Playseum and religion?

[Anonymous]

i think the story is interesting. How a mom blog --or any blog for that matter--can create viral rumors that affect businesses. I would read it. Let the reporter do her job. If you are such an expert, go get a job in journalism or media law. Jeez.
And what's all this Post bashing? Yeah, the style section bites but it's still a great paper in a time when everyone's an expert/blogger/know-it-all

[Anonymous]

One of my kids is in K at a public elementary school not too far from Westbrook, and frankly I'd be pretty disappointed if there was a school-sponsored field trip to this facility. Not because of the religious issue, which I just can't speak to, but because as several posters already pointed out this doesn't sound like a terribly good use of public elementary school time and resources. Nothing against the Playseum, but I'd expect an elementary school - particularly one in this area with so many amazing FREE museums and other historic and cultural sites - to offer something a little more challenging than a pay-for-play space that is geared toward the toddler set. Honestly even if my toddler's daycare wanted to go on a field trip there, it would give me real doubts about the judgement of the administrators. Happily both our public K and my younger child's daycare have tended to go with the great, if somewhat obvious, destinations like the Zoo, the Smithsonian, or more off-the-beaten track options like a metro ride to National Airport.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:i think the story is interesting. How a mom blog --or any blog for that matter--can create viral rumors that affect businesses. I would read it. Let the reporter do her job. If you are such an expert, go get a job in journalism or media law. Jeez.
And what's all this Post bashing? Yeah, the style section bites but it's still a great paper in a time when everyone's an expert/blogger/know-it-all

Except that there is considerable doubt that this is true in this particular case. If you start with a faulty premise, it's not going to get better from there.

And as for "letting the reporter do her job" -- she is. The fact that people may disagree as to whether it's a worthwhile story - well, that's what makes free speech so great.

[Anonymous]

I think the PP has an excellent point. There were a lot of posters like me who read the thread and then the religious comments on the playseum website and decided it was not the kind of place for me. There were a lot of posters, even 2 mom families that said it was great and would go back.

The thread about telling someone they were going to hell was not believable. I remember thinking it was bullshit at the time.

To assume it is one dumbass poster idriving away her business is silly. It seems much more likely that she limited her clientele with her own website and has become yet another small business to take a hit during difficult economic times. Even one of JW Tumbles classes (Little Maestros) cancelled all their classes for summer due to low enrollment. This is just the reality of the situation, no matter who we would like to point the finger at.

[Anonymous]

I went back and looked at the original threads though honestly did not read all the posts. There were a number of posts a month before the one in question raising the religious issue on the website, mentioning the RIOT group, a shelf full of bibles and reporting hearing christian rock music at the front desk. There were posts complaining about bad grammar on the web site (ah the DCUM grammar and spelling police..now there is a story..) and not liking the bios of staff saying they were SAHMs if they were working. There were lots of positive posts too but its just not accurate to say that the religious issue was only brought up by the poster who said she got into a heated argument with the owner. This post was much more sensational but it certainly didn't start the rumor.

If all the previous posts had been positive, no mention of concerns over religion, and then all of sudden the collective impression changed after the poster in question then that would be more of a death by Internet type story. Even after the post, there was a good contingent of people who didn't believe that poster or didn't care but still focused on the website. There were a good number of positive posts and a good number of I will not go there posts. To me both threads seem to have a mix of opinions, most of them having to do with the website or other aspects of the business.

IMO the owner just may have misread her market. In areas outside DC or Maryland, most people would not be too concerned about religious overtures but she is located in one of the most liberal and politically concerned areas of the country. If the owner changed the language on the website she might attract some of the posters who were turned off by it. Its her business and completely up to her what she wants to put on her website but she can't be upset that some people choose not to go because of it or a blog that points out what is up there. If you have a narrow market to begin with, you are located in a high rent district, and you have small margins, it just may not make sense to narrow your market even more.

Its also worth taking a look at the success/closure rate of competitors or similar places to plan your business model. We had a drop in play place out in our area that was not as nice Playseum but still the only place in the entire area. It went of our business last year too. I had talked to the owner since I was surprised because it seemed busy when we went. She mentioned that she hadn't realized that her clientele tends to nap at the same time and since her place, like Playseum, wasn't well suited to older kids, they didn't get alot of business after 3pm when the younger kids would be waking up. She basically had good business between 9am -noon but was very slow from noon -6pm. For customers, it meant it was often very busy when they were there which some people may not have liked either.

The model that My Gym or Gymboree follow with very expensive classes may protect them more on margins and keeps the crowds down so people who can afford it come back. It would be great for a business to find a model that would work for a drop in place because that is so much more convenient. I hated paying for the expensive classes because on top of the expense we would end up missing some if DC or one if his siblings was ill.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:i think the story is interesting. How a mom blog --or any blog for that matter--can create viral rumors that affect businesses. I would read it. Let the reporter do her job. If you are such an expert, go get a job in journalism or media law. Jeez.
And what's all this Post bashing? Yeah, the style section bites but it's still a great paper in a time when everyone's an expert/blogger/know-it-all

Nobody's saying the reporter can't do her job. Just pointing out different ideas. That's what the thread is for.

I don't think the viral rumors affected this particular business at all. I think it's more the economy, high costs of business and the owner's own words on her website.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:20:07, don't practice in that area, could she sue for more than the income that would have been generated by the field trip plus fees? this seems like one of those cases that the aclu could become involved in. wouldn't truth, the poster's understanding of the convo, be a possible defense? as a side note, if jeff starts turning over ip addresses in a noncriminal case, what will be the impact on dcum?

i think her main problem is that the space appeals to a fairly narrow age range and the weather has gotten warm. a lot of the paper mache stuff and toys have not held up to commercial use and it looks more shabby. a lot of people don't like mixing religion and a kids play place which also limits her client base. i'm guessing that there is a connection to that elementary school, it's just not the kind of place that k classes would be taken on a field trip. seems like the kind of business that does well in the cold months and is lean in spring/summer, just like gymboree or silver stars. i think an article in the post or a lawsuit would be bad publicity for her, it would just highlight the religiouslity more.

Heck, you do not need an article in the post. This thread has already done enough damage. We drove by the Playseum last weekend, my husband was the one who noticed it and mentioned that it would be a great place to go especially during the winter months. I told him that I had heard of it but did not know much about the place but would look into it. I never did look into it, but after following this thread and looking at the website and I am so sure that I would be rushing to go there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:20:07, don't practice in that area, could she sue for more than the income that would have been generated by the field trip plus fees? this seems like one of those cases that the aclu could become involved in. wouldn't truth, the poster's understanding of the convo, be a possible defense? as a side note, if jeff starts turning over ip addresses in a noncriminal case, what will be the impact on dcum?

i think her main problem is that the space appeals to a fairly narrow age range and the weather has gotten warm. a lot of the paper mache stuff and toys have not held up to commercial use and it looks more shabby. a lot of people don't like mixing religion and a kids play place which also limits her client base. i'm guessing that there is a connection to that elementary school, it's just not the kind of place that k classes would be taken on a field trip. seems like the kind of business that does well in the cold months and is lean in spring/summer, just like gymboree or silver stars. i think an article in the post or a lawsuit would be bad publicity for her, it would just highlight the religiouslity more.

I would hardly expect DCUM to fold over that. Most people aren't concerned about being dragged into court over their posts.

[jsteele]

Anonymous wrote:this seems like one of those cases that the aclu could become involved in. wouldn't truth, the poster's understanding of the convo, be a possible defense? as a side note, if jeff starts turning over ip addresses in a noncriminal case, what will be the impact on dcum?

There is no evidence to support the charge that a conversation about Jesus ever took place. The originator of that story has never bothered to follow-up. The owner says it didn't happen. No other person reports anything remotely similar occurring. The conversation allegedly occurred on a day the business was closed. In that regard, the message was posted on Dec. 25 saying the conversation took place the previous day. As I understand it, Playseum was closed from the 23rd meaning the soonest the conversation could have taken place was Dec. 22 or three days before the message was posted. So, while one might mistake "the day before yesterday" for "yesterday", I am skeptical that such confusion could extend to to "two days before yesterday". If there is any impact on DCUM, I would hope that it would be that people do not post libelous messages.

That said, the owner of Playseum posted a response some time ago. If she had any interest in pursuing legal action, I assume that I would have heard about it a long time ago. Also, I am fairly regularly getting letters from lawyers and/or threats of legal action from people and/or businesses who don't like what is being said about them here. I have either ignored or laughed at such threats because, in those cases, what was involved was a simple opinion which is something I am willing to stand behind much more than an accusation that appears to be totally false.

[Anonymous]

Help...since when is it a crime to say that children are a gift from God??? I can't help but feel that the owner is being discriminated against because she is a christian. Do you not go to a Chinese Food restaurant because the owner is buddist or stay away from delis if you are not jewish?? How sad and narrow minded not to take your child to a place because the owner is Christian and thinks children are a gift from God and credits God with giving her the vision for the business. I guess the bottom line is...don't go if you aren't comfortable with a christian running a business, but Christians are people...not places.

[Anonymous]

Wow. I can't believe the posters. Give the reporter a break already -- making crazy assumptions about how she's writing her story and others proceeding to tell her how to do it. She asked a question trying to fill out her story -- that's what reporters do, explore every angle. The Playseum controversy had its beginnings here. It's a logical place to start. Sounds like an interesting story to me. The ignorant cynics abound!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Help...since when is it a crime to say that children are a gift from God??? I can't help but feel that the owner is being discriminated against because she is a christian. Do you not go to a Chinese Food restaurant because the owner is buddist or stay away from delis if you are not jewish?? How sad and narrow minded not to take your child to a place because the owner is Christian and thinks children are a gift from God and credits God with giving her the vision for the business. I guess the bottom line is...don't go if you aren't comfortable with a christian running a business, but Christians are people...not places.

How sad and narrow minded of you to assume that all the parents in this town beleive in God in the first place. I am agnostic and could not care less about anyone's else's religion (as long as it is not force on me), but I have sympathy for the parents who are turned off my the text of the website and any attempts at conversion (if it is true).

[Anonymous]

Just saw a interview on Fox t.v. news with the lady that is in charge of playseum. I am a 68 year old mom and gram mother. And I dont see anything wrong if this lady who is in charge of playseum that wants to state that children are a gift from God. This is always what I was taught. And for me to hear that others are offended with that just makes me wounder what is wrong with people these days???

No one wants to hear about God and that is what is wrong with our country at this time. Is seems to me that there is always some radical that thinks someone who speaks anything about God should be banned for life.

What rock did these people crawl out from under? Maybe they wern't raised and taught about God when they were young I dont know. But I dont think they need to condem someone who does beleive in God or mention that "All children are a gift from God"
Where do these people think they came from to begin with?

I say shame on you for critizing this lady. THIS IS WHAT IS EXCATLY WRONG WITH OUR COUNTRY THS DAY AND AGE.