Just wondering how many, if any, SF people there are who never write a word. There must be lots of them.
Speak now, silent people.?
Just one response to any post, from any topic, no matter how old it is.
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I read a lot of the subjects, I donāt always reply 
sometimes I get scared by some comments and donāt wish to get involved in sometimes some scary reading just love to read about people in general living here in France. thinking we are lucky to be living here .
Sorry to be a voyeur lol lol 
Hugs
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Youāre very thoughtful to reply, Ann, and I will take your comment to heart.
Itās easy to lose sight of the fact that this ādinner partyā is not just a chummy intimate conversation, but one which is enacted in front of an āaudienceā of hundreds, at least potentially, and some of the comments made may be upsetting to others.
Thank you for speaking up.
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Getting scared by some comments and donāt want to get involved is perfectly understandable. I have just conducted a little research, you could call it a āBlind Tastingā , by dipping in a couple of times over the past few weeks. Obviously Brexit is the prevalent concern of members and is discussed more often than any other subject, on occasion with a certain amount of panic. The political side of Brexit unravelling in Parliament also, IMO, makes āscaryā reading. There are also a small group of members who dominate much of the ongoing narrative about myriad subjects, posting over and over again about their own areas of interest. Very much like being at oneās first dinner party prior to sitting down with a glass in one hand and a canape in the other trying to follow the conversation of regular guests banging on and not being able to get a word in edgeways without fear of appearing rude or being belittled for your views. (e.g; Being āsquishedā or "squishing ).
Itās also apparent that when a previously silent or new member does enter into the fray their views are sometimes given rapid and unsympathetic dismissal which doesnāt encourage folk to join in.
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Hi Dan
I have been a member for years now
Totally agree with your comment
Still love the website though
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Can I gently remind folk about āflaggingā .
If they consider a reply is āinappropriateā (and perhaps off-putting) it might be an idea to āflagā said postā¦
That way, @james gets to take a look ā¦ and ā¦do whateverā¦ if necessary.
Also worth remembering that sometimes the Poster does not realise how his/her words come over to others. 
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Useful info., thank you Stella! Iām sure flags are explained in detail, somewhere, but your comment has saved me the effort of searching. .,
.āā¦hmm hmm I have said to myself often, what is flagging?..,ā
ā¦also why do you put @ somebody? please, while you are thereā¦
Jeanetteā¦ if you wish to specifically include someone in your post - you need to put their āusernameā ie for me it is @smw. If you type @smw it pulls up a selection of folk (or just me in my case) and you click on, to choose the person you actually intend to include.
@jeanette will pull up nearly a dozen - so I have to look at each and decide which one is āyouā @anon78757855 - hurrah.
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ā¦and flagging is used if you feel someoneās post is inappropriate. Just by clicking on the flag below.
Flogging is not yet availableā¦
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Oh, I donāt knowā¦Iām sure we could come up with a nice flogging sessionā¦ but, please can we wait until it is a bit coolerā¦ 
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ā¦the flogging costs extraā¦
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Iām a silent member, I read a lot of the posts but donāt join in.
It feels a little like butting in to a group of friends as it seems to be mostly the same folks contributing and Iām not sure Iād have anything worthy to add. But as Eleanor Roosevelt had it 'no one can make you feel inferior without your permission ā so perhaps we silent people just need to be brave.
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@Julia261 - definitely join in, it is always great to hear what people think.
You have completed your full name and photo so even Head Girl @Stella wonāt tell you off! (winky smiley face if only I knew how or could see the difference between the small yellow dots!)
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Julia, I just invited myself to the diner party:wink:
I donāt often have much to say (especially about politics:zipper_mouth_face:) but usually find a subject where I can throw in a comment 
As somebody said, sometimes comments can seem caustic, but an emoji often takes the sting off.
Jump inā¦if you fancy?
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Go for it go for it 
the more the merrier!
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And perhaps some of us cocky types like me who always chime in with comments of blithering idiocy should put a sock in it, more like! 
Donāt go away Julia, youāre already attracting likes 
like a picnic attracts wasps 
(youāre not a wasp!).
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Oh no! Blithering idiocy, is only one of a billion self put-downs that are to be discouraged, in every potential poster. OK! āYOUā (not you Peter) might well be the worldās worst nit wit, half wit, uninformed twit, but please, allow everyone else to make those judgements, while you feel perfectly free, to attempt to put into words, whatever comes to mind, as a thought youād like to share!
One of the most precious assets of internet communication is the freedom it gives, to stay or go! To click the button that best suits the moment. Remember always, no one is obliged to read a single word of your posts. Each of us is free as a bird, to fly away and leave your pearls of poetry and wisdom wherever they may fall. Forgotten.
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@anon78757855:. āForgottenā
A very strong old Viking verb conjugation I think?
They forget, they forgot, they have forgotten. 
Latin equivalent obliviscor, wimpish by comparison. 
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Itās probably me - but l do think that the thread banter between you and jeanette_leuers can be the sort of diatribe and back and forth that puts people off from joining in - itās as though youāre having a private conversation which is displayed here and doesnāt really make any sense to the rest of us at all. What do you think?
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Perhaps you might not have noticed but there seems to have been an increase in people joining for the sole purpose of trolling.
If people want to stay silent then that is their privilege, but why should people who donāt join in the debate stop others from expressing their opinions or showing that there may be another side to a discussion.
This site is not a free for all, as you well know.
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