Posted By Merv Newman As I have requested before, will the moedrateurs and other "official" IOSH voices please identify themselves as such. Preferably at the start of their reply but at least at the end. We get so much (four-letter expletive deleted) that sometimes we do not know if a particular reply is worth reading or of taking any notice of Your identification, job title and, if relevant, your qualifications for giving us a (longer expletive deleted) would be of immense help. Respectfully Merv Newman CMIOSH, CSP, Directeur International Safety sarl (the last bit means "limited company") Beef burgers and crunchy chips with salsa on the side. Cotes du Rhone. Hand-made mirabelle tart. Mirabelles collected off the tree this morning. I de-nutted 5 kilos of them myself. which is a lot of Mirabelles (small yellow plums) Topped with home-made yoghurt. Now, which reason are you going to find for censoring this thread ?

Posted By Jason Stone Could he be concerned with the method that he used to de-nut?

Posted By GT Ah! Merv, Is Friday approaching! Good to see you back at your best.......with the recipe that is. I can guess about the subject matter to which you are referring but not the specific article or thread and I think Jane and Jason are also asking the same question. My experience has been that comments (not 4 letter expletives) such as "you must be joking" is offensive or inflammatory however, you can however give as much bad advice on this forum or indeed read the same and there is no control but you are not allowed to comment on how ridiculous the statement is. There is a danger element here, but for me with experience I can sort out the wheat from the chaff but other members may have more difficulty. Anyway keep the menu updated as for me it is refreshing and one of the less hazardous parts of the forum. Regards GT

Posted By Peter Leese Merv, as one who finds your frequent flippant remarks quite irritating (and a waste of my time!), I've found this posting quite informative. Well done moderators, keep at it.

Posted By Melanie Fellows Well I definitely enjoy reading and learning from Merv's posts (I have been known to search the forums just in case I missed a bit of Merv magic!) Mel

Posted By G Weatherwax As an avid reader of this forum, I enjoy reading (some) of the posts , but always, always enjoy Merv's posts (and more often that not his receipe ideas). I think Mr. Leese might be in danger of taking things or himself a wee bit too seriously but as I was under the impression that the whole point of this forum was to be able to to express your opinion amongst peers than no problems with that. As long as its not blatently offensive to anyone whats the problem? I have not joined in on any of the forums for a long time now as I cant be bothered with having to filter or even worry about what I write for fear of offending person or persons (or even organisations) unknown. Now you're not even allowed to have a sense of humour - and we wonder we H&S has a bad name!I cant be dealing with the headology of it all. As for the original post - dont know whats brought this on Merv, but have been thinking for some time that some consistancy or even clarificaltion would be welcomed.

Posted By Raymond Rapp I would like to support Peter on this one. He has a subtle sense of humour (unlike Merv) and at times it borders on arrogance. However, like Merv's I enjoy his warped sense of humour. Moderator please note: it would be a boring forum if we agreed with each other! Ray

Posted By Rob T Funnily enough I once had a moan at the Moderators on here - strangely the posting was removed. I also received a direct moan from a Moderator directly aimed at me posted officially on here for a thread I started, which was far more offensive than the original and was personal - It's probably still on this site (about smoking - what else - as that's the only time I've ever had postings removed!). Who Moderates the Moderators. I do think we have started to go far too far with the censorship though - I would have thought that the CPS are fair game on this forum as they are a direct part of the H&S legal system and often make mistakes. We do have a right to query or disagree with their judgements and this is the correct forum to do that. On another note - I love the eccentricities of individuals on here especially those I disagree with. Rob

Posted By G Weatherwax Mr Leese, Apologies. No need for slapped wrist. My bad! Didn't get the subtle irony bit. Consider me chastened. (Am off now to do some research into responsible alcohol consumption and perhaps a verse or two of a song relating to hedgehogs)

Posted By Dave Dowan Never mind the moderators why can’t people use their real names on posts Dave

Posted By Darren J Fraser I purposely look for and enjoy any posting by Merv, straight forward honest answer, pity we cannot have more like that. As for the recipes - yummy, just a pity cannot enjoy in France unlike the original poster. As for personal attacks, if I post an answer and someone disagrees, attacking me personally, it really does not bother me in the slightest. The reason for this is that the majority have not met me, are unlikely to meet me and if they do, they would most probably not enjoy the experience of meeting an arrogant, opinionated armpit of a person (so the better half says anyway). It would be pleasing if instead of this post cannot be displayed etc, there was an explanation why e.g. contains offensive language, or is advertising etc, surely that is not to much to ask. Thats my view anyway. p.s what is for tea tonight Merv, anything interesting, or just the usual high quality french cuisine, and who cooks it?

Posted By Tabs As someone who uses a nick-name, I don't see any great shake about it - I use the same name all the time ... I changed to a nick name simply to differentiate my posts here from my day time job. I am not a moderator though, and I see Merv's point. I think any forum has a duty to look after itself and a level of decency (I run a forum on my own site and I know the temptations of censorship). But that cannot extend to simply wiping things that the moderators don't like without explanation. I missed the root cause of your post, but I hope it can be hinted at...

Posted By Merv Newman Pete, dave, george, jane, (especially) rob, and all the others, Thank you for your support. I shall wear it constantly. The point of this thread is that I despise being criticised/censored by people I do not know and who do not identify themselves. I have 30 years in the job. At least 15 years as MIOSH. OK, Cmiosh since 17/11/05 (it's on the wall in front of me) I really cant be doing with people I don't know.

Posted By Gwahir Mr. Sense had been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape. He will be remembered as having cultivated such value lessons as knowing when to come in out of the rain, why the early bird gets the worm and that life isn't always fair. Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spend more than you earn) and reliable Parenting strategies (adults, not kids, are in charge). His health began to rapidly deteriorate when well intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place. Reports of a six-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition. Mr. Sense declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer aspirin to a student; but, could not inform the parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion. Finally, Common Sense lost the will to live as the Ten Commandments became contraband; churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims. Common Sense finally gave up the ghost after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot, she spilled a bit in her lap, and was awarded a huge financial settlement. Common Sense was preceded in death by his parents, Truth and Trust, his wife, Discretion; his daughter, Responsibility; and his son, Reason. He is survived by two stepbrothers; My Rights and Ima Whiner. Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone. If you still remember him, pass this on; if not, join the majority and do nothing.

Posted By Jan Rowney I too always look for Merv's postings, what he writes makes such sense. I love the receipes too Merv, as I have a vested interest in anything Francais - over to our pad next week. I hear its very hot now.

Posted By Peter Leese However Gwahir, I thought it was a great piece about Mr Sense and the gist is absolutely solid. Sometimes it is better to look at the whole rather than examining each piece for faults.

Posted By Robert. Wot's a "mirabelle"

Posted By Jane Blunt off topic, but since you ask, look here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mirabelle_Plum Jane

Posted By Steve Wood how about, when the dust has settled on a few "morderateured" posts, post them up (without identifying the "guilty") as examples of what gets chopped? also, more detail on why a post has been chopped, at the time? S (prepared to be chopped)

Posted By Heather Collins I also moderate on a very busy forum elsewhere and would echo the comment about it being a thankless task. However we always try to say why we've deleted a post on that particular forum - either by posting in the thread or by PMing the poster to explain. I still get loads of messages asking me why I've deleted Post A but not Post B even then. What's for dinner tonight then Merv?