ThereNoMore

I have been out west,no not Oregon, digging gold the last two months.

Today I checked on Fodors (my favorite travel place (even though they have deleted me a few times)and didn't recognize but one poster. Have all the old posters left or have you changed you names. I didn't even see a thing about Maui Heidi. LOL

M.M.

You've been out west longer then 2 months if you've just noticed that Maui Heidi is no longer with us.She's been outta here for about a year or more(R.I.P.). Did ya strike it rich or at least make some trip money??

xxx

The names have just changed. There are still daily posts starting with "I'm planning a honeymoon to Hawaii and I'm confused..." that are just begging for answers. Of course, a good travel agent can always help!

ThereNoMore

M.M. maybe it was a little longer. You know how it is = "time flies when you're having fun".

Since the presidential politics are over, I guess most everyone has gone back to travel. However, I did enjoy the Bush= Gore stress threads.

Yes, I did find it out there. Now have to determine "cost against recovery values".

JJ

I think a lot of the regulars have left because of the rudeness and trolls..

ThereNoMore

J.J. you are probably right. The last few weeks that I visited Fodors I noticed that a lot of regulars, and others, were letting trolls and rudeness destroy their personality. In a lot of cases, however, they brought it on themselves with snide remarks. I got dumped on for my poem to Maui Heidi but I can take it goodnaturedly as well as dish it out. I had fun with it. It's too bad some people wear their feelings on the tip of their tongues.

Cheers everyone.

Tip O'Tongue

Pthhhhhhhhhhhhhhhht!

sometimes

One person's "snide remark" is another's witty comment. Really, this forum would improve if posters were a little more tolerant of others and less defensive about opinions. After all, aren't opinions what this forum is supposed to be all about? I too enjoyed the political threads. Very revealing. Now, if only we knew who said what..........

XXX

I know just what you mean. I'm a very old poster...damn ninety-three. But it's hard for me to remeber who's who. I do recollect when this site was realy something. Back before computers even. Back when we had to have that little guy Jeff run our postings from house to house telling everyone that the DC3 was landing on Tuesday or Wednesday depending if they had enough gas in Wichita.

Remember when we used to get to smoke on the plane and the Stew would still give us booze even when we were bombed out of our minds? And if your baby cried everyone either ignored it or smiled and said how cute the little rascal is? Those were the days.

Damn, I remember when "One Traveler's Opinion" bitched about the foot-traffic-tie-up at the Polo Grounds. Took only fifteen pages back then. These days seems like it goes on forever.

You're absolutely correct. This site's going downhill like a snowball with a corked-rubber Plutonium center.

kalena

I used to answer questions much more frequently on the US forum (since 1997), until it became apparent that when I did, a whole lot of "banish the travel agents from this forum" and "keep Hawaii separate" posts appeared. I found that ridiculous because I have no connection to the travel industry - I'm just a 30-year Hawaii resident that loves to travel and knows a few restaurants, etc. in an area that I know well. (Although getting called a SLICK travel agent may have been some kind of back-handed albeit off the mark, compliment.)

When Hawaii got briefly segmented out, several real travel agents started openly soliciting there. It seemed that with less people monitoring the Hawaii board, they could pitch their message more effectively. Many more "email me directly" and "this is my web site" kind of posts appeared.

So, I have become more of a receiver of information here on the U.S. forum. Like some Europe posters, I get rather tired of the "where shall I spend my honeymoon"
and what is the "best" hotel kind of questions. I like questions about Hawaii that go to learning something beyond the superficial. We have a unique culture as well.

But, although the questions may be repetitive, they seem genuine enough to me. Check the Europe forum for repetitive questions, too. Face it, people like to go to Hawaii, and maybe they post their questions here?

So xxx: who are you and what's your problem?

Jill

I have seen rather innocent looking questions get turned into nasty free for alls that have gone so far off the main question it is ridiculous. Add to that all the nasty, political threads and the non-travel related stuff that clogs up the board and very little monitoring from Fodor's, no wonder the regulars have left.

junk

You can often get old posters through frame shops.

Lori

What I wouldn't give to have my old SNL cast poster that I took with me to college in '78. I may have to check those old frame shops.

FedUp

The 2 posters above are the reason everyone has left. They think they are funny, but they come across as sarcastic jerks and their answers have nothing to do with the question that was asked. It's too bad Fodor's doesn't either require registration or monitor this forum....

junk

To FedUp: You are right. I thought I was funny. I didn't mean to be a "sarcastic jerk" though. I just thought a little levity was needed here. Ironically, you may have demonstrated why this forum has problems: No sense of humor. I would suggest adding a little roughage to your diet.

xxx

Kalena, haven't you noticed that just about ALL of the Hawaii posts sound just alike??? (Honeymoon confusion, which island, which resort, blah blah blah) I do realize that many people go to Hawaii. I personally love the place and have been several times. HOWEVER, I don't believe there are as many people posting about Hawaii as the rest of the US combined and sometimes the ratio really is 50-50 or higher in Hawaii's favor. (Tonight it's not. I just counted!)

kalena

xxx:

Thanks for your civil response. From what I have seen, it goes in spurts. Maybe a lot of June weddings? Hawaii questions have been almost non-existent over the last day or two. But watch a whole lotta fake posts come on just to rebut this.

I agree a lot of the questions are not particularly creative, but maybe first-time travelers on their honeymoon ask precisely the same kind of questions?

My point is that the travel agent angle is just so ridiculous, and I have seen it drive some "old" posters away. Most major hotels and resorts are fully booked during peak months anyway. So how's a mention of a hotel name or an island here going to make any tangible difference?

But I guess that until we register, anyone can say anything without backing it up, and the Hawaii "travel agent" conspiracy theory just won't go away. I wish that travelers could post here without getting harrassed. It DOES seem so against the intent and spirit of this board, harassment, that is...?

As I said before, check the Europe board to see how many times "Paris hotel" comes up daily. It too is a popular travel destination, and often the questions on that board are no more creative than those you find here. But, are we to exclude first-time travelers from posting here because we don't like their questions?
k

NoNames

Not to start a fight here, but I am a B&B owner who recently had a guest who LOVED the advice of Maui Heidi. My guest said Heidi's advice was among the best she received.

I hate to admit that I don't know much about Ms. Heidi or her evil money-making ways However, I do agree that we're quick to jump on the travel agent bandwagon around here.

maxine

Junk-Just because you didn't like what someone posted doesn't mean you have to throw insults back. It has nothing to do with a sense of humor, but with maturity and class. That is why the regulars have left, because people are attempting to be humorous and they come across as rude, insulting and sarcastic. And, why must people stray from the original question to interject their warped sense of humor?

IMO, respect and niceness have deteriorated on this board. Maybe some type of registration or stricter monitoring would help alleviate this and the trolls would go elsewhere.

junk

Maxine: Oh, please. My "adding roughage" can hardly be considered a serious insult. Geez. Does anyone smile or laugh anymore? Must everything be considered a competition and hurtful? For me, travel is supposed to be fun. Where is the humor? If we are required to register, I hope we will all be required to disclose our level of tolerance. Low tolerance = just the facts, don't try to make me smile. High tolerance = willing to give and take. etc.