Remember the good old days of wild and active social sites, being able to converse, to share, to kick up your heels in online delight at this new way of connecting to the world -- and the people in it? Well, those days are gone.
The sorry state of affairs that modern online engagement has taken is best exemplified by the infamous "tarot groups" at Facebook.
I have joined, at the writing of this post, five such groups, and I have attempted to post and share, as each of these groups appear to be set up as a social site, all the while encouraging posting and engagement. Following are the five groups and my experience thus far with each one.
1. Tarot Talk
Their rules:
- Being part of this group requires mutual trust. Authentic, expressive discussions make groups great, but may also be sensitive and private. What's shared in the group should stay in the group.
- No Hate Speech or Bullying
- Make sure everyone feels safe. Bullying of any kind isn't allowed, and degrading comments about anything will not be tolerated.
- Be Kind and Courteous
- We're all in this together to create a welcoming environment. Let's treat everyone with respect. Healthy debates are natural, but kindness is required.
- Do not ask for personal information. There is never a need for such things as birthdates phone numbers addresses to do tarot readings. if someone asks you for this information you can be sure no good can come of it and so do not give out this information about yourself.
- Tarot Cards only
- No Astrology No Numerology No Spells No fortune telling... This site is for Tarot Cards and discussion of cards. You may sell tarot services but no other.
- Advertise on your own posts... Do not advertise on anyone's post but your own. No exceptions. it just takes a minute to construct your own post if you can't do that you can't post here. Your comments will be removed.
- No spells numerology and No revenge... We do not allow retaliation or getting even or whatever get over yourself or take that shit show somewhere else... YOU WILL BE forever blocked if you bring that shit to my page. Also you would think the tarot cards only rule would cover it but apparently it does not.
- Limit 10 posts a day... No more than ten posts a day, if you flood my page with requests a I will assume you are a bot and you will be banned. If you really have that much stuff to post you should get your own page.
1) I have one post published here, and this post was a question asking if it would be okay to post one of my video tarot readings, because this tarot reading contained elements of the zodiac (see the rules). There are, I noticed a great many YouTube readings posted here.
*note that this post was published, but the admin who okayed the post did not answer my question. One of the regular members, bless her little heart, stepped in and left a comment stating that she thought the "no astrology" rule was for people who were completely engrossed in that aspect with no tarot involved (like creating birth charts, etc.). She went on to say that she's seen several posts that were YouTube tarot readings done through the scope of astrology, such as readings for a particular zodiac sign, and she thought it would be perfectly okay for me to post my video -- though she did note that she was not an admin.
2) My second post is pending. It is, of course, my video. This post was made a couple days ago, and I'm sure these people have normal lives outside of FB, so we'll wait and see what happens with no reservations. However, you must remember that my first post was approved, but without answering my question, which is a puzzlement.
2. Learn Tarot
Their rules:
- Be kind and courteous... We're all in this together to create a welcoming environment. Let's treat everyone with respect. Healthy debates are natural, but kindness is required.
- No promotions or spam... Give more to this group than you take. Self-promotion, spam and irrelevant links aren't allowed.
- No Hate Speech or Bullying... Make sure everyone feels safe. Bullying of any kind isn't allowed, and degrading comments about things like race, religion, culture, sexual orientation, gender or identity will not be tolerated.
- Respect Everyone's Privacy... Being part of this group requires mutual trust. Authentic, expressive discussions make groups great, but may also be sensitive and private. What's shared in the group should stay in the group.
- No Paid Readings... No paid readings shall be offered or promoted through this group anyone caught doing so will be banned from the group. This a group for shared growth and support.
- No Dm's or Inbox Requests... Asking members to direct or private message for readings is strictly against the rules. Sorry to be so strict but unfortunately there are many people who take advantage of this opportunity.
- Add Your Own Interpretations... If you would like to share a spread, please include your own interpretation along with the image of the cards. This will allow others to help you further and will also help improve your readings.
1) I posted a question here about whether it would be okay to post my YouTube tarot reading here, though I went into less explanation about the zodiac aspects. It was a paired down, more simple request. This request appears to have been deleted. I did notice several videos posted to this group.
2) I posted a hand-written reading, centering around one of the cards, and this was accepted and added to the discussion and has received positive feedback. The feedback, however, was not from an admin, but from one of the other members.
3. Love of Tarot
Their rules:
- No hate speech or bullying... Make sure everyone feels safe. Bullying of any kind isn't allowed, and degrading comments about things like race, religion, culture, sexual orientation, gender or identity will not be tolerated.
- No Promotions or Spam... Give more than you take to this group. Self-promotion, spam and irrelevant links aren't allowed.
- Be Kind and Courteous... We're all in this together to create a welcoming environment. Let's treat everyone with respect. Healthy debates are natural, but kindness is required.
- Respect Everyone's Privacy... Being part of this group requires mutual trust. Authentic, expressive discussions make groups great, but may also be sensitive and private. What's shared in the group should stay in the group.
1) I submitted a pending post asking if it would be admissible to post my YouTube tarot reading. This submission was deleted, and I was blocked from this group. What the heck.
When I submitted this post, there were about four questions that popped up, the kind you have to answer sometimes when you're just joining a group. I remember "What's your favorite tarot deck?" and "How would you rate your tarot ability?"... the four choices to this question began with "beginner" and ended with "expert". I ticked the "Expert" box. (I was not being facetious or narcissistic. I have over 30 years experience with the tarot, over 25 of those reading professionally, and I have authored a number of books on tarot and other new-age subjects with prestigious publishing houses.)
This FB group appears to be one set up basically for the self-promotion of a reader who calls herself "Mystic Star". She is also listed as the admin, along with "Jennifer", who is also Mystic Star. I've scrolled the discussion for this group and never came upon a post made by anyone else but Mystic Star, and I scrolled until my eyeballs couldn't do it anymore.
Now, there's nothing wrong with Mystic Star wanting to promote herself on her own page, but she should remove the option allowing someone else to create a post. (Am I the first person who's ever done so?) And why would she block me? -- *note... my FB posts to all of these groups are made with my legal public identity, just saying, so she could easily look me up and learn everything she wanted to know.
4. Tarot Interpretations
Their rules:
- No witches/wizards/witch doctors or spell casters.
- No scamming, asking for money, payments, donations.
- No bullying, harassment, intimidating behavior.
- Everyone who is being toxic will be removed.
- Give more to this group than you take... Self-promotion, spam and irrelevant links aren't allowed.
- No hate speech or bullying... Make sure that everyone feels safe. Bullying of any kind isn't allowed, and degrading comments about things such as race, religion, culture, sexual orientation, gender or identity will not be tolerated.
1) I submitted a post asking the same question about my YouTube video, whether it would be permissible to post it here, explaining the reading, etc. My post was deleted with no explanation given, however, I was not removed from this group, which I find puzzling considering their paranoia about witches.
Now, in all fairness, I did see the rules barring witches, etc., and to an extent I understand this as far as those irritating spamming "Dr. So & So saved my life and reunited me with my long lost love, here's his phone number and website..." Those spam posts are shitty, and they suck, and they give the rest of the real magickal pagan community a black eye.
However, in this modern era of hypersensitivity... Would the rule about witches and wizards be considered religious prejudice and discriminatory? I'm taking into account all the serious pagans out there who have quietly followed their spiritual path and live their lives to the best of their ability, embracing the religion they have chosen with dignity and decency. And would this be why I was not deleted? By deleting me, a witch and public figure, could this group be accused of religious discrimination?
5. Exploring Tarot
Their rules:
Posting... This group is to share your tarot spreads, opinions, experiences, and start discussions. These posts are welcome at all times but please share with respect and kindness at all times Please avoid posting political opinions. Our group is now international, please post and comment in English so that everyone can understand your post.
Selling... Please do not advertise anything for sale, or merchandise. We are not Marketplace. Do not use our group to solicit people to join your group, newsletter or membership. Please no promotions of any kind of services or consultations. Unless it is posted in the comments of the relevant posting days.
Spam Posting... We understand people want to share their businesses and blog posts but the group can become overwhelmed with spam. We are stating dedicated days for those posts and your links can be added in the comments section of those posts. I post/link per person on these special days. Tuesday for advertising your business. Thursday for sharing your blog posts.
Be kind and courteous... We're all in this together to create a welcoming environment. Let's treat everyone with respect. Healthy debates are natural, but kindness is required.
Solicitation of Funds... No Gofundme, fundraising, or Kickstarter posts, without the express permission of Admins.
Disclaimer... Any advice offered by admins or members of this group is not intended to be a substitute for professional advice.
Moderation... All posts are moderated daily and anything that does not comply with the group rules will be removed. If you have any issues with a member of the group or a post please make Admin aware by reporting the post.
No hate speech or bullying... Make sure that everyone feels safe. Bullying of any kind isn't allowed, and degrading comments about things such as race, religion, culture, sexual orientation, gender, or identity will not be tolerated. Rude comments and name-calling toward another member will not be tolerated and, the group member will be removed from the group.
No free readings... Please do not add a spread without an explanation or your insights and ask the group to read it for you. This post will be removed.
I have submitted three posts to this site, and all of these posts have been accepted and published:
1) There is the infamous (and oft repeated) post asking if it would be permissible to post my YouTube tarot reading. As of this date there is no response to this post from any member, nor did an admin answer this question. I did a short scroll, very short, at this point my eyes are about shot, and I did not see any videos of any sort. There also seems to be two individuals listed as "top contributors" who seem to do all or most of the posting, their posts very similar, one after the other after the other, even to the kinds of visuals that are included.
2) A tarot reading done around a tarot card for more insight into the whole thing.
3) Another reading done in such a way as to get a clearer picture and more clarifying look at a particular tarot card.
And there you have it, my dismal experiences with Facebook tarot groups. Quite frankly, this little sojourn into the world of tarot groups and their idea of socializing was exhausting. It's way too much work for what you get out of it, which is zilch in my opinion.
