[Sandie Seward]

Being the rather hasty person I am, I seem to have "jumped the gun" a bit by posting the Notice regarding Forum developments, earlier today.

It seems that I am not the type of person he was looking for, and although he seems to like this Forum, my other Sites and Blogs don't meet with his "approval".

I have reproduced the e.mail in full. that he sent me tonight.

"Dear Sandie
Thank you for your mail today. As it is a quiet weekend, I have spent time reading your multifarious blogs, newsletters, forums, et al. You are certainly a busy bee

I was more than a little surprised when I read "One of the most exciting and major developments for our little Forum is about to happen."    on your "silversite". I had no idea anything was "about to happen"; and I had no idea we had come so far in a brief exchange of a couple of short emails in one evening.
However, I put that down to exhuberance,bubbly enthusiasm and a positive attitude (as I like such qualities)..........rather than an entirely different view which someone might have taken after just a cursory exchange of mail with you.
So I read on and viewed as much of your Site as I could. I noted that the Site has a "mainstay" of 2 main contributors (including you) and about half a dozen main other regular posters. None of that bothers me-----I administered a nostalgia site of 9,000 active members; and I found the lack of "personal "
"family feel" of a group of friends to be..........unsatisfactory.
I am now looking for a "small is beautiful" Forum of no more than 50 members. My website is not yet completed,its Forum is not yet open, it has been advertised on google etc for only 3 weeks-----and it has a dozen members already----all of whom I have emailed in some detail and all of whom are like-minded, like-aged, fun-loving souls who want to chat about everything from schooldays, milk bars, sweets,comics  and juke boxes to The Angry Young Men, Fellini films, modern art and our first pretentious steps into the adult world. But, MOST OF ALL........they are united (as I wish) in a desire to share .....FUN.
As well as  debate/banter, they want quizzes, trivia, humour,a place to "wind down" after work (or, if retired,a good old chat about the "old days", not all of which were "good" (as my gran and grandad never had "indoor" plumbing or toilet , even as late as the 1960s towards the end of their lives).

In leaving the MND Forum (when it opens) in the hands of an autonomous Administrator, the only proviso I would hand to the said Admin would be:  "make it fun, let's have an oasis away from the serious world in which we have to live, let's get out into the playground again:))), let's just reminisce together "

Sandie......like you, I just speak my mind. You do not seem a "fun" person.Indeed you sound bitter and angry about most topics I have read your views on. Your site has monthly quotes by people such as Jung , rather than WC Fields or Mark Twain. Nothing against Jung (he seems to be back in fashion again)but, let's face it........he didn't much appreciate The Flowerpot Men )))))
From reading your blog and other stuff elsewhere, I do not think you are a happy person (and I am TRULY sorry about everything from your headaches to your Council Tax arrears to the complaints filed against you )........and that "feel" overlaps on to your Site (IMHO, as an outsider looking in); so too does your politics, no matter how much you obviously try to keep them separate from your "silvers"web.

Sandie, I just have to come clean and tell you that I could never work with someone who supports a bloke who serves an affidavit on HM The Queen, and who personally says on one of the sites , as YOU do :  
<Please. Wake Up. Before it's too late, and we all all living in a Police State Dictatorship that Stalin or Hitler would have been proud of.>

As I mentioned to you last night......in China, you would now be in a Labour Camp being tortured by electricity in a water tub for saying such things. We do NOT live in such a Hitlerite or Stalinite State------and that is just a simple FACT. If we emasculate the police force, as you suggest Sandie, and get rid of the surveillance cameras--------who takes the blades (which you mention) away from the (MINORITY OF) kids ? How do we identify and bring to court culprits if they are not seen on CCTV ?  How do we get our dustbins emptied if we don't pay the Council Tax? How can we call ourselves "better" British people if we talk about Britain being a Hitler paradise ? Blimey, Sandie......it scares me more than a stroll around  in Lewisham or Deptford at midnight !!!!!!!!!!!!

I came from a Council Estate in what middle-class England would call a grimy inner-city town, I went to Uni on scholarship to gain MA in History, Politics and Economics, I have since been lucky enough to travel the world. We, like ALL of the world, have a lot wrong with our country, society and way of life. But although I have been impressed with places such as New Zealand, Norway and other places where I think I could live .................I prefer Britain (including Scotland.........I cannot believe some of the vitriol I have read on your sites about Scotland-----unbelievably sad!!).  

You've read my simple little nostalgia site, based on my own life------and you know that I LOVE the 1950s ....the "gentler" times. I dislike much of the change I have witnessed in my life (but I like some of the change too).But the world evolves, often in ways we don't like-------such is history, in all its cycles , during all of time. At present, the world (including Britain) is not at its best............or perhaps some of us just view it that way. But extremism, whether extremist Islam or extremist PUCP (if that's its correct title) is not the answer for me, thank you. And I hope extremism continues to be a tiny fringe element in Britain, and not "mainstream" such as in Iran : I'm sure it will be.I truly do not know anyone personally who thinks Hitler would be proud of our country.Thank Gawd for small mercies as my gran used to say...........

I hope I have been courteous and informative of my own views ( I have read many of yours). I simply could never work-------no matter how much politics was kept out of the "arrangement"------with anyone who holds your views or some of the other views which you have supported in your writings.

I wish you well-------with your "silvers" site: it has some lovely  topic titles. And I wish you well in all you do , whether I agree or disagree. You seem the sort of person who will not mind me speaking bluntly, as long as I am not rude or offensive ( and they are not attributes normally associated with me)-------so I have a feeling you will merely say philosophically something along the lines I feel myself : " Nice to have run into you, we're not "in the same groove" (as they said in the 60s:), we could never have any successful relationship;  but "peace and love" : and good luck in all you do; and all power to you to believe personally in anything you want to (and, as you are fortunate to live in England, OR Scotland...........you WILL be allowed to believe personally in what you believe").

Let's laugh a lot, especially at ourselves. Goodbye, Good Luck and Take care.................Best regards"

[marieann]

That's a very cleverly worded e-mail. You need different opinions on a forum people need to be able to say I don't agree with that, pleasantly of course.

I must admit yours are very different but I have heard similar in other places. I hope you're not too disappointed, Sandie, just carry on being yourself, you're fine exactly the way you are.

[JoJo]

We all have different veiws on all sorts of topics,sorry he decided we arn't right for his site I was looking forward to a few new people,but I am happy to continue , so carry on Sandie just the way you are

[Sandie Seward]

Thank you, Marie and Jo-Jo for your continuing support and your kind words.

Never mind eh? Perhaps we are "better off" without merging.  It's just that it seemed a rather good idea at the time.

[dorramae]

You probabley quite right Sandie, merging would not necessaryily benefit
our forum.
I feel sure you are a strong enough person to take  things in your stride,
I am sure  we all do not  always agree with your views on  everything
but forums are  for expresing views , aren't they?
So onwards and upwards,business as usual.

[browneyes]

oh dont take any notice of nhim Sandie,hes only a man.

[Sandie Seward]

   

[Ken R]

[browneyes]

just for you Steve.....IM SORRY....i forgot there were men here