I’ve fallen foul of Lynn Bodoni in the past, but I’ve forgotten and forgiven all of that.
But today, when elmwood had his thread closed, I felt even MORE indignant than when my OWN threads were closed and I was suspended.
Lynn, you need to get a Sense of Humour. I KNOW that ‘Joke’ threads are not permitted in the Pit, but sometimes a bit of levity sort of diffuses the angst that casts its smelly scent over the (otherwise negative) forum.
And elmwood’s thread was just the stuff to brighten ones day. A bit of tongue-in-cheek stuff to give us a bit of perspective on an otherwise miserable workday.
Rules are rules, fer fucks sake! I mean if we didn’t have rules, why, we’d all have to think for ourselves, and no one wants that, for the love of god, eyes front, mouth shut, hands at your sides, and be a good little poster. One more smart assed comment out of you, and…and…meh, fuck it, i’m with ya.
Isn’t the whole thing kinda, well, pointless? I mean we’re footing the bill for the bandwidth now, so it’s not like that’s a real consideration, is it? Or is it, I dunno. Just seems a little heavy handed to me is all.
We’re not footing the bill for the bandwidth, we’re paying subscriptions for membership according to a set of terms; we’re customers, not shareholders.
'Twas intended as a parody thread, and I neglected to link to the original posts. My intent wasn’t to run afoul of the rules. It probably should have been in MPSIMS to begin with.
Nonetheless, I’m taken aback at the “do it again, and I’ll ban you”-style warning. There are other joke threads in the pit, the most recent being this one, posted earlier than mine yet escaping the wrath of Lynn. There’s even a pseudo-mod post in that thread – a severe offense, considering the response such posts have gotten in the past – which also went without warning. Threads that are racist seem to incur less severe warnings than my post. It seems like the equivalent getting an LAPD-style beatdown from the cops for driving 37 MPH in a 35 zone.
Early last night, I sent Lynn an e-mail apologizing, and asking why the warning was so harsh. No response. Guess I somehow ended up on her shit list a while back for some reason; that’s all I can think of.
Humour can be subjective and misunderstood, especially with touchy subjects. The problem with humour posts in the pit is:
OP: Outrageous rant meant as joke. Thread: You *&!%%#! [pile-on] OP: Hey! I was just joking, you jerks! Thread: Bridge dweller!
etc… etc…
Or
OP: Outrageous rant. Thread: Ha, ha! Good one! OP:Why are you laughing? I’m serious, you jerks! Thread: No, that’s just too daft to be serious. Lived under any good bridges recently?
etc… etc…
Still, the OP has a valid point. If you’re gonna charge money, you don’t piss off the customers. While I’m not gonna say “the customer is always right”, I will say that the customer keeps you in business, and the SDMB best realize this. Heavy handed treatment ain’t gonna fly under a pay to post plan.
Besides, wasn’t the whole point of paying to cover bandwith costs? Just checking.
Maybe, but she’s posted several times here since I sent my e-mail. Another recent joke thread is still open. I don’t aways get to my e-mail right away, but I would have assumed she would have spotted this thread.
My whole life, it seems as if a different set of rules apply for me versus most other people. Considering the tolerance of other joke threads, the only think I can assume right now is shit-listing for some reason I’m unaware of.
Elmwood, for what it’s worth, I interpreted your OP has being a tongue-in-cheek rant at the SDMB’s sacred cows (we’ve got a whole herd of 'em: fat cows, gay cows, cows that don’t date fat cows, cows that drive SUV’s, fat gay athiest cows for Jesus, etc.). I also foresaw its closing right off the bat–it wasn’t verbose, explicit, and there wasn’t a single “FUCK!” in it, and it could easily have been interpreted as a joke. Lynn’s warning did seem kinda harsh, especially for such a subjective rule (another moderator participated in it!) adressing what would seem to be relatively innofensive behaviour (in the grand scheme of things). But, in the end, it’s her board…
I just wanted to add “bad-tipper” to the description of the person who would trigger the biggest pit thread in history. I didn’t get the chance before it was closed.
