@Imperious:
I disagree. Deleting an entire post that has some value simply because a portion of it violates the rules is unfair. We didn’t ask you guys to be moderators, YOU wanted to be a moderator. Accept the workload. Just because it’s easier for you to dish out heavy handed judgement, doesn’t mean you should. Act responsibly.
The ENTIRE POST was a flame, so the ENTIRE POST had to be removed. And on top of that was move them to moderation, not delete. Edit function is only used to remove a few words ( usually f words or racial slurs) I prefer to edit frankly. None of Kurt’s posts were edited or removed. Just closed threads because so many people hit that “report to moderator” button and we saw the problem and took action, so yea we do our job.
The post to which you are referring was gone long before I entered this conversation so I am not privy to it’s content. I am neither saying that you should be handcuffed with respect to your JOB, nor am I citing this as a specific instance where I believe you were out of line in doing so.
The Commander, I believed, was speaking in general terms and so was I. I stand by my statement. Deleting an entire post when only a portion of it violates the rules is an unacceptable policy.
@Imperious:
This is the #4 rule:
4. Try to stay on topic. If a thread about a giant crab is started and the topic of the historical changes in earth’s gravity comes up in the dialogue, create another thread for discussion on earth’s gravity.
This is why those threads got closed. Go reread them and ask how in Kurt’s case did he address the OP or his topic? Then see how the conversation ended up into something totally different.
I’m not arguing the fact that those threads were off topic or not. I KNOW they were off topic But, yet again, here we come back to naming Kurt while the rest of the culprits go free. So Kurt is a repeat offender for leading threads off topic. Big deal. He certainly isn’t the first and he won’t be the last. A thread has probably gone off topic while I’m typing this post. Should we ASSUME that it’s Kurt’s fault? The rest of the mob is just as culpable as the guy who formed it. Just because Kurt has formed off topic mobs doesn’t mean you should single him out and let the rest off the hook.
And the rule states “Try to stay on topic.” It doesn’t say: “stay on topic or else the mods will lock the thread without warning”. I noted that there was only 1 warning issued amongst all 5 of those threads. I can’t see it being hard to give a couple of warnings to give the participants a chance to get back on topic. As long as they are adequately warned, I can’t fault you for locking a thread if members don’t comply.
@Imperious:
It is not really a thing of who was at fault for getting those threads closed, so much as a matter that Kurt was censored. Unfortunately, you need a post edited or removed to get designated “censored” and that never once happened to Kurt.
Locking a thread with a post saying <paraphrase>: “This thread is locked and it’s your fault, Kurt.” suggests that issuing blame was noteworthy. And locking a thread IS a form of censorship. You’re just censoring everybody for the sake of one person in this case.
And I believe that locking a thread should be a mod’s right. When you choose to use it is another matter.
The threads were closed and yes they went off topic and people complained and action was taken.
Come on, man. We both know that people weren’t complaining that the posts were off topic, they were complaining about the content of Kurt’s posts and they wanted him censored. And my instincts tell me that the people who “reported him to moderator” were probably the same people who were baiting and flaming him in those threads. Nobody’s finest hour, for sure. I actually applaud you for not censoring his posts, but, again, I disagree with you for locking the threads.
I don’t envy your position as moderator. When you get it right, there is rarely any credit given, but when you get it wrong, you’re going to take some heat. When you’re given the position of moderator, you aren’t given an iron fist and told to go smash things. You’re given a scalpel with a tacit suggestion to be discretionary and even-handed. The manner in which you do your job is as important as the job itself, in this case.
Look, this isn’t my fight as I have no horse in this race. I’m trying not to make any personal judgements. Judgement is someone else’s job. My only personal interest is in fairness. However, I do know that if you are heavy-handed you won’t make a lot of friends and if you are non-existent some people will run roughshod over these forums. You, as a moderator, are going to have to find a happy medium or this is a problem that will keep coming up.</paraphrase>
