The following has been discussed within the moderator team.
When people have a bad experience in their life the people in this forum can be relied on as a source of comfort. We rally round our own, which is a lovely thing. So when Kate had a horrible experience (that she did nothing to cause or escalate) she came here to talk about it, trusting that she’d receive understanding and support. Which she did receive.
However in our keenness to offer support and solidarity there was also a clear snowballing of animosity towards the other human party in the scenario. It was clear to everyone that the behaviour of that couple was very unusual, and shocking to experience. But it is not right or fair to attribute it to stupidity, attention-seeking, maliciousness etc. We can and need to support each other without directing venom at other members of the public.
This is also a good time to remind everyone that this is a public forum. Every word is instantly published, for the free perusal of anyone with an internet connection. Apart from that, do we want to be a group of people who cope with adverse events by getting nasty at the world?
Another thing we need to be careful of doing is turning the spotlight on ourselves when it should be on the person seeking comfort. That is not kind or selfless and it is not supportive.
We (the moderator team) will be amending the forum rules to make the consequences of trolling and rudeness clear, so keep an eye out for that.
This thread is now locked.
