You are being utterly obtuse about this. Why attempt to paraphrase - less accurately - what has been stated so transparently clearly? The prohibition is solely for the purpose of riling others up.
The rule has no bounds that don’t require judgment calls by mods. That doesn’t mean it has no bounds.
If it is then it’s trolling; if it isn’t then it isn’t. May I direct your attention again to solely for the purpose of riling others up.
The mods don’t ban discussion of the Wall. You seem to be arguing that if the mods made a judgment call that was wrong, then that would be wrong. Okay.
Nobody mentioned an obligation never to antagonize others if you are arguing in good faith and on-topic. May I once again direct your attention to the solely in the phrase solely for the purpose of riling others up.
I’ll also add that if you’ve been around this long and never noticed any problem before, how much disagreement can you really have with the rule as stated and implemented?
The point of the quotes is that, clearly, the moderation staff is on the alert for posters who are deliberately trying to “push the line” or “see how close to lines they can get.”
I’m not going to claim that moderators are wrong to consider this possibility. Clearly the internet has many corners in which testing the rules (and/or taunting the moderators) is an accepted activity. No one can deny that such people might show up at this message board and try to engage in that activity.
But given my own recent case, and this current case involving asahi, I’m wondering if the moderation staff is a little too quick to assume that this is going on.
I know that the post I was Warned about was not a case of my trying to Push the Line or Test the Moderators or anything of the kind. I’d suggest further that my posting history, here, does not support a theory that I post with Pushing Lines or Testing Moderators in mind.
I just don’t find that to be an interesting activity. I have never engaged in that activity. (If someone sees something in my posting history that indicates otherwise, I’d be grateful if you’d point it out to me.)
Furthermore, I would feel very safe in betting that asahi had no such thing in mind, either, with the post discussed in this thread. Or ever, really. Heaven knows I’ve said some uncomplimentary things about asahi, but I definitely don’t see him as a would-be edgelord.
Anyway, at the risk of offending moderators: is it possible that you-all are overly quick to conclude about some particular post that ‘this person is trying to test the rules’?
Bone, I hope you don’t feel this thread was too nitpicky since I endorsed the Pitting, and a Note probably wouldn’t have been controversial. Perhaps it was partly an inclination to seek scrupulous fairness for asahi, since although I’ve butted heads with him recently I also agree with this:
Thirded. It’s obvious that people on the same side of this issue (that would be non-racist people) look at this situation differently. It shows a fine character that Bone was willing to consider other perspectives.
IMO one of the many very positive aspects of the SDMB is the Mods’ willingness to be acting in the best interest of the board’s community rather than just in the best interest of the board.