The Mods Are Jerks

 

I have a bone to pick with the the Tolkien community: TCG (Tolkien Collector's Guide). 

It is a fantastic resource, filled with tons of info, along with news of upcoming books, and some great photos. 

But there's one issue: the moderators are hypocritical assholes. 

I admit, I've had my fair share of rough history with some of the moderators (one in particular....) so there might be some bias here. However, each time I've done something they didn't like, it was addressed in a condescending manner: sorry, I don't read the rules every time I log on. Oops, I forgot to use 'search'....However, the gist of it, is this: If something happens on a topic that they don't like or they don't agree with (even if you're correct and they're wrong) your comment will be removed, and your account could vanish. That, and they don't seem to grasp that the way that their site is set up is in message board style....which encourages and engages discussion.

One of the big 'no nos' of the site is that they don't like to deal with 'what ifs' or 'guesswork'. Well, guess what? Everything on that site is time & date stamped, and if you address what you're saying isn't fact...what's the fucking issue? You tihnk if someone comes back to a topic five years from now and says "I hope Book Name gets released into Style 1..." they'll take that as truth? Also, if it's a message board site, why the fuck don't you have specific category or thread dedicated to speculating, guess work, opinions etc? It's been stated that their Discord allows for that. So....why is it ok on Discord and yet not your actual site?? 

I'm going to use a recent example. This one is the one that infuriated me the most.

I do not own The Lord of the Rings 70th Anniversary Edition (yet....? Maybe Santa will surprise....) someone in this thread: https://www.tolkienguide.com/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?topic_id=6804 mentioned that the leather binding wasn't that great. I did not recall it having any leather binding, and I looked it up online (I went to Blackwell's initially, but was rudely pointed out that Blackwell's isn't the publisher: well no shit, though they still have the info sent to them from the publisher....) to get the product description which does not mention leather.

Here it is below:

"Three-volume, deluxe slipcased hardback set of The Lord of the Rings, illustrated throughout by acclaimed Tolkien artist, Alan Lee. Features exclusive new paintings and dozens of drawings appearing for the very first time, together with three removable art cards and two foldout maps.

Since it was first published, The Lord of the Rings has been a book people have treasured. Steeped in unrivalled magic and otherworldliness, this work of sweeping fantasy has touched the hearts of young and old alike. Across its many editions, in the region of 100 million copies have been sold around the world. And no edition has proved more popular than the Centenary edition illustrated by award-winning artist, Alan Lee.

Now, for the first time since its publication in 1992, this illustrated edition has been revised and expanded, with a number of brand-new paintings and more than 50 illustrations added by the artist.

Readers will be able to follow the complete story of the Hobbits and their part in the quest of the Ring – beginning with Bilbo’s Long-expected Party and culminating in the dramatic climax between Frodo and Gollum atop Mount Doom – while also enjoying more than fifty full-page colour paintings and numerous illustrations which accompany this epic tale.

This new hardback set of this beautifully illustrated work features brand-new cover designs by the artist. The three volumes have additionally been enhanced for the first time with sprayed edges, and are housed in a custom-built, illustrated slipcase stamped in silver foil with designs created exclusively by Alan Lee. They are accompanied by three removable art cards, and two foldout maps of Middle-earth drawn by Christopher Tolkien."

I don't see any mention of 'leather' in there...do you? When I pointed that out, wanna see what happened to my comment??

I guess the pissy mod didn't like the fact that I was right. Later on, it was discovered that the publisher actually changed the description sometime after that edition had come out. How would I know the description was changed...if it got changed??

But it gets better. Why? Look what that asshole said later on in the thread:

Oh, I'm terribly sorry, Mr. Underhill: your comment should be deleted, as it does not contribute in any meaningful way to the conversation. How is that allowed, whereas if I were to say something along those lines, my comment would've very likely been deleted? Oh: it's because you're a mod...right? 

That is the type of nonsense I mean. 

Again, fantastic website: but run by a few jerks with a power trip (I will say that "onthetrail" has a very level head on his shoulders: I've had a few chats with him.

So use TCG: but I urge you to not engage with it: do not create an account, do not post or comment....I find that the reddit "tolkienbooks" to be far-more level headed. Just a head's up for engaging with TCG. 

So they may be able to shut me down on their site....but on mine, I'm calling your bullshit out. You may very well-versed in the field of Tolkien but you know what? A jerk is still a jerk.   

PS: I typically don't use foul language, though the treatment I've received from certain users on that site has made it pretty tricky to suppress and I wanted to be as honest and direct as possible.