Dear Dreamscale, I have to confess I did his itinerary but with one condition: If I denounce his moving in Rio he promised me to send to my home lot of pedophilic Argentinean penguins. So I don�t like to take any risk, my friend! Just to ilustrate the dangeorus it could be: one day, I promised to him that I would get a secret of a gossip about him but I didn't. The next day, a crazy penguin almost trampled me on the road. Phil is a tremendous vengeful guy!

Wow, sad to see him go. Its easy to wonder if the time spent here could be better used somewhere else. Especially when your reading to try to get reads yourself. Its a great place to learn to write, but Phil already knows how.

Either that or Janet just sold a feature and Phil gave up writing altogether....

James

I have a good idea of why he left.  I'm not gonna say it but it'll become pretty obvious soon.

I do hope he comes back at some point, as I do hope all of the other members who have quit recently will do.  This is getting ridiculous.

It can't be that bad. He's been here awhile and most likely survived alot of stuff on here.

Quoted from Mr.Ripley It can't be that bad. He's been here awhile and most likely survived alot of stuff on here.

Phil's been here longer than most of us.  He loves screenwriting and loves storytelling.  He's read hundreds if not thousands of scripts, he leaves fair feedback, and he's been in countless arguments for one reason or another.  

For him to arbitrarily leave like this means there's something else at play.  I could be wrong, sure, but I kinda doubt it.  Out of respect for him I'm not gonna stir too much at the moment, but I'm pretty sure it follows a pattern that's been happening lately with people leaving.  

No probelm Greg. Just kind of stunned.

I remember the owc thread where Phil said it was going to start soon. So, everything seemed normal.

Hope all is well with him.

Quoted from greg I do hope he comes back at some point, as I do hope all of the other members who have quit recently will do.  This is getting ridiculous.

I remember when this board was little more than a dozen people running around crying about, "please read my script!"

Now it seems like every week we hear of a fresh option for somebody, or some new short film production to watch.  Or a podcast.

The site has grown more than most realize, but people are also busy with their lives, so it is difficult to get a real sense of how many stop in day-to-day but say nothing.

Amongst those who do have something to say, a little common courtesy goes a long way.

There is a very small handful of people who are annoying the shit out of everyone and why they are so starved for attention and why they just don't cut it out is beyond me.

There.  I've said it.

But Michael C taught us that nifty trick to ignore people. lol. But in serious, I say ignore them. Like that VA script, I was surprised how people kept that thread alive. lol. Just don't contribute. But that's just me. Not trying to say anything by it just babbling...lol. I'll stop now.

Quoted from Mr.Ripley But Michael C taught us that nifty trick to ignore people. lol. But in serious, I say ignore them. Like that VA script, I was surprised how people kept that thread alive. lol. Just don't contribute. But that's just me. Not trying to say anything by it just babbling...lol. I'll stop now.

Sadly, I think that's officially an unreasonable expectation at this point. The amount of "rabble, rabble" that goes on here is dangerously close to common place.

I hear you James. Paraphasing Baltis, "it sucks donkey balls."

It's sad to see Phil leave the site and it's my hope the old message board wisdom 'they always come back' applies here.

It's definitely symptomatic of a wider problem where arguments permeate threads and reviews, etc. With any group of passionate writers and creatives, there will be a strong divergence of views but also evidence of individualism. I myself have always been pretty much a lone ranger on this board and speak my mind openly and forcibly with no attachments to anyone. In terms of our tone and way we address each other at times, I think we're all guilty of crossing the line. The odd niggle is giving way to more sustained disagreements and is leading to the departure of a number of people from the site.

I agree with bert that there can be more emphasis on respect and perhaps reserve when posting, but that we should all feel comfortable enough to express ourselves without the fear of someone wading in and shooting down the views based on a personal grievance, as opposed to the merits of a particular debate. If anything, I think some of the debates I have engaged in recently have mostly carried a strong and independent set of responses where we debate an issue on its merits. I've always been one to enjoy debate and see it as an exchange of views (so a positive thing and a learning exercise) rather than an argument to be won. The odd joke or snipe can be mistimed and I see it through the board and it's often a product of an impetuous post. The residue of these skirmishes builds and builds until it crystalises into a view of a person that blinds a fair assessment when we read their posts or reviews. Largely we can put it down to the nature of board (i.e. it's written not verbal, thus confusion) and also 'cos most of us don't know each other that well.

In one way or another, we're all here for a love of film or trying to make film. Such a positive energy can push us beyond our likes and dislikes. The most important thing here is that while some antagonise more than others, we all share an equal responsibility in keeping the board civil and keeping ourselves in control and not allowing it to be personal or to extinguish someone's validity on a topic. So I'm not trying to admonish anyone individually or to protect myself, but rather to highlight a group responsibility. A writing challenge to entice Phil back or to look at harmony can perhaps refocus us on what really matters on this site: writing and creating.

Oh boy, I see the deletions have begun...

Andrew Chuff, I agree with you.  It's too bad that people can't constructively debate an issue without someone (or everyone) getting upset.  I just don't get it.

I seem to live on my own little island here on SS, but you know I'm always going to speak my mind, defend my views, and give reason why I believe what I believe.

We may not agree all the time, but I hold nothing against anyone who has a different perspective.  It's truly what makes the world go round.

I think we can save blaming anyone for Phil's leaving - except Phil who chose to leave for whatever his reasons - he doesn't want to tell us.  Besides threads about what's "bad" about a member are just plain wrong.

What we can keep in mind is something Chuff so eloquently stated

"The most important thing here is that while some antagonise more than others, we all share an equal responsibility in keeping the board civil and keeping ourselves in control and not allowing it to be personal or to extinguish someone's validity on a topic."

Which means "argue" your case but don't "fight" the person with an opposing view.  If we all practice that then we can have a civil forum where we can talk about anything without having to worry about people leaving.  

Quoted from mcornetto "The most important thing here is that while some antagonise more than others, we all share an equal responsibility in keeping the board civil and keeping ourselves in control and not allowing it to be personal or to extinguish someone's validity on a topic."

This is a terrific idea.  It's absolutely brilliant.  I would endorse this anywhere.  

The problem is, as Bert stated, there's a small percentage who could care less about that and are constantly disrespecting other board members, the mods, and even Don.  And the level of tolerance for that disrespect has been pushed further and further.  Or maybe it's not tolerance; maybe it's just dealing with it and hoping it'll work itself out on its own.  But it never does because these people don't seem to care.  It's always the same crap over and over and no amount of "please be respectful" warnings ever seem to fix it.

what will happen to the OWC?