It occurs to me, although this of course a 'private' forum in certain senses, that Moderators are picked by other Moderators, its a closed shop for the general forum public. And its all a bit cloaked in mystery as to how people are selected, thus making the Mods a 'behind closed doors' sort of Executive Committee who are accountable to no one but themselves....

What about having the general forum public being allowed to nominate and elect moderators, so the whole process is fully democratic, and perhaps give the whole forum a sense of unity, as opposed to the 'behind closed doors' model we currently have.

Just an idea.....technically the forum Government is not a democracy, and I think annual elections for Mods would be a really great idea and provoke a lot of discussion. Strict forum rules of course about election campaigns and polls on the forum, but it would allow anyone a chance to put themselves forward as a candidate, with voting and polls to track progress.....

The moderating team are chosen on a number of criteria of which popularity is not important. It is far more important that a moderator is able to keep their temper and act objectively when things get heated than it is for them to be voted in by forum users.

The moderating team are not chosen by the rest of the moderating team however, so on that you are mistaken. New members of the team are selected based on posting style and presence on the forum by the admin team and the forum owner.

This is a private forum and the position of moderator is an invitation only position. That is not likely to change in future.

Closing.