What's wrong with provoking board-wars?

BrainGlutton · #1 06-30-2012, 05:53 PM

I've seen warnings against that on the SDMB many times over the years, not always from Mods, most recently in this thread, and I still don't get it. Board-wars are fun! Especially against mentally-unarmed enemies! Nobody actually gets killed. And it's all free publicity for the SDMB! And it's against basic SDMB fighting-ignorance principles to care that it's also free publicity for the other dumbass board -- all ideas should be confronted. So why not do it?! What are we so afraid of?!

Ludovic · #2 06-30-2012, 06:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BrainGlutton

And it's all free publicity for the SDMB!

I agree that in a logical world board wars would be tolerated. But there are those on this MB who think we are too tolerant of racists (for instance) as it is, and that the mere existence of them on this board means that the SDMB as a collective is racist. That feeling would only increase if more trolls or board warriors popped up every so often.

I'm not saying that it's an accurate feeling, because the trolls and idiots are not accepted into the board culture despite being allowed to post here. I'm just saying that the feeling of over-tolerance exists, and that if we became even more inviting, the larger scale of invasions might affect the reputation of the SDMB by the population at large (such that it exists at all,) not merely from the board's offenderati. In other words, we might get free publicity as a place where racists and anti-evolutionists come and post wacky shit as opposed to a place where ideas and factual questions are mulled over.

Tastes of Chocolate · #3 06-30-2012, 06:31 PM

If there was a way to keep the war neatly bottled up in one or two threads, I'd be all for it. Instead, it can easily spill over to any number of threads, and then I, as a poor innocent bystander, have to wade through the carnage.

In other words: it's a pain in the ass to most of us, having to read the idiotic comments that make up a board war.

Loach · #4 06-30-2012, 07:16 PM

A board war isn't going fight ignorance. Or whatever you want to call it. It just means we get flooded with trolls that have no intention of having a conversation. It's an annoyance and just work for the mods. Their ban hammer might break. I don't know why you would want it.

Oakminster · #5 06-30-2012, 07:31 PM

Yeah....let's you and him fight.

If you really want to engage your "enemies", there is nothing to stop you from visiting conservative boards. I strongly suspect you'll get your ass handed to you in debate there, just as you usually do here, but hey, feel free to try.

On the other hand, if what you want is a safe, comfortable place...ie, here, where you can lure members from other boards, only to provoke them and then run to hide behind the mod's skirts, that would be a pretty lame ass thing to want.

voltaire · #6 06-30-2012, 07:41 PM

If I had to put it succinctly, I'd say it's because the board's purpose is to "fight" ignorance, not to fight ignorants. There are plenty of places on the net better positioned to do the latter.

New Deal Democrat · #7 06-30-2012, 07:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by oakminster

yeah....let's you and him fight.

If you really want to engage your "enemies", there is nothing to stop you from visiting conservative boards. I strongly suspect you'll get your ass handed to you in debate there, just as you usually do here, but hey, feel free to try.

Ludovic · #8 06-30-2012, 07:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oakminster

I strongly suspect you'll get your ass handed to you in debate there

If by "getting your ass handed to you" you mean "instantly banned when you dare to politely disagree" then I concur.

Marley23 · #9 06-30-2012, 08:02 PM

For one thing it's a pain in the ass when this board is flooded with people who are here to cause trouble and troll and insult people rather than have a civil discussion, and the latter is supposed to be what this board is about. Starting a debate is not the same thing as picking a fight. If you want to go bang your head against the wall and argue with people on fundamentalist or white supremacist sites, go for it. Do not use this message board to rally people and coordinate trouble somewhere else. In addition to being inconsiderate, it means people here are going to have to deal with the mess you're making.

Ethilrist · #10 06-30-2012, 08:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oakminster

Yeah....let's you and him fight.

If you really want to engage your "enemies", there is nothing to stop you from visiting conservative boards. I strongly suspect you'll get your ass handed to you in debate there, just as you usually do here, but hey, feel free to try.

On the other hand, if what you want is a safe, comfortable place...ie, here, where you can lure members from other boards, only to provoke them and then run to hide behind the mod's skirts, that would be a pretty lame ass thing to want.

Particularly when that's kind of the definition of trolling.

Exapno Mapcase · #11 06-30-2012, 08:14 PM

Not only that, but the OP is proof of why drunk posting is discouraged.

Little Nemo · #12 06-30-2012, 08:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BrainGlutton

I've seen warnings against that on the SDMB many times over the years, not always from Mods, most recently in this thread, and I still don't get it. Board-wars are fun! Especially against mentally-unarmed enemies! Nobody actually gets killed. And it's all free publicity for the SDMB! And it's against basic SDMB fighting-ignorance principles to care that it's also free publicity for the other dumbass board -- all ideas should be confronted. So why not do it?! What are we so afraid of?!

The problem is that it quickly goes from an argument with a fool to an argument between two fools. Some of us prefer rational discussions and like this board specifically because it doesn't encourage mindless shouting matches.

John Mace · #13 06-30-2012, 08:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BrainGlutton

I've seen warnings against that on the SDMB many times over the years, not always from Mods, most recently in this thread, and I still don't get it. Board-wars are fun! Especially against mentally-unarmed enemies! Nobody actually gets killed. And it's all free publicity for the SDMB! And it's against basic SDMB fighting-ignorance principles to care that it's also free publicity for the other dumbass board -- all ideas should be confronted. So why not do it?! What are we so afraid of?!

You mean like the time you invited a bunch of Stormfronters over here? Yeah, that was a barrel of fun.

Earl Snake-Hips Tucker · #14 06-30-2012, 09:43 PM

For those of y'all who are too young to remember this, some years back some of our esteemed members thought it would be a good idea to troll a message board dedicated to the "Left Behind" series. Here's where it started on this board. At least I think. Anyway, this board was deluged with Behinders for a while, and it wasn't a pretty sight.

cochrane · #15 07-01-2012, 02:33 AM

It creates drama, which is what the Pit is for. If people start inciting board wars, there's no guarantee they'll be confined to the Pit.

Der Trihs · #16 07-01-2012, 03:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BrainGlutton

I've seen warnings against that on the SDMB many times over the years, not always from Mods, most recently in this thread, and I still don't get it. Board-wars are fun!

For you; you aren't the mods, who will be the ones who have to deal with cleaning up the spam, trolls, socks and possible hacking/DOS attacks. Warfare is a lot more fun when someone else has to deal with the fallout.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oakminster

If you really want to engage your "enemies", there is nothing to stop you from visiting conservative boards. I strongly suspect you'll get your ass handed to you in debate there, just as you usually do here, but hey, feel free to try.

Unlikely; most likely they'd just ban him the moment he even hinted he didn't totally agree with their particular set of dogma. Conservatives tend to be terrible at debates, in large part because they avoid having any.

Oakminster · #17 07-01-2012, 03:51 AM

nevermind

Attack from the 3rd dimension · #18 07-01-2012, 07:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by John Mace

You mean like the time you invited a bunch of Stormfronters over here? Yeah, that was a barrel of fun.

Link, please.

Also, in the big world of the internet, we're Lichtenstein. We're a small board of people who write clearly. You could very quickly lose your board is a sea of LOLOMG.

I noted when I skimmed the Satan thread about the Left Behind board that most of the posters are either banned or no longer post. It was like walking around Gettysburg.

Baron Greenback · #19 07-01-2012, 10:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by John Mace

You mean like the time you invited a bunch of Stormfronters over here? Yeah, that was a barrel of fun.

Oooh, a link would be nice, or maybe even a rough date/year.

Exapno Mapcase · #20 07-01-2012, 10:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Der Trihs

Unlikely; most likely they'd just ban him the moment he even hinted he didn't totally agree with their particular set of dogma. Conservatives tend to be terrible at debates, in large part because they avoid having any.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oakminster

nevermind

I'm sure that's not what you meant but my IRONY meter just pinged so loud the trucks at the fire station thought it was a four-alarmer.

Marley23 · #21 07-01-2012, 11:13 AM

There is some discussion of the Stormfront thing here:
http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/...hreadid=115540
http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/...hreadid=139768

Tamerlane · #22 07-01-2012, 11:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BrainGlutton

Board-wars are fun!

No they aren't.

Quote:

What are we so afraid of?!

Being annoyed beyond my usual quota. Also eyestrain from rolling my eyes too frequently.

BrainGlutton · #23 07-01-2012, 12:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ludovic

If by "getting your ass handed to you" you mean "instantly banned when you dare to politely disagree" then I concur.

I did try FR once and that happened inside of a day.

BrainGlutton · #24 07-01-2012, 12:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by John Mace

You mean like the time you invited a bunch of Stormfronters over here? Yeah, that was a barrel of fun.

Yes, it was.

BrainGlutton · #25 07-01-2012, 12:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Attack from the 3rd dimension

Link, please.

This one. 2004.

Marley23 · #26 07-01-2012, 12:53 PM

Are you really saying we should get rid of this rule because you enjoyed one thread eight years ago? I don't think you're going to have a rational or enlightening discussion with people who post to the board mentioned in that Pit thread, and it sounds like the disputes with the Left Behind boards and Stormfront produced much more aggravation than rational debate.

mister nyx · #27 07-01-2012, 01:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oakminster

Yeah....let's you and him fight.

If you really want to engage your "enemies", there is nothing to stop you from visiting conservative boards. I strongly suspect you'll get your ass handed to you in debate there, just as you usually do here, but hey, feel free to try.

On the other hand, if what you want is a safe, comfortable place...ie, here, where you can lure members from other boards, only to provoke them and then run to hide behind the mod's skirts, that would be a pretty lame ass thing to want.

He says he wants to start a fight with posters from a board called n*****mania.net.

This, to you, is an example of a "conservative board"?

Guinastasia · #28 07-01-2012, 01:11 PM

Board Wars are more for places like Something Awful, or 4Chan. Places that have a history of that kind of thing. I once participated in a retaliatory attack at SA when I was a mod at another board. However, it was a completely different atmosphere from here, and it wasn't about "serious discussion", but trolling, plain and simple.
(Do a search for "something awful huggy wars")

Unless you're looking for an out and out trolling opportunity, it's not going to work.

Oakminster · #29 07-01-2012, 02:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mister nyx

He says he wants to start a fight with posters from a board called n*****mania.net.

This, to you, is an example of a "conservative board"?

He does not mention any particular board in this thread, and I can't be arsed to follow him around to see what has put a bee in his bonnet this time.

bucketybuck · #30 07-01-2012, 02:16 PM

The worst thing about board wars it that you get drive by posters who just copy and paste from articles and then just post that, instead of offering opinion or analysis.

Post after post of walls of text just copied from elsewhere. Do we really want to encourage that?

John Mace · #31 07-01-2012, 03:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BrainGlutton

Yes, it was.

You're not a mod who had to chase down and ban the miscreants that you invited onto this MB.

aldiboronti · #32 07-01-2012, 03:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BrainGlutton

....... Board-wars are fun! Especially against mentally-unarmed enemies! Nobody actually gets killed. And it's all free publicity for the SDMB! And it's against basic SDMB fighting-ignorance principles to care that it's also free publicity for the other dumbass board -- all ideas should be confronted. So why not do it?! What are we so afraid of?!

Well, if your idea of fun is going around poking hornets' nests with a stick, then maybe. And even if they start as fun remember nanny's wise words, it will all end in tears before bedtime.

The problem with 'mentally-unarmed enemies' is that they tend to get very angry very quickly, their sheer frustration with their inability to string a coherent sentence together, let alone an argument, soon manifesting itself in rage AND CAPITAL LETTERS. They can also become unpleasantly fixated on 'getting even', which can lead to all sorts of annoyances - post flooding, spam attacks, amateur hackery.

War, as the man said, is hell and board wars are no different. The staff do wisely to forbid them.

Little Nemo · #33 07-01-2012, 04:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by John Mace

You're not a mod who had to chase down and ban the miscreants that you invited onto this MB.

I guess the OP is a board war chickenhawk.

Baron Greenback · #34 07-01-2012, 06:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Marley23

There is some discussion of the Stormfront thing here:
http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/...hreadid=115540
http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/...hreadid=139768

Thanks. Heh, searching back on usernames and phrases that seems like it would have been a bit of a load on the mods. Not at all unlike what is happening right now, oh no.

Crazyhorse · #35 07-01-2012, 07:18 PM

Well that's the problem - people talking about board wars always want to go after the Nazis. If you take on a board loaded with loud-mouthed fanatics the collateral damage is going to be severe. But we could start with a more reasonable opponent, say a small forum dedicated to watch repair or pottery painting or something like that. We would totally kick their asses. And they would probably just be like "what the hell are these people doing?" and not even attempt retaliation.

BrainGlutton · #36 07-01-2012, 07:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tastes of Chocolate

If there was a way to keep the war neatly bottled up in one or two threads, I'd be all for it. Instead, it can easily spill over to any number of threads, and then I, as a poor innocent bystander, have to wade through the carnage.

In other words: it's a pain in the ass to most of us, having to read the idiotic comments that make up a board war.

I guess you're right there. I'm annoyed enough by the racists we've got here now, who are sharp enough to stay inside the rules and avoid banning, and just won't STFU.

Oakminster · #37 07-01-2012, 07:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BrainGlutton

just won't STFU.

There's a lot of that around here.

PaulParkhead · #38 07-01-2012, 07:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Crazyhorse

Well that's the problem - people talking about board wars always want to go after the Nazis. If you take on a board loaded with loud-mouthed fanatics the collateral damage is going to be severe. But we could start with a more reasonable opponent, say a small forum dedicated to watch repair or pottery painting or something like that. We would totally kick their asses. And they would probably just be like "what the hell are these people doing?" and not even attempt retaliation.

I vote for an attack on philately forums. These people must be stamped out.

bucketybuck · #39 07-02-2012, 03:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Crazyhorse

Well that's the problem - people talking about board wars always want to go after the Nazis. If you take on a board loaded with loud-mouthed fanatics the collateral damage is going to be severe. But we could start with a more reasonable opponent, say a small forum dedicated to watch repair or pottery painting or something like that. We would totally kick their asses. And they would probably just be like "what the hell are these people doing?" and not even attempt retaliation.

Nah, Those small forums are dangerous, the only people there are the real fanatics, the crazies with a deep passion for their chosen subject. You don't want to mess with fanatics, far too much trouble.

What you want is a larger board, where people aren't as invested in things. Like 4chan, or its Mexican equivalent.

Jragon · #40 07-02-2012, 04:19 AM

Landover Baptist must be stopped! I say we go over there and kick their asses! Who's with m... satire? What the fuck's satire?

Eutychus · #41 07-02-2012, 04:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jragon

What the fuck's satire?

It's what closes on Saturday night.

aldiboronti · #42 07-02-2012, 09:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PaulParkhead

I vote for an attack on philately forums. These people must be stamped out.

Could be dangerous. Some of those stamp collectors can be mean when cornered (and philately will get you nowhere with them).

I say we play safe and take on a forum for Carmelite nuns first.

Sailboat · #43 07-02-2012, 09:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BrainGlutton

I still don't get it. Board-wars are fun!

This comment indicates you've never been involved in a board war.

RetroVertigo · #44 07-02-2012, 01:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Crazyhorse

Well that's the problem - people talking about board wars always want to go after the Nazis. If you take on a board loaded with loud-mouthed fanatics the collateral damage is going to be severe. But we could start with a more reasonable opponent, say a small forum dedicated to watch repair or pottery painting or something like that. We would totally kick their asses. And they would probably just be like "what the hell are these people doing?" and not even attempt retaliation.

Yeah, we need ourselves a Grenada.