) people appreciated his openness and him passing on the information that he could. Same applies with Steve. The lack of a similar response to the removal of the thread is very at odds with what has gone before. The only light I can shed is that Gareth wanted to explain things to JR before going public. By the way I saw Steve's comments but thread was deleted before I could read what Gareth had to say. The only thing Steve has said was that he was sorry he missed me at the monthly Coal Hole meetup that only a day or so before he had told me he was going to and that I would find out soon enough. All reminds me of the end of the Gorbachev era for those old enough to remember. Anyway  We all need to pull together chaps and chapess'

[Alickismyhero]

I don't believe in censorship and provided his comments do not break any law it should not have been removed.

There is obvious conflict on the board for whatever reason and it seems at this point this issue is being handled not as we would like it.

There is a danger of members  making their mind up from the limited information available and there is precious little of it hence it probably sounds much worse than it is.

 I already know the reason for the resignations and on the surface of it, its not that bad unless there is more to it.

Personally I think the board should allow the man his right to print his explanation even if it is considered bad for the current board, he deserves that for what he has done for the VSC. That would allow us to make up our own mind

Print and be damned or don't print and be damned over to you board.

What do you think Crofty? Party line? Or still your controversial self, spill the beans? Its not looking good!

[jucyberry]

I think what ever the thoughts and deeds there is one fact that cannot be denied...Both Gareth and Steve will be greatly missed. They are both decent, lovely fellas.

[Pintolager]

If ill health and distance from Berkshire are the problems, then fine, I am sure all members on here can understand that, but as many others on here have said, for there to be threads/posts deleted on the subject does seem odd. Can someone just put a sticky on here to clarify the situation to try to stop the speculation? The idea of having a VSC members only section is wrong with me as it only smacks of a closed shop to me even if it wasn't the intention and this fiasco only furthers my belief.

Sorry VSC board, but this just seems very amateurish and I fully understand why people are waiting for answers before they renew their subscriptions.

[NathanDRFC]

Hi All,

A response from the VSC Board on this matter

Before we explain why the thread disappeared, please be assured we were not ignoring the Membership on purpose. Our response has had to be postponed out of courtesy until we had communicated with Gareth to notify him why the thread was removed.

We believe that a section of that post contained information about confidential discussions held between Board members. We are sure that the detail in the post was included by mistake and that is why we sought to point this out to Gareth before responding to this thread. We did not want him to find out the reasons by means of this forum and wanted to communicate more personally.

The restriction on disclosing details of private discussions is not just for the protection of the VSC, but also the privacy of the individuals involved, and I hope that this can be respected by anyone who had chance to read the post before it was removed.

We had also intended to move the post to a secure area of the site to allow it to be edited, but the process didn’t go as planned and the post was lost.  It was certainly not intentional that Gareth's farewell was permanently lost, but that is sadly the outcome.

The current VSC Board of directors would like to thank Gareth & Steve for their efforts. The VSC work under strict rules, and the following are worth remembering:

9.1 Members of the Board acknowledge that discussions at Society Board Meetings are strictly confidential save where expressly stated not to be, and save for official reports of meetings, such as publication of approved minutes. With the exception of those circumstances set out below, all Board members shall keep all such discussions or information strictly private and confidential.

9.2 The confidentiality provisions shall not apply where a Board member is asked to co-operate with any statutory or regulatory body and should not stifle due and proper debate on issues within the confines of Board meetings or discussions between Board members conducted in confidence. For the avoidance of doubt the confidentiality provisions above remain in force even after a member is no longer serving on the Society Board. Breach of the confidentiality provisions is a Disciplinary Offence.


As previously mentioned, Rob Clark has taken on the role as acting chairman.

The Trust moves on, and we can confirm that the new development plan for the Trust will be discussed and finalised at our next Board Meeting. We are also extremely delighted at the number of people who have come forward in recent weeks who expressed an interest in joining the VSC Board.

From the VSC Board

[Filo]

 

If my contribution is valued by mods/board members or admin on this site please reply within 24hrs.

As currently your silence on this matter is speaking volumes.

Before we`re all tarred with the same brush, I`d like to point out that this was not a moderator action!

[redwine]

Thank heavens for that, or not. Depending on where you stand.

I'm just glad no one has made the connection between the August Revolution flag and things disappearing. Be that  threads or even Gareth himself.

 


ps. All the best Gareth and thanks for your contribution both emotional and financial

[jucyberry]

Thanks Nathan, a little clarification goes a long way..

[streatham dave]

Glad to hear that Filo. Let others find out the meaning of a Pyrrhic Victory for themselves. The VSC is a collection of its parts and it has lost a great deal in Gareth and Steve's resignations IMHO.

[Alickismyhero]

Nathan,



 Does that mean that Gareth will be posting a modified version?

[Dagenham Rover]

Thanks Nathan, a little clarification goes a long way..

and this is all that really needed to be posted


Before we explain why the thread disappeared, please be assured we were not ignoring the Membership on purpose. Our response has had to be postponed out of courtesy until we had communicated with Gareth to notify him why the thread was removed.

[Mr1Croft]

Nathan,



 Does that mean that Gareth will be posting a modified version?

We do not know, he is free to post on the forum as a VSC Member in the same manner you all are.

[jucyberry]

I hope he does, I know I'm not the only one who highly respects Gareth and all the time and effort he and Steve have put into the VSC...

Gareth will be an extremely hard act to follow plus he was in a unique position with his contact with JR..

At the risk of coming over all female...Team Gartom.. 

[Thinwhiteduke]

Thank You Nathan

[NathanDRFC]

Lee is correct in his statement.
Filo is correct in his statement.

[RobTheRover]

Glad to hear that Filo. Let others find out the meaning of a Pyrrhic Victory for themselves. The VSC is a collection of its parts and it has lost a great deal in Gareth and Steve's resignations IMHO.

SD, you are quite correct, and that is why we are soon going to appeal to VSC Members to take up positions on the board.  The board now stands at 6 members - thats 6 people (plus Naith and Dave who do a sterling job of moderation) who are spread very thinly at present on a number of exciting forthcoming initiatives.  The VSC needs to tap into the time and dedication of its members, as we have done from time to time on other projects such as the flag and flyer designs (many thanks again to Snod's Shinpad) and the dozen or so who volunteered a few hours for flyer distribution duties.

A number of people have already offered their assistance, and it is greatly appreciated.  Our club is arguably at its lowest point in the past decade, and as supporters we need to drive forward together.