Absolutely. Squeeze this cow 
Will a poll be eventually created of the other thread?
Ditto, although I don’t think anyone quite reads as much as you do, bear. 
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@trusted_hackrs are knowledgeable and active contributors whose judgement this community trusts, hence they are granted with moderating privilege, though it is not an obligation to moderate.
So the only use cases for this suggested new group would be to recognize:
- experts who are not active;
- experts who are not trusted as community leaders;
- experts who have an inherent conflict of interest in moderating (i.e. businesses)
This would add an extra layer of complexity to the organization and would require us to define new sets of standards and procedures. If this encourages more meaningful contribution, I am all for it. But think of this: most expertise is shown through their active, meaningful contribution, which would make them @trusted_hackrs unless you are a business. Most businesses are already active and they are financially incentivized to make productive contribution. So we are really recognizing non-commercial experts who are not trusted or are no longer active (because once an expert forever an expert?) and distinguishing expert businesses from non-expert businesses, which we have dedicated an entire Review category for?
I get the merits of the suggestion. I am just not sure if the added complexity is needed given how tight-knit this community is.
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You definitely have 1 and 3.
2nd point is catered towards destructive mods, I don’t think this applies for this forum.
This is true it would add complexity, but as leasing becomes more popular many new information seekers and people looking to understand it will join the forum, you will need more “experts,” to cover different topics.
I think at some point different subforums for different manufacturers will have to be made for questions adding more complexity.
It would be good to be able to tag @bmwhackr… or @volvohackr, etc etc… for more complex questions or clarifications, it might be a while away but worth keeping in mind.
Like I said it’s worth the discussion, pruning is a good option as is defining new roles.
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I think we should be able to veto trusted hacker status by vote as well. There’s one in particular that nearly every broker and dealer would vote to veto but not sure if that’s allowed lol
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Great suggestions. Will keep that in mind as we grow.
Moved this to the discussion thread:
First, let me say that I think this is ultimately a decision for @littleviolette and @michael, and if you have specific concerns about something a TH says to a user, I would encourage you to bring it to their attention.
While I’ve learned an awful lot in my first year as a TH, and we have more discussion folks don’t see than what is visible, it’s 99% related to moderation. I appreciate the distinctions being made here about that, so I won’t address in this comment.
I brought Ethan’s comment for discussion because we rarely talk about moderating each other, and while I respect the experience the other THs share, there have been times I’ve shared observations and they weren’t taken, in a workplace I absolutely would have said (in private) “you need to take a week off”, but also knew it wouldn’t have been received the way it was intended. We don’t have “slow mode” for people, just topics (otherwise there are a couple users who might also benefit).
What I’m inviting for discussion from Ethan’s comment, instead of revoking a TH’s status — who probably has helped many, many users — is how we might be open to feedback, and for the almost-daily posters being willing to logoff for a few days (without taking that personally) if suggested that we need a break?
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We have activity on every user profile. Quantity != quality
The discussion about trusted/vetted whatever that can’t moderate: we have so many non-mod categories now (sponsor, tech crew, etc) that I can’t imagine a new user understanding any more distinctions.
you don’t make it easy sir there isn’t a class on how to do it, trial and error. Even if you know what surgically good moderation looks like, and what buttons to press, that doesn’t mean you will be good at it (the inevitable criticism aside).
In all the discussion about “inactive THers”, let’s not forgot the one we lost this year, and why.
Many of the less active THs still participate when they can, and when they do it’s valuable. It’s not nearly as easy as it looks from the other side.
I think most of it is self explanatory.
I was just sayin in an effort to keep the tag for those inactive TH that a new role be designated.
Pruning works just as well though.
Back to the origination of this discussion though, we really don’t need any more mods, however “trusted hackrs” you can never have enough of.
That was my original point, and quite a few agreed even TH, maybe a more internal discussion amongst Michael, violette and the TH is necessary here, but that was my major point of contention.
Can you schedule me for the week off first? 
Kidding aside, I appreciate the introspection and am in support of an open discussion to invite constructive feedback.
Removing the “trusted_hackr” status doesn’t mean your contribution is no longer valued though. There are many participants who have contributed great insights but have never been nominated as @trusted_hackrs simply because they have never been consistently active. Many businesses have been invaluable participants too but they can’t be part of @trusted_hackrs because of the potential conflict of interest that comes with the moderation privilege. We have always seen @trusted_hackrs as community leaders – folks the community can look to when they need help. The recognition is also a way for the community to say thanks for their active contribution.
We can certainly reconsider how we approach the @trusted_hackrs membership. Perhaps the name is misleading. By no mean we are “demoting” a member when they are not re-nominated. Like you said, we all need a break periodically.
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Too much partying? It’s almost 3 AM your time…I would’ve been fast asleep long ago 
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I suggest considering removing moderator rights from the TH, keep all the current Trusted Hackr titles on the current TH’s and promote some of the TH’s to actual “Forum Moderator.”
Obviously, this is separate from “Admin,” but I do agree with a lot of the suggestions here that maybe Trusted Hackr title should not be a synonym for Moderator.
On a personal note, I was pretty stunned when the community first voted for me to be a Trusted Hackr because I was very active on trying to help as many people out as possible… My life has since changed and I’ve moved continents and I’m probably one of those TH’s who just don’t contribute as much any more. I know there’s a handful of PM’s in my inbox of people I’ve personally helped and that’s definitely made me feel appreciative of the community and grateful for the opportunity.
I disagree that we should separate Trusted Hackr into several specific “elite” titles. I don’t think we need more titles to go around, but there should be a clear distinction of who the moderators are apart from who the members are that have been acknowledged by the community for their contributions.
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Nah, I just click every “Unread” link 
Of course, but I only meant what @StingerTT said above. Not every TH is a moderator.
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I was half kidding when I said I need a break…
Thanks for the point of view. We gotta give it a deeper thought. In the meantime, please also consider this: most of us didn’t become Trusted Hackrs because we love moderating. We moderate because we are like you who love helping others but also recognize that for a community to sustain its health, we all need to shoulder, when we can, the dirty work of moderation. Very few people would volunteer to be hated by folks @ethanrs represents. Moderation is an onerous and thankless job. 
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I agree and I think moderators shouldn’t be voted by the community, rather appointed by the site owners/admins. Each choice should be carefully considered for many factors and selected because they’ll moderate to the best ability possible. Just my thoughts. You and @michael have already put a lot of time and effort into this site and shows.
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We never said we hated anyone, but some moderators are constantly condescending toward dealers and brokers and do little to moderate or add substance to the forum. We pay to advertise and would assume that with that subscription comes the right of not being harassed by power hungry mods.
We love 99% of the trusteds, there’s only 1 we would veto. So far there are 8 dealers and brokers that would vote to veto that one unnamed trusted hacker.
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This is an opportunity to speak up and be heard so use it…name him and give some examples.
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I won’t name the person publicly but if Michael & Victoria want to hear from the community we would all be happy to express our opinions in a group PM.
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It could be changed so that a moderator would need to be “seconded” by another moderator before being able to delete a post or lock a thread. This might slow down the “overzealous” moderation that some users are complaining about.
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