Spivs, respect and necessary change in the online Rangers community.

[Zappa 0]

written by Mr S. Funk

 

I read an excellent article titled "The Rangers Support - Unfit for purpose?" today which was written by one of the widely respected writers and bloggers in the online Rangers community, D'Artagnan. The article tackled some of the issues our support and specifically the online Rangers community is currently facing and it inspired me to write something on the subject too because the following quote from the article says almost everything I've been thinking myself in one powerful sentence:

 

If this online Rangers community is to fulfill its true destiny then it must change, because at the moment the schisms, historical feuds and bitternesses are holding us back from unleashing that potential on the real enemies of our club.

 

That sentence will no doubt ring true with more than just myself because it's something which has been brought up on the various messageboards time and time again. A common factor in the discussions is that we aren't all in agreement as to how serious or difficult to overcome the problems actually are. Some people think the problems are completely blown out of proportion and could ideally be easily swept aside for the greater good, while at the other extreme some think they're so deeply rooted that they can't ever be fixed or even slowly healed.

 

Others like myself believe that the truth lies somewhere in the middle because we know these issues exist, so in theory we should be able to identify what they are and tackle them head on. To do so though, perhaps we need to start with the small things and some of the root causes of the ongoing and seemingly unending warring between sections of our online support. We won't even all agree on what some of the root causes of the problems are, but we don't need to agree about everything, we just need to talk about them respectfully and try to reach some common ground on issues such as our use of language and respect.

 

I've seen a fair number of people mention that the constant 'spiv' references which are being used a lot at the moment to describe people in our club's boardroom are problematic, unnecessary and someone here on the Gersnet forum today even said they are undignified. The use of the word "spiv" to describe certain people who we've had and still have associated with our club and even sit in the boardroom wearing a club tie is very subjective, but depending on your point of view, in some cases it's possibly quite fitting by definition.

 

I do think that the "spiv" references are now becoming overused and even misused at times, but it's absolutely nothing in comparison to the language used by sections of our online support to describe men like Jim McColl & Paul Murray. Recently, I've seen those men regularly being referred to as "cunts", "rhats", "bastards" and all manner of vitriolic abuse and the most astonishing aspect is that's on a Rangers forum, not Kerryfail Strasse or one of the other sites full of hatred for Rangers. They literally get called almost every filthy name under the sun. Is that befitting of Rangers fans? Is it befitting of our support to abuse people who are trying to help get our club to a better and ultimately safer place?

 

Not only that, but this disgusting language has also been getting used to describe fellow Gers fans who've simply shown or voiced support for Jim McColl & Paul Murray. That's the sort of action from people within our own online community which is not only disgusting, but completely unacceptable in my opinion. Sadly, this behaviour goes almost completely unchecked in the name of freedom of speech and that same freedom which allows people to write moronic vitriol about fellow fans is pile driving a permanent wedge between sections of our online community. Despite not being our only issue by any stretch of the imagination, that must be regarded as an issue worth addressing.

 

It would seem that the most obvious way to look at starting to address it is for platforms which allow the disgusting language and behaviour to introduce rules and guidelines to tackle the problem and also to tighten their existing rules. Yes, people who are accustomed to constantly being abusive in their faceless online cocoon will moan about losing their freedom of speech, but frankly, if people can't be trusted to treat others within their own team's fanbase with acceptable levels of respect, then they deserve to have some of their rights reduced. If they don't like it, then tough. Needs must.

 

Please don't get me wrong because I know none of us are perfect or angels. I like having a wee dig, taking the piss and sometimes using colourful language myself just like a lot of us do, but when it's gotten to the stage of sections or pockets of our online community going to obsessive levels to use certain platforms to post abusive vitriol about fellow Rangers fans, then it's blatantly obvious that something needs to be done to help facilitate positive changes and to simply help tackle some of the root causes of the issues.

 

If nothing is done, then these issues will only escalate and the problems our online support face in working together as one will just get worse. It's already so bad, that I actually read things on a daily basis that make me wonder if they were even written by a Rangers fan because the level of obsession and hatred in the drivel being posted seems more like mad tims infiltrating the Rangers communities than anything else. Surely that's when we need to be saying to ourselves "Houston, we have a problem!!"?

 

Ultimately, it may just be as I suggest and that the onus is on the platform providers to alter or introduce the necessary rules and for forum admins, mods and posters to try to help mend these issues by setting standards and an appropriate example for everyone. I'll have to change my own ways too as many people will and the rifts and problems in our online support won't be magically fixed overnight, but for the love of Rangers, we need to at least try to do it.

 

A united Rangers support might yet be a pipe dream, but where there's a will there's a way.

 

We'll never know until we try, so why not start with language and a little respect.

[simplythebest 0]

Cheers for the mention.

[BrahimHemdani 1]

A well balanced and thoughtful piece Zappa; but unfortunately it's instructive that after 3 hours it has not drawn any substantive comment one way or the other.

 

Hopefully it will be picked up and acted on by other message boards.

[the gunslinger 3,366]

i've decided to be nice about all rangers fans in order to play my part.

 

i can't promise to be nice about the spivs but they aren't rangers fans.

[TheTinMan99 0]

The moderation of the big Rangers forums is laughable at times, for a multitude of reasons. I can imagine someone like Blin, or McColl having a cursory glance during a spare moment and thinking "fuck that". As for the fan divide, I doubt any amount of peacekeeping will bring the relevant factions together, even if most of the arguments are based on rumour and general internet bullshit.

 

In the grand scheme of things, 99% of stuff on the internet is complete pish. When it comes to debate and chat about Rangers, I reckon the percentage is even higher.

[bossy 0]

Just out of interest I read your contribution on both FF an RM. I thought the responses were instructive. While there were many posters on both sites who were in agreement with your comments, there were a few who clearly have a well of bitterness and hatred that rational discussion is not going to change. So it comes down to a willingness to moderate their excesses which, on one site in particular, appears to be missing.

[54andcounting 0]

I've always thought the online Rangers community have had a big say in things - was that not why C. Green had to chuck it?

[chilledbear 16]

GS posted this in an answer to me on FF, it was a thread about VB and their vitriol to MD, RST and FF.

 

______________________________________________________________________________________________

 

 

''The root cause is simple.

 

The bullying on FF from their leading lights was not tolerated and they were purged. Everything flows from that.''

 

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

Whether they would agree I don't know, but everything seems to stem from way back.

[SteveC 150]

All totally true and well put, Zappa. It is so straightforward it really shouldn't need to be said, however all internet forums attract nutters and people who cannot behave/you wouldn't spend 2 minutes trying to talk to in real life. Despite the plain common sense you speak, it will not be listened to. Some of the things written by so called Rangers supporters on the internet and their wild conspiracy theories re the likes of Paul Murray and the RST don't just make you despair, they turn your stomach.

The Tin Man is perfectly correct in his assessment above; it is a crying shame for the ones who put time, effort, control and restraint into using the internet properly, but trolls, show-offs and those for whom their virtual identity is the only one they have will always wreck public forums. And, as Tin Man notes, it would appear this is even more so, than as is the already sad norm,on Rangers' forums.

Edited September 26, 2013 by SteveC

[Frankie 8,150]

Some appear all too happy to muddy the line between free speech, censorship and abuse all too easily...

 

What I would maintain though is that those doing the abusing are few in number so we should not let the tail wag the dog in that respect. Haters will hate so we either bow to their tangents or we press on regardless. The best thing about the SOS lads is they seem to be doing the latter which is positive.