Question for the Editors

Question for the Editors

Didn't find your answer?

I am all for free speech but I am sure that I am not the only one who is fed up with Mike and his obssesion about accountants and don't bother trying to incite me Mike I WILL NOT respond under any circumstances as far as I can see you are a small minded vindictive man who clearly has nothing better to do with your time!!!
Carol Williams

Replies (17)

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By User deleted
07th Sep 2006 18:32

Totally agree with Carol
The editors should put a stop to it because it's repeated antagonism, pure and simple. There's nothing clever, witty or helpful in what he says. Maybe he'll grow up one day but it's unlikely.....

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By User deleted
07th Sep 2006 18:14

.
I did make such a comment on another thread Carol and got the same reply you got.

Steve Roth mentions not being libelous or offensive, but I find Mike Bassy and his comments offensive, also, he often says how UK accountants are no good and in the pockets of the Revenue, surely that is libelous?

I think AWeb needs to consider taking a stand, although until today I have ignored Mike Bassy and his comments I am getting bored with his constant high jacking of threads to post his dribble, and I am glad to see I’m not alone!

Jason
Holden Associates
The Small Business Blog
sbqaforum

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By AnonymousUser
08th Sep 2006 09:31

Well stop rising to it!
His last rant got 16 replies (pretty high by AWEB standards)... if you want him to shut up them stop rising to the bait every time!

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By User deleted
07th Sep 2006 20:27

Dissatisfied
Mike Bassy is just another dissatisfied client. Clients are our gods, they won't do anything wrong. I will do all I could to please our customers in our professional relationship.

Well, it's worth to give deliberate thought of the reason for his dissatisfaction.

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By AnonymousUser
07th Sep 2006 15:19

Good question
I wonder what the editors will answer.

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By simon68
07th Sep 2006 18:33

Freedom to exchange ideas
I hope AccountingWeb UK site still allow reasoned debates and won't operate self censorship as guys here suggest.

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By AnonymousUser
07th Sep 2006 19:43

Nuisance postings
Personally, I read this for educational purposes. I don't find rants particularly educational.

AccountingWeb should have a nuisance/complaint reporting system. If a single person recieves more than XX complaints, they should be given a warning. When complaints = YY, they can be given a quarentine period where they can not post. When complaints = ZZ, they are kicked off the system for good and not allowed to post anymore.

Other business sites I use have this feature, and it works well to keep things civil.

AccountingWeb risks losing the goodwill that it has built by not having policy for nuisance postings.

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By williams1862
07th Sep 2006 16:33

Thanks for the response Stephen
Thank you for the prompt response and I understand what you say but I am sure I and many others find Mike to be offensive and insulting, if I was to put an article in the paper along the lines of the things that Mike writes on this site there would be uproar. Whilst some people might find it mildly amusing to banter with him I now find it irritating and boring. I use this website for the same reason that many others do and that is to receive and maybe give helpful advice or information to like minded professionals, Mike is neither constructive or helpful merely insulting.

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By User deleted
07th Sep 2006 17:09

Mis informed gentleman
Being professional I would suggest he is a misinformed gentleman and best ignored!

As a parent I feel the best thing to do with a child who seeks attention by being an idiot is not to bite. He'll give up eventually...I hope!

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By AnonymousUser
07th Sep 2006 17:11

What constitutes offensive?
I once had a post removed from here because it contained mild sexual innuendo. At least, I thought it was mild, but the moderators obviously disagreed. I take that on the chin.

This Bassy person has obviously got a personal problem and it is upsetting at least one member. Therefore shouldn't his insulting posts be removed?

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By listerramjet
08th Sep 2006 09:21

Mike
your needle is stuck! your needle is stuck! your needle is stuck! your needle is stuck! your needle is stuck! your needle is stuck!


get it?

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By JSJ54
08th Sep 2006 10:39

Free Speech
I would be the first to say that free speech must be preserved at all costs.

However, I can't believe I'm the only person who thinks that over recent months the number of inappropriate and irrelevant postings has reached the point where I think it is actually affecting the quality of this site.

Given that it is an information site surely the time has come to remove the rubbish as soon as it appears.

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By listerramjet
07th Sep 2006 17:00

thick skin
I would not take him too seriously. its not difficult to see the flaws in what he says

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By AnonymousUser
07th Sep 2006 15:43

AccountingWEB policy
It is AccountingWEB policy to allow our members free expression, as long as their comments are not libellous or offensive, ie, an insult to race, religion, character or professional integrity. At the same time we encourage members to conduct their conversations in a professional and courteous manner and stick to the question under discussion. In the case that a member is libellous or offensive, we will remove their comment, and, if necessary prevent them from returning to the site.

Steve Roth
Managing Editor
AccountingWEB

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By Mike Bassy
08th Sep 2006 01:02

burnt at the stake

Gosh, I can almost see the pitchforks and crucifixes looming above the lantern-lit heads of the baying crowd as they surge towards my door, demanding that I recant immediately or be burnt at the stake. Accountants are on the march.

But there again, they're always on the march, usually keeping in step and walking swiftly and obediently along, in time to HMRC's tune.

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By david_terrar
11th Sep 2006 10:38

Rise above it
One of the important aspects that makes this site useful is to allow the debate to develop. Sadly, since you never get anything for nothing, that allows the likes of Mr Bassy a platform. I wouldn't like to see AW changing their editorial policy over this issue - they should only edit out anything offensive. I think Dennis has nailed the issue on two counts - where appropriate we should be arguing with him based on the facts, but only where necessary - avoiding getting dragged into the [***] for tat and emotional language he uses. Hopefully he'll eventually find something more constructive to do (or contribute).
David Terrar
Mailto:[email protected]
web: http://www.d2c.org.uk and http://www.twinfield.com
blog: http://biztwozero.com

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Dennis Howlett
By dahowlett
09th Sep 2006 06:20

Easy solution
This is always a thorny problem but one from which I don't suffer from at my place. It's very simple. I have a No [***] Here rule. Don't laugh. Check out Professor Bob Sutton on this.

Bob is super smart, talks a lot about workplace practices and how [***] hurt people. That's bad.

This is not about freedom of expression/speech but about allowing determined nihilists the last word. As others have said, if you cut off their oxygen supply they run out of things to say. The easiest way is to deprive them of the pleasure of a response. Let them have the last word.

Anything else is pandering to their prurient desire for hurting people.

After close on 100K visits in a year, I've only ever had to ban one IP address. Other [***] simply go away when they find no-one cares and nobody listens to their crap.

You can argue that relatively low volumes are less likely to attract [***]. Maybe so. But then I'm more concerned about attracting an audience who are interested in quality debate on my narrow topic areas.

I'm no stranger to expressing strong opinions. I frequently criticise the Big Four, ICAEW and powerful software vendors in strident terms. The difference is those opinions are mostly, to use another of Bob's expressions - 'weakly held.' In other words I'm open to persuasion derived from reasoned argument.

That's how you build, sustain and encourage the development of solid content that delivers value to the reader. It's how debate is taken forward and how I learn. There's an expression for it derived from work done by James Surowiecki called 'the wisdom of crowds." Worth a look.

I have to say I have some sympathy with Bassy's position. It's about perception. I have little doubt that Bassy believes what he says to be true. Unfortunately, it's expressed in a way guaranteed to raise hackles and which doesn't allow for an alternative reality. It is equally sad that rather than engage Bassy with facts, readers choose to attack the individual.

Principles above personalites. A good mantra.

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