I think it’s really icky to see a post get shadow edited by staff that had some fair criticism. I’ve avoided certain members intentionally because they made me uncomfortable with their posts—staff included. What’s the point of having an official feedback thread if you can’t even leave legitimate feedback ?
The Official Feedback Thread
- Thread starter Jeremy
- Start date
I have not once made those same comments again. I’m not asking for forgiveness but seeing it brought up time and time again sucks because clearly it’s still fresh in people’s minds. I’m asking for people to be a little more accepting of the fact that people mature later in life because 22 is still very young in some people people’s eyes.
Hi Mick,
I really appreciate this response. It really means a lot to me that you heard what I said and I want you to know that I am hearing you, too. It sounds like it was just a miscommunication and not an intentional act of homophobia. I'm glad that you were able to understand why I felt that way in the past.
Editing it sounds like a great idea. Thank you so much for being open to what I had to say.
While I’m glad people have grown and learned from their mistakes, this does not erase them. I don’t think it’s fair to force others to accept this if they’ve been hurt previously by certain members (or staff).
You can’t just pop a balloon & then unpop it. It’ll always remain popped & you have to work to earn the trust that people will believe you won’t do that again. It’s easier to destroy something than it is to build it up.
The absence of transparency in moderation is concerning, especially in a forum where minors can participate. What is the best course of action if a staff member is the one “breaking the rules” by posting inappropriate content?
You can’t just pop a balloon & then unpop it. It’ll always remain popped & you have to work to earn the trust that people will believe you won’t do that again. It’s easier to destroy something than it is to build it up.
The absence of transparency in moderation is concerning, especially in a forum where minors can participate. What is the best course of action if a staff member is the one “breaking the rules” by posting inappropriate content?
Sharksheep
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Well it's definitely not naming them cause it'll just get shadow edit out. Don't want to expose the staff to the dangers of accountability.
The fact that this staff member is still here is extremely concerning since the post content is extremely damaging to minors and those with specific traumas. I remember people responded they were hurt that that staff member thought it was completely appropriate thing to share.
This is a piece of feedback, I guess regarding rules, not me trying to be inflammatory, 
Why do some users posts get edited to remove certain information, for example names getting removed for privacy or whatever - but some users don’t, for examples a certain post in this thread from a member of staff naming and shaming a user? Surely the rules should apply to everyone. Could we have some clarity on this rule if I’m misunderstanding it?
Why do some users posts get edited to remove certain information, for example names getting removed for privacy or whatever - but some users don’t, for examples a certain post in this thread from a member of staff naming and shaming a user? Surely the rules should apply to everyone. Could we have some clarity on this rule if I’m misunderstanding it?
Sharksheep
(⨀🞃 ⨀ )◄
With the staff censored to 
protect them here's the content in question so people who don't know me don't think I'm just blowing up over a minor thing as well as bit of what someone responded with.
protect them here's the content in question so people who don't know me don't think I'm just blowing up over a minor thing as well as bit of what someone responded with.Unfortunately the staff member in question has deleted the main body of their post which contains important context but if my memory serves me correctly the post was a vent about the staff member regrets doing an adult activity with someone recently but I am sorry if I made a mistake and am wrong but the post still says a lot about things we shouldn't be posting on a forum with 13 year olds.
Also I have censored the staff's name to be nice and protect people's privacy
Also I have censored the staff's name to be nice and protect people's privacy
I've been following this thread, and there are two recurring statements being made by staff that I find frustrating. Others have voiced these same frustrations, but I wanted to reiterate them as concisely as possible.
1. "It's understandable to be upset that a friend is banned."
The majority of people commenting are not friends with the banned user. In fact, several users who have commented have never interacted with the banned user at all. Framing the reaction in this thread as "friends being upset" comes across as downplaying people's concerns.
2. "We wouldn't ban a user based on the perceived tone of their post."
I'll be honest - by this point, many of us have seen the messages sent to the user regarding their ban. Based on those messages, it certainly does sound like tone/bluntness is the primary reason for the ban. If this is truly not the case, then I believe the reasoning has not been communicated clearly.
1. "It's understandable to be upset that a friend is banned."
The majority of people commenting are not friends with the banned user. In fact, several users who have commented have never interacted with the banned user at all. Framing the reaction in this thread as "friends being upset" comes across as downplaying people's concerns.
2. "We wouldn't ban a user based on the perceived tone of their post."
I'll be honest - by this point, many of us have seen the messages sent to the user regarding their ban. Based on those messages, it certainly does sound like tone/bluntness is the primary reason for the ban. If this is truly not the case, then I believe the reasoning has not been communicated clearly.
gotta say, it's laughably pathetic how some member(s?) of staff seem to be keen on scrubbing inconvient history from the record, in what appears to be a brazen attempt to quietly sweep it under the rug. especially when no private details are shared within
To add to this - if you’re aware that a lot of us have seen the ban message and the perceived reason for banning them isn’t the actual reason, there has been a clear miscommunication along the way with the userbase. I’m not saying you need to air the reasoning in this thread, if anything the opposite - but I don’t think it should be down to the banned user to have to contact staff (which has been suggested). If you’ve made a communication error regarding a ban surely you should reach out to the user / unban them / clear up the ban reasoning.
Currently it just seems unclear and anyone that questions it gets shut down or the thread is closed.
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I just want to say that I don't agree with censoring the names of staff members. You are staff. You are responsible for the forum and regular members look up to you. This has perks and it also has downsides. If you're comfortable sitting in the spotlight when people are praising you, you have to be comfortable sitting there when people are unsettled by or disappointed with your behavior.
I agree with Jeremy that it's not his responsibility to drag this member out, and I sympathize with the staff member in how anxiety-inducing it is. Nevertheless, it troubles me how this person continues to avoid accountability, and is protected by the staff, even to the point of not being held to the same standards as would be expected of other members.
I agree with Jeremy that it's not his responsibility to drag this member out, and I sympathize with the staff member in how anxiety-inducing it is. Nevertheless, it troubles me how this person continues to avoid accountability, and is protected by the staff, even to the point of not being held to the same standards as would be expected of other members.
I only censor names because I risk being silenced just like Sharksheep did for telling the truth. I wouldn't censor them if that wasn't the case. The staff member who made this post knows what they have done wrong and if they don't feel comfortable coming on stage and discussing what they've done then at the very least it's not necessary to silence Sharksheep for trying to tell everyone what the staff has done.
this just further proves the point that there's such an imbalance in how this site is moderated.. you edited out the last few posts in lightning speed and yet we're forced to see transphobia/homophobia/racism up for hours/weeks/indefinitely because everyone is too busy
With all due respect, and this is not a personal attack but fair criticism — you keep mentioning this spiel about your actions over and over very recently. I'm gonna take a stab in the dark and say this was because of my last post, which I've made very clear was not an attack or praise for any member at all but a criticism with how staff handles situations. It really was not about you. I don't know how else to word it. If I've hurt you, I'm really sorry. To hurt was not my intention at all, but to spark discussion.
You keep saying "seeing it being brought up time and time again"... by whom? Is it not by you? I never saw the past issue being brought up by anyone else recently, yet you somehow manage to bring yourself and your past mistakes into the conversation again. Again, to reiterate, I'm not gonna lay out whatever happened years ago. It's done. I'm not here to bring up past drama that's already been resolved, because it's not necessary to the conversation. What's important right now is discussing with staff how we feel about the rules and regulations of this site and how it's being implemented.
I don't know you personally so again (and I have to say this over and over) this is not an attack on your character, just some comments on recent posts and recent events. I hope we (not just you and I, but TBT as a community) can discuss topics with more maturity. Frankly I've been moving further from this site as a result of people (certain members and staff alike) not being tact enough to deal with mature, adult topics. lots of parenthesis here because I want to really emphasize the point of my post. I hope my messages come across.
hey this is the full ss with names pls dont delete it!! and this was my full response!! both of which got deleted off the forum right after it happened. im not even active on here, havent talked to seliph in probably 4 year, but im very angry!!!! if we can publicly call him out in this thread BY THE OWNER of the forum, we shouldnt have to censor mods names out of posts to avoid them being deleted! for context he was 28 at the time this was posted. thank for not deleting this guys!
also other uncensored post!
ibb.co
not good if it was bad enough to have to delete later. :c
i know this forum has had issues with stuff like this before, it needs to start being taken seriously. when will you learn
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also other uncensored post!
Screenshot-2025-05-23-162352 hosted at ImgBB
Image Screenshot-2025-05-23-162352 hosted in ImgBB
ibb.co
i know this forum has had issues with stuff like this before, it needs to start being taken seriously. when will you learn
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fairysyndrome
love & support trans people. / free palestine.
will say my piece now that the thread is unlocked. i think Crash put it perfectly (as they always do), so i would like to note that first and foremost. especially regarding my personal feelings on user accountability & personal issue with the neurodivergence ruling coming across as almost ableist.
i also think closing the thread for a week was both an incredibly inappropriate response to negative user feedback and also incredibly telling re: staff continuing to miss the mark with all user statements about accountability and refusal to accept criticism.
as Jeremy directly referenced me in his post and misconstrued the point i was trying to make (and as the staff member it was about is currently on-topic re: criticism) allow me to elaborate.
Crash said this in their post, so i'll highlight this:
There are also(4) (5) (6) many articles as well discussing her entire history with this topic. It is not a secret. She's even stated previously she believes support of Harry Potter is support of her, whether you personally do agree with her or not - support of her IP (again, especially financially) is thus bigoted due to this. this is the point i was trying to make. no matter the staff member's own identity, his continued support of Harry Potter (and his attempting to draw our participation into this support by making an official interaction for a sitewide event from 2023, years after Rowling's views began to become public, Harry Potter-based) feeds into bigotry, which helps keep The Belltree Forums an unsafe site for other trans members. especially trans women, which this staff member is not, as Rowling's bigotry is particularly focused on transmisogyny.
if this still reads as a personal attack instead of a criticism i had intended to be level-headed and about a legitimate topic / issue (that noticeably our banned member was also vocal about, as he posted about this as recent as April 2025), then i do apologise as i can do nothing more to make it clearer than this already is. again - not seeing the forest for the trees.
regarding the staff member currently under criticism for inappropriate conduct on a 13+ website (the same staff member my initial criticism was directed towards) as well, i have my own screenshot to share i took back in 2021 when i was active. dug it out of my Discord archives because i had sent it to a friend at the time commenting that i thought it was inappropriate for an Animal Crossing forum - it seems this was far from the only issue involved with this staff member regarding this kind of topic.
I have the uncensored screenshot with his name on it as well if needed, but thought at least for the sake of grace i would crop it out for now.
all in all, the staff responses - while Destani and Mick's were both kindly worded and the personal accountability taken from them regarding what they have said is genuinely and sincerely appreciated - are not enough and are not doing anything to address the issues members are raising. many of us were not friends with the banned user. many of us have seen him directly singled out in this thread alone, contrasting Jeremy's claim no one is singled out. several people have seen the ban message he received and verified tone was in fact a point involved.
if The Belltree Forums is not able to be a forum where members are able to voice their discontent - as many have done so completely levelly - without claims of personal attacks or taking things too far in the Official Feedback Thread meant for these sorts of discussions - then it should not at this point in time exist as a forum. not at least as one that allows for such a wide scope of topics.
(1) = "Political views of J.K. Rowling." Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_views_of_J._K._Rowling. Last edited May 8th, 2025.
(2) = Rowling, Joanne. "J.K. Rowling Writes about Her Reasons for Speaking out on Sex and Gender Issues." J.K. Rowling's In My Own Words, https://www.jkrowling.com/opinions/...ns-for-speaking-out-on-sex-and-gender-issues/. June 10th, 2020.
(3) = TOI World Desk. "How JK Rowling funded a legal battle that curtailed trans rights in UK." Times of India, https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com...-trans-rights-in-uk/articleshow/120424732.cms. Last edited April 20th, 2025.
(4) = Gardner, Abby. "A Complete Breakdown of the J.K. Rowling Transgender-Comments Controversy." Glamour, https://www.glamour.com/story/a-com...e-jk-rowling-transgender-comments-controversy. April 24th, 2025.
(5) = Morrow, Brendan. "A timeline of JK Rowling's anti-trans shift." The Week, https://theweek.com/feature/1020838/jk-rowlings-transphobia-controversy-a-complete-timeline. November 2024, last edited May 23rd, 2025.
(6) = Romano, Aja. "Is J.K. Rowling transphobic? Let’s let her speak for herself." Vox, https://www.vox.com/culture/23622610/jk-rowling-transphobic-statements-timeline-history-controversy. March 2023, last edited April 18th, 2025.
i also think closing the thread for a week was both an incredibly inappropriate response to negative user feedback and also incredibly telling re: staff continuing to miss the mark with all user statements about accountability and refusal to accept criticism.
as Jeremy directly referenced me in his post and misconstrued the point i was trying to make (and as the staff member it was about is currently on-topic re: criticism) allow me to elaborate.
i am sincerely sorry that this staff member dealt with personal attacks. however, that does not make the point i was trying to make any less valid and is in fact a perfect example of your continued issue of being unable to see the forest for the trees - in other words, your tendency to focus on how a post is being said instead of what is being said. it is also a perfect example of that one famous tweet about pancakes and waffles.
Crash said this in their post, so i'll highlight this:
the member in question being trans does not excuse him from participating in bigotry, which support of Harry Potter - especially financial support, considering the thread i noted he had created was about purchasing and playing the new game - inherently is. JK Rowling is known as one of the most widespread and influential bigots of the modern age. Her views are so well-known she has an entire Wikipedia page dedicated to her politics with an entire section dedicated to her history of transmisogyny.(1) She has posted entire essays on the subject (2) and has donated to transphobic movements regarding the legal definition of what a woman is.(3)
There are also(4) (5) (6) many articles as well discussing her entire history with this topic. It is not a secret. She's even stated previously she believes support of Harry Potter is support of her, whether you personally do agree with her or not - support of her IP (again, especially financially) is thus bigoted due to this. this is the point i was trying to make. no matter the staff member's own identity, his continued support of Harry Potter (and his attempting to draw our participation into this support by making an official interaction for a sitewide event from 2023, years after Rowling's views began to become public, Harry Potter-based) feeds into bigotry, which helps keep The Belltree Forums an unsafe site for other trans members. especially trans women, which this staff member is not, as Rowling's bigotry is particularly focused on transmisogyny.
if this still reads as a personal attack instead of a criticism i had intended to be level-headed and about a legitimate topic / issue (that noticeably our banned member was also vocal about, as he posted about this as recent as April 2025), then i do apologise as i can do nothing more to make it clearer than this already is. again - not seeing the forest for the trees.
regarding the staff member currently under criticism for inappropriate conduct on a 13+ website (the same staff member my initial criticism was directed towards) as well, i have my own screenshot to share i took back in 2021 when i was active. dug it out of my Discord archives because i had sent it to a friend at the time commenting that i thought it was inappropriate for an Animal Crossing forum - it seems this was far from the only issue involved with this staff member regarding this kind of topic.
all in all, the staff responses - while Destani and Mick's were both kindly worded and the personal accountability taken from them regarding what they have said is genuinely and sincerely appreciated - are not enough and are not doing anything to address the issues members are raising. many of us were not friends with the banned user. many of us have seen him directly singled out in this thread alone, contrasting Jeremy's claim no one is singled out. several people have seen the ban message he received and verified tone was in fact a point involved.
if The Belltree Forums is not able to be a forum where members are able to voice their discontent - as many have done so completely levelly - without claims of personal attacks or taking things too far in the Official Feedback Thread meant for these sorts of discussions - then it should not at this point in time exist as a forum. not at least as one that allows for such a wide scope of topics.
(1) = "Political views of J.K. Rowling." Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_views_of_J._K._Rowling. Last edited May 8th, 2025.
(2) = Rowling, Joanne. "J.K. Rowling Writes about Her Reasons for Speaking out on Sex and Gender Issues." J.K. Rowling's In My Own Words, https://www.jkrowling.com/opinions/...ns-for-speaking-out-on-sex-and-gender-issues/. June 10th, 2020.
(3) = TOI World Desk. "How JK Rowling funded a legal battle that curtailed trans rights in UK." Times of India, https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com...-trans-rights-in-uk/articleshow/120424732.cms. Last edited April 20th, 2025.
(4) = Gardner, Abby. "A Complete Breakdown of the J.K. Rowling Transgender-Comments Controversy." Glamour, https://www.glamour.com/story/a-com...e-jk-rowling-transgender-comments-controversy. April 24th, 2025.
(5) = Morrow, Brendan. "A timeline of JK Rowling's anti-trans shift." The Week, https://theweek.com/feature/1020838/jk-rowlings-transphobia-controversy-a-complete-timeline. November 2024, last edited May 23rd, 2025.
(6) = Romano, Aja. "Is J.K. Rowling transphobic? Let’s let her speak for herself." Vox, https://www.vox.com/culture/23622610/jk-rowling-transphobic-statements-timeline-history-controversy. March 2023, last edited April 18th, 2025.
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I would definitely love to see an explanation to these comments from the staff member in question (alongside the Valentines hoopla, which I think hasn't been addressed yet? correct me if I'm wrong), because talking about your sex life — even if censored or non-explicit — should cross some line on a forum where pre- and young teens are allowed on, right? Was the specific staff member reprimanded by other staff, or at least warned even? Because as long as there is no accountability from the staff member, this may set an example to other adults to talk about their sex life, which is highly inappropriate. If the rest of staff is somehow okay with these comments by another staff then I guess nothing is stopping me from talking about my private life with my boyfriend too (whom I have a very consensual and respectful relationship with. we have a 1 year age gap. lol) (also I mean I won't talk about it but. the fact that i CAN and others can is a problem)hey this is the full ss with names pls dont delete it!! and this was my full response!! both of which got deleted off the forum right after it happened. im not even active on here, havent talked to seliph in probably 4 year, but im very angry!!!! if we can publicly call him out in this thread BY THE OWNER of the forum, we shouldnt have to censor mods names out of posts to avoid them being deleted! for context he was 28 at the time this was posted. thank for not deleting this guys!
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also other uncensored post!
not good if it was bad enough to have to delete later. :cScreenshot-2025-05-23-162352 hosted at ImgBB
Image Screenshot-2025-05-23-162352 hosted in ImgBB
i know this forum has had issues with stuff like this before, it needs to start being taken seriously. when will you learn
I think I speak for at least a few people here when I say it feels like a lot of specific concerns (that go beyond the ban that started this discussion) have not been addressed by those involved, with many of these concerns being related to publicly visible posts. I don’t think anyone here wanted this discussion to take the path it did in raising these concerns, either. I appreciate that the staff has made efforts to make statements, but to be completely honest, it has been disheartening to see the majority of these statements come from other staff members and often discuss tangential issues rather than the specific posts in question.
I understand moderating can be time consuming and difficult—especially now. That said, given the nature of the discussions that have taken place tonight and a perceived lack of staff intervention, I think it would be beneficial to have an active, open dialogue.
