West Somerset Railway General Discussion

I can understand where Ian is coming from, any Volunteer that has put in the time he has, might be reticent to criticise the persons who hold power to remove their passes, i can fully understand that, and i think that fear is why some are not publicly speaking out, they risk loosing something very dear to them, their hobby, For some its " it won't effect me" no matter who owns it, as long as i say nothing, i can continue to enjoy my role .
But what this fear does, it prevents bad management from being held to account for their actions, and strengthens the hand of that body, see a compliant workforce, isn't going to speak out, and rock the boat, but there in lies the seeds of your own destruction, if you stay silent, then you can't expect people to come to your aid if you become the target organisation , which could very well happen, imagine post JPP, If the next chairman is pro S&DJRT, and your organisation did nothing to help them, and they decide your presence on the railway is not welcome, what then?

 

Depends on the functionality within the fundraising platform chosen; however on the Bluebell one at least (which is Virgin Money Giving), when you donate, you get the choice as to whether you want your name to show or not; whether you want a message or not; and whether you want the amount donated to show or not. So it is completely in the donor's control, not that of the receiving organisation. Other platforms I have used in the past generally allow the same.

So no great conspiracy or attempt to shame people into donating I don't think.

Tom

 

You’ve provoked comment from other posters, and some clarification of the policy of SCC based on what is in the domain. As NatPres is not an official channel of communication, there’s no right to a response, and a demand for one in 24 hours is pretty aggressive by any standards.


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If you want the Mods to react to a post you must press the ‘report’ button. Otherwise they mightn’t see it.

 

Ian has put in many thousands of hours as a very committed supporter of the railway. You it seems are in need of a chill pill. You really need to step back Re Read your comment and then apologise to Ian and the rest of people who are trying to save the railway be it WSRA, steam trust, DEPG, Station groups and independent websites. All you are doing is appearing to all right minded people as a Troll who posts to get a reaction. Congratulations you have got a reaction from me and the reaction is that I think you are a {fit your own word here)

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Your statement seems to imply therefore that you do not consider the S&DRT to be a 'supporting organisation' of the WSR, which in effect is probably the Plc meant in its 'cuckoo' press release. However I will give you the benefit of the doubt and assume that you meant otherwise.

As an ex-S&DRT member of some 35-odd years, I will admit there have been times when the two parties did not always see eye-to-eye, but overall I would say there is no doubt that the Trust has supported the WSR during its time at Washford.

 

I would say there is a difference between being a supporting and affiliated organisation and being an integral part of the structure of the WSR. For instance the GWSR is comprised of GWSR Plc who run the trains and GWRT who provide the volunteers, but we have separate groups owning locomotives who also contribute to the site, some of whom have been here since the very beginning. They are very much a part of the GWSR and it would be just as unimaginable to evict the 2807 group as it is to evict the S&D trust yet I wouldn't regard being a member of the 2807 group as being the same as "being a member of the GWSR".

 

I simply stated what my interest in the situation was in case anyone thought it relevant

 

I note you do not include the S&DRT in the list of groups. Have you apologised to them for their treatment?

What you’ve done in the past counts for nothing if you think letting and supporting another group being evicted and doing nothing about it is helping the railway.

Stop clutching at pearls and playing the victim.

 

Indeed he has and he and his two predecessors in the role were fine honourable chaps who to the best of my knowledge never drew a penny in salary nor did they employ their relatives and nor did they seek to benefit personally. It was a pleasure to help all three of them and in a number of cases some of their directors who were similarly above reproach.

How times have changed.

 

I doubt it if they had their operators license taken away by the court after irregularities about vehicle maintenance and certification.

 

That may have been the case for one of JJP Holdings’ bus companies, but not the others as far as I know.

 

All true, but yet you show no spark of sympathy for the individuals caught in a difficult position. A little respect goes a long way.


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I have a lot of sympathy for the people who have stood up and been kicked out. I have a lot of sympathy for the groups and their volunteers who have been threatened with eviction.

I’ve sympathy with those who find themselves fearing that they could be next.

I have little sympathy for those who decline to help or support those who have been kicked out or who are under threat.

I have very little sympathy for those who could do something but don’t.

I have no sympathy for the opportunists and careerists who are happy to see others lose the line they love because they think this will help them in the jungle that is WSR politics. Such people get no respect.

 

Do you not think the latter 2 of those groups might significantly overlap with the first?

 

I normally like to stay away from the arguments on here - there are enough people doing that without me -but, reading your post you seem very well informed.

So may I ask you how you know "...the rest of people who are trying to save the railway be it WSRA, steam trust, DEPG, Station groups and independent websites." are trying to save 'the railway' and in what way are they doing so? Note I emphasise 'the railway' not the Plc or the board or any groups or individuals but the whole 'one railway' which, as far as I can remember, includes the S&DRT.

 

Yes but there are degrees of power and ability so hence degrees of sympathy. Not all groups or individuals are as powerful. Some are better able than other to do something and if they don’t then why should anyone have sympathy for them?

Let’s take the example of a group that say owns a significant shareholding and contrast that with say a small restoration group. I have every sympathy with the small group that has little power, I have very little sympathy for the large potentially powerful groups that are not helping to protect the small groups by defending the small groups and supporting them.

If the big groups turn a blind eye to what is going on, or choose to support what is going on then they get no sympathy.

 

Excuse me, but I have not. And I am sure there are others who, by virtue of their words of support for the S&DRT (including on the other thread), have not done so either.

After all, if people did not regard the S&DRT as a member of the WSR family, why then are they getting so cross about the eviction?

 

Sorry, point taken.. What I meant was that some people who invoke the family but omit the S&DRT from that family. I find it hypocritical to invoke the idea of the WSR as a family while doing nothing or supporting the eviction of the S&DRT. I will go back and change that because as you say there are many who are supporting the S&DRT.

 

Rodney,

That personal swipe at 'Monkey Magic' was not appropriate or called for, and is also hypocritical if it was you who reported a post by me about you to the Mods that then was removed as being 'personal'.

And generally, whilst I have been at work today as a 'key worker', I think it is correct that Trustees and board members of the WSR PLC, WSRA, and WSSRT, are asked awkward questions as to the current situation with regard to the SDRT, and this includes Ian Coleby as the longest serving Trustee of the WSSRT and previous WSR PLC Chairman.

So I support 'Monkey Magic' over all this.

I know that Ian Coleby is a long serving WSR volunteer, historian and author, and much respected and thought highly of by very many, but if you hold office as a Trustee of the WSSRT at the current time, you cannot expect to have a nice comfortable ride over all this. I am not picking on Ian - it is just that Ian is the only WSSRT Trustee I am aware of who contributes to this forum. If Chris Austin (WSSRT Chairman) posted on here and contributed, or Steve Williams, then the restraint I think that has been shown would no longer apply.

Ian Coleby did have the opportunity today to clarify matters on behalf of the WSSRT board of Trustees, and my view is he 'muffed it'.

Cheers,

Julian