# Clarification request, re: Rules about changing text within quote tags **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [March 28, 2014, 8:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-request-re-rules-about-changing-text-within-quote-tags/684746 "2014-03-28T08:51:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-request-re-rules-about-changing-text-within-quote-tags/684746/41 "2014-03-28T15:36:46Z")
The fact that there are people disagreeing with mods–including people whose disagreement with the substance of **magellan’s** post is, to put it mildly, vociferous–may indicate that there’s genuine confusion about this rule. I thought, and after reading the rule still think, that whatever the quality of his post might be, the format of it broke no rules. A warning for something this ambiguous is not a good idea. This may be a good opportunity for a clarification of the rule. ---
**Author:** ![RaftPeople](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/6f9a4e/32.png) [@RaftPeople](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RaftPeople)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-request-re-rules-about-changing-text-within-quote-tags/684746/42 "2014-03-28T15:38:21Z")
> [@twickster](#): > > First, where does it say that material quoted with quotation marks is handled differently than material in a quote box? Unattributed parodies _are_ treated differently, but attributed quotes, however presented, should not be tampered with. > > And second, the only “other mod” who has posted in this thread is **Czarcasm** , who is not currently a moderator. It has been discussed here in ATMB previously, and other moderators have commented previously. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-request-re-rules-about-changing-text-within-quote-tags/684746/43 "2014-03-28T15:38:38Z")
I would quibble about whether what **magellan01** did was “parody” - if it is, it’s terrible parody - but that being said, I thought he’d taken all reasonable steps to make it clear that he was not actually quoting another poster. If this is a violation of the rule, then I certainly have been misunderstanding the rule for years. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-request-re-rules-about-changing-text-within-quote-tags/684746/44 "2014-03-28T15:39:13Z")
> [@bldysabba](#): > > No answer to mine? Do you know the meaning of the words “This does not apply to parodies to which no name is attached”? I sure do, and I took it to mean all forms of quotation _except those that are sacrosanct_…which would be quote tags. ---
**Author:** ![RaftPeople](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/6f9a4e/32.png) [@RaftPeople](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RaftPeople)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-request-re-rules-about-changing-text-within-quote-tags/684746/45 "2014-03-28T15:41:24Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > [I knew this was discussed before.](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=618120&highlight=quotation) Take a look at which mods clarified the rules. That is the thread I remembered. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-request-re-rules-about-changing-text-within-quote-tags/684746/46 "2014-03-28T15:45:08Z")
I don’t have any history of “fixing” things, but I have been known to report posts with misattributions. For myself, the bright line has always been that it needs “**Originally posted by [_insert name here_]**” for me to bother reporting it. But what I’m reading in this thread is that in the view of most Dopers, that bright line is immaterial. Could I get a confirmation from a staff member, please? Ta. Personally, I considered **magellan01** ’s post to be snark, as opposed to parody. If the prevailing opinion in this thread is correct, I have no quarrel with the warning he received. ---
**Author:** ![bldysabba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecccb3/32.png) [@bldysabba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bldysabba)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-request-re-rules-about-changing-text-within-quote-tags/684746/47 "2014-03-28T15:45:12Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > The fact that there are people disagreeing with mods–including people whose disagreement with the substance of **magellan’s** post is, to put it mildly, vociferous–may indicate that there’s genuine confusion about this rule. I thought, and after reading the rule still think, that whatever the quality of his post might be, the format of it broke no rules. A warning for something this ambiguous is not a good idea. This may be a good opportunity for a clarification of the rule. It’s somewhat ironic, on multiple levels, that the substance of that post was about bias exhibited on the board. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-request-re-rules-about-changing-text-within-quote-tags/684746/48 "2014-03-28T15:48:06Z")
From the linked thread: > [@tomndebb](#): > > The problem with using the quote box, with or without attribution, is that is gives the appearance that the quote was taken from some post verbatim by the software. This would be misleading for modified quotes. > Italics, CODE boxes, offsets and indentations, quotation marks, and other techniques do not give such an immediate perception that the quote is a direct copy. It is not that any form is utterly free of confusion, but keeping the QUOTE boxes sacrosanct for unmodified quotes imposes a certain consistency of application that provides a level of expectation for any reader at any time. Seems pretty clear to me. ---
**Author:** ![bldysabba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecccb3/32.png) [@bldysabba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bldysabba)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-request-re-rules-about-changing-text-within-quote-tags/684746/49 "2014-03-28T15:49:04Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > I sure do, and I took it to mean all forms of quotation _except those that are sacrosanct_…which would be quote tags. And I know the meaning of sacrosanct, and I took it to mean all text in quote tags is sacrosanct, _except those that are a parody and to which no name is attached_. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-request-re-rules-about-changing-text-within-quote-tags/684746/50 "2014-03-28T15:53:10Z")
> [@bldysabba](#): > > And I know the meaning of sacrosanct, and I took it to mean all text in quote tags is sacrosanct, _except those that are a parody and to which no name is attached_. And when you apply what the mods say in the linked thread, **tomndebb** in particular? ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-request-re-rules-about-changing-text-within-quote-tags/684746/51 "2014-03-28T15:53:58Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > Personally, I considered **magellan01** ’s post to be snark, as opposed to parody. If the prevailing opinion in this thread is correct[\*\*\*\*\*], I have no quarrel with the warning he received. Missed the edit window – AGAIN :dubious: \***(up to about post 8, which is where it was when I got called away from this response)** ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-request-re-rules-about-changing-text-within-quote-tags/684746/52 "2014-03-28T15:55:24Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Cut the crap. Is this an official warning? ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-request-re-rules-about-changing-text-within-quote-tags/684746/53 "2014-03-28T16:00:30Z")
Not to be a Junior Mod, here, but I’m going to guess “No,” on account of **Czarcasm** isn’t a staff member with “official” warning privileges. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-request-re-rules-about-changing-text-within-quote-tags/684746/54 "2014-03-28T16:02:08Z")
> [@Bob Ducca](#): > > Is this an official warning? Consider it an impolite request to not accuse me of junior modding when I give an opinion in this forum. ---
**Author:** ![bldysabba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecccb3/32.png) [@bldysabba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bldysabba)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-request-re-rules-about-changing-text-within-quote-tags/684746/55 "2014-03-28T16:02:53Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > And when you apply what the mods say in the linked thread, **tomndebb** in particular? It changes my reading, but my view is that for one, if that is the case the rule itself needs to be less ambiguous, and for another, tomndebb’s statement is silly. Is there _anyone_ who could read magellan’s post and come away with the impression that the text inside the quote tags was “taken from some post verbatim by the software.” ? He made it abundantly clear that he changed whatever was inside the quote box, and what it was that he changed, and made sure that there was no way the statement could mistakenly be attributed to someone else. How does he stray outside the spirit of the rule(even if some mods, not all, as evidenced by posts in this thread, believe he broke the letter)? ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-request-re-rules-about-changing-text-within-quote-tags/684746/56 "2014-03-28T16:06:30Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Are you pushing for a rule that says that all quotations, no matter how they are done, must be unchanged from the original? Not at all. If it were up to me, it would also be OK to alter text in quote boxes as long as it was made clear that it was changed (‘FTFY’ or equivalent). But I understand why it’s easier for the mods to apply a zero tolerance policy instead. I called it ambiguous for the reason **bldysabba** states. Yes, I saw the “sacrosanct” rule, but we’re also permitted to use bolding, to use ellipses, and to include bracketed text for purposes of clarification, so there’s sacrosanct and there’s _sacrosanct_. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-request-re-rules-about-changing-text-within-quote-tags/684746/57 "2014-03-28T16:11:26Z")
When he said > [@](#): > > I fixed your comment: He referenced a particular poster, and when he “fixed”(changed) the quote of that particular poster within quote tags he broke the rules, in my opinion. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-request-re-rules-about-changing-text-within-quote-tags/684746/58 "2014-03-28T16:12:42Z")
> [@VinylTurnip](#): > > Not at all. If it were up to me, it would also be OK to alter text in quote boxes as long as it was made clear that it was changed (‘FTFY’ or equivalent). But I understand why it’s easier for the mods to apply a zero tolerance policy instead. > > I called it ambiguous for the reason **bldysabba** states. Yes, I saw the “sacrosanct” rule, but we’re also permitted to use bolding, to use ellipses, and to include bracketed text for purposes of clarification, so there’s sacrosanct and there’s _sacrosanct_. But the “sacrosanct” part was applied specifically to quote tags, according to what I have quoted repeatedly. ---
**Author:** ![bldysabba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecccb3/32.png) [@bldysabba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bldysabba)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-request-re-rules-about-changing-text-within-quote-tags/684746/59 "2014-03-28T16:16:57Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > But the “sacrosanct” part was applied specifically to quote tags, according to what I have quoted repeatedly. Yeah but what you’ve quoted repeatedly is mods in a different thread, not the rule itself. There’s also a mod in _this_ thread saying that unattributed parodies are treated differently. Ambiguous enough for you? ---
**Author:** ![bldysabba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecccb3/32.png) [@bldysabba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bldysabba)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-request-re-rules-about-changing-text-within-quote-tags/684746/60 "2014-03-28T16:19:19Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > When he saidHe referenced a particular poster, and when he “fixed”(changed) the quote of that particular poster within quote tags he broke the rules, in my opinion. Can you encapsulate the spirit of the rule? I would sum it up as “Do not make it seem as though someone said something they did not”. Do you agree with that? If not, how would you put it? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-request-re-rules-about-changing-text-within-quote-tags/684746.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-request-re-rules-about-changing-text-within-quote-tags/684746.md?page=4)