# Closed Reddy Thread **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [August 19, 2017, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/closed-reddy-thread/794140 "2017-08-19T22:34:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![octopus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/octopus/32/3716_2.png) [@octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/octopus)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2017, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/closed-reddy-thread/794140/1 "2017-08-19T22:34:51Z")
In this thread, [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=833985](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=833985), Reddy Mercury got a warning for trolling. Now, I’m not going to confuse Reddy Mercury for Jonathan Swift. No offense meant, Reddy. But does a satirical thread that actually has a point merit a warning for trolling. I mean the quality and number of political threads that fill the boards about each and every tweet of President Trump are full of language as over the top and frankly ridiculous as Reddy’s satire. Sometimes pointing out how the premise of an argument is actually absurd when applied to a slightly different medium is useful. Why is it trolling if some people think he isn’t 100% sincere in advocating what is clearly satire and an attempt to demonstrate the ridiculous principles of the point of view expressed? We don’t see warnings for the advocating or support of actual criminal activity. People calling for doxing and violence aren’t noted or warned. If it’s a serious post I was under the impression that that was against the ToS with regards to advocating criminal activity. If it’s not serious would that not be trolling? TLDR: is satire or parody trolling? ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2017, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/closed-reddy-thread/794140/2 "2017-08-19T22:49:20Z")
Would have been just fine in the Pit, but the combative nature of the thread made it basically impossible to have a serious debate. IMO he should have been warned for violating the ‘‘don’t be a jerk’’ rule, not trolling. ETA: There’s no rule against wishing harm on non-posters. And nobody ever called for illegal doxxing, which you damned well know. ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2017, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/closed-reddy-thread/794140/3 "2017-08-19T23:02:12Z")
> [@Spice\_Weasel](#): > > Would have been just fine in the Pit, but the combative nature of the thread made it basically impossible to have a serious debate. > > IMO he should have been warned for violating the ‘‘don’t be a jerk’’ rule, not trolling. > > ETA: There’s no rule against wishing harm on non-posters. And nobody ever called for illegal doxxing, which you damned well know. Actually one poster called for doxxing. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![octopus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/octopus/32/3716_2.png) [@octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/octopus)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2017, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/closed-reddy-thread/794140/4 "2017-08-19T23:03:08Z")
> [@Spice\_Weasel](#): > > Would have been just fine in the Pit, but the combative nature of the thread made it basically impossible to have a serious debate. > > IMO he should have been warned for violating the ‘‘don’t be a jerk’’ rule, not trolling. > > ETA: There’s no rule against wishing harm on non-posters. And nobody ever called for illegal doxxing, which you damned well know. Advocating violence is advocating a criminal act. I don’t make the rules. And doxxing is pretty general and encompasses illegal doxxing. But I’m not here to debate all that. I’m curious about the stance on satire. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2017, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/closed-reddy-thread/794140/5 "2017-08-19T23:08:57Z")
I disagree with the OP. IMHO the warning was justified, and I personally see it as a confluence of more than just one factor. First, Reddy Mercury is an obsessive thread starter. Just about anything that comes into his head results in a new thread. On this one topic alone, or on topics very closely related, he has started half a dozen threads in GD and Elections, most of them redundant and ill-advised, and at least one other one was also closed. That’s strike one. He should have been mod-noted or warned on that alone. Second, this was way over the top, and no, I don’t agree that this happens all the time in an equivalent way, about Trump’s tweets or anything else. Satire needs to be clever and on point, not just simply outrageous. Strike two. Third, look at where the thread went. It turned into a dumpster fire, and was led there by further provocative posts by the original thread starter, who clearly wanted it to go in that direction. Strike three. > [@octopus](#): > > I’m curious about the stance on satire. It didn’t meet the standards of “satire”. Not even close. ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2017, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/closed-reddy-thread/794140/6 "2017-08-19T23:14:02Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > I disagree with the OP. IMHO the warning was justified, and I personally see it as a confluence of more than just one factor. > > First, Reddy Mercury is an obsessive thread starter. Just about anything that comes into his head results in a new thread. On this one topic alone, or on topics very closely related, he has started half a dozen threads in GD and Elections, most of them redundant and ill-advised, and at least one other one was also closed. That’s strike one. He should have been mod-noted or warned on that alone. > > Second, this was way over the top, and no, I don’t agree that this happens all the time in an equivalent way, about Trump’s tweets or anything else. Satire needs to be clever and on point, not just simply outrageous. Strike two. > > Third, look at where the thread went. It turned into a dumpster fire, and was led there by further provocative posts by the original thread starter, who clearly wanted it to go in that direction. Strike three. > > It didn’t meet the standards of “satire”. Not even close. Perhaps all threads should have to be approved by you before they are allowed to be posted. Just because you don’t approve of a thread doesn’t mean it has no value. Complain all you want about RM, nut at least he creates threads. If you are unsatisfied with the threads being created start a few. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2017, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/closed-reddy-thread/794140/7 "2017-08-19T23:38:40Z")
Good call by **Bone**. What other reason is there for posting a thread where: 1. The OP takes no stand as to whether or not he agrees with his own thesis, and subsequent posts indicate he doesn’t. 2. There is 100% certainty no one here will agree with the thesis because it such an over-the-top straw man that there is no basis for debate. It’s one thing to play Devil’s Advocate, when you are putting yourself in the shoes of someone on the other side, but there is no “other side” here. Also, there’s a bit of a problem with posting in threads like this one here. By agreeing with **Bone** ’s moderation, are we not accusing a poster of trolling? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2017, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/closed-reddy-thread/794140/8 "2017-08-20T00:11:14Z")
Oh, come on. Look at the third post in the thread - **k9bfriender** actually responded and posed a series of objections and questions, as if it were actually worthy of debating. **Reddy** then threw even the slightest pretense of legitimacy out the window with his response. \*\*Bone \*\*did exactly the right thing. He recognized that the OP, in a vacuum, might spawn a debate. It didn’t, because **Reddy** didn’t actually want one. Good warning. Good closure. Good bone. Have a dog. ---
**Author:** ![octopus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/octopus/32/3716_2.png) [@octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/octopus)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2017, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/closed-reddy-thread/794140/9 "2017-08-20T00:39:37Z")
It seemed like satire to me. I’m not too concerned exactly if Reddy Mercury’s post meets everyone’s test for valid satire. I’m concerned with the usage fo satire as a rhetorical device to illustrate a point and if it is in general acceptable or is in general trolling. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2017, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/closed-reddy-thread/794140/10 "2017-08-20T00:41:04Z")
> [@octopus](#): > > It seemed like satire to me. I’m not too concerned exactly if Reddy Mercury’s post meets everyone’s test for valid satire. I’m concerned with the usage fo satire as a rhetorical device to illustrate a point and if it is in general acceptable or is in general trolling. The satire is still there – anyone can read it if they like. There was just no chance of a productive discussion, and this became very clear after a few people tried to honesty engage the argument and the OP responded as he did. ---
**Author:** ![octopus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/octopus/32/3716_2.png) [@octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/octopus)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2017, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/closed-reddy-thread/794140/11 "2017-08-20T00:50:55Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > The satire is still there – anyone can read it if they like. There was just no chance of a productive discussion, and this became very clear after a few people tried to honesty engage the argument and the OP responded as he did. Yes I know it’s there. I didn’t ask about a deleted thread. I’m asking about satire equating to trolling. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2017, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/closed-reddy-thread/794140/12 "2017-08-20T00:53:12Z")
> [@octopus](#): > > Yes I know it’s there. I didn’t ask about a deleted thread. I’m asking about satire equating to trolling. I think they determined it was trolling with the follow up answers – the OP may have been “just satire”, but not the other posts. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2017, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/closed-reddy-thread/794140/13 "2017-08-20T01:40:22Z")
He made a [similar post](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=20425540&postcount=22) in the Confederate Symbolism; Time to Stop Nursing Grievances and Relitigating Past and only got mod-noted. That one was better qualified for a warning: it contained an insult and implied violence. The posts are fine for the Pit. In fact, aren’t all joke threads and satiric threads supposed to go in the Pit in any case? No equivalents are ever allowed in Elections or GD, though, not even satiric insults. Could there ever be a theoretical similar thread that is allowable? That was unlikely from the start. With this as a precedent it’s hard to imagine any such thread ever slipping through. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2017, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/closed-reddy-thread/794140/14 "2017-08-20T02:56:44Z")
It was a pretty bad thread and it didn’t make much sense. But that said, I don’t feel it should have been closed for trolling. It should have just been moved to the BBQ Pit where it belonged. (I’ll admit I actually thought it was a Pit thread when I read it. I didn’t notice it had been posted in Great Debates until it was pointed out in this thread.) ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2017, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/closed-reddy-thread/794140/15 "2017-08-20T03:16:37Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > He made a [similar post](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=20425540&postcount=22) in the Confederate Symbolism; Time to Stop Nursing Grievances and Relitigating Past and only got mod-noted. That one was better qualified for a warning: it contained an insult and implied violence. The posts are fine for the Pit. In fact, aren’t all joke threads and satiric threads supposed to go in the Pit in any case? No equivalents are ever allowed in Elections or GD, though, not even satiric insults. > > Could there ever be a theoretical similar thread that is allowable? That was unlikely from the start. With this as a precedent it’s hard to imagine any such thread ever slipping through. Not all parody threads need go into the Pit. Parodies of other threads or parodies ridiculing other posters should go there, but other parodies could go in MPSIMS or another forum at the moderators’ discretion. > [@Parody threads. In pit?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parody-threads-in-pit/714029/15): > > That’s the case when a parody of a thread by another poster (or the comments of other posters in such a thread). Because you are basically ridiculing other posters, it properly goes in the Pit. (It’s also why a link is required, so people know what is going on.) > > Other kinds of parodies don’t need to go in the Pit. They would probably go in MPSIMS (or if a literary work could go in Cafe Society). > > Just because it was a parody of Lovecraft doesn’t mean it needed to go in the Pit. I would guess it was put in the Pit because the OP was Pitting Marmite. [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=18184733&postcount=15](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=18184733&postcount=15) ---
**Author:** ![Bone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bone/32/407_2.png) [@Bone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bone)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2017, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/closed-reddy-thread/794140/16 "2017-08-20T03:45:36Z")
Satire is fine. Devil’s advocate is fine. ‘Let’s all you all fight’, or ‘let’s you and him fight’ is not fine and that’s what I thought the thread was. I saw it before there were any replies and while I thought it was rather silly, that’s not something I typically moderate. The subsequent responses convinced me that the thread was primarily a means to provoke an angry response. ---
**Author:** ![octopus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/octopus/32/3716_2.png) [@octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/octopus)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2017, 4:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/closed-reddy-thread/794140/17 "2017-08-20T04:37:48Z")
> [@Bone](#): > > Satire is fine. Devil’s advocate is fine. ‘Let’s all you all fight’, or ‘let’s you and him fight’ is not fine and that’s what I thought the thread was. I saw it before there were any replies and while I thought it was rather silly, that’s not something I typically moderate. The subsequent responses convinced me that the thread was primarily a means to provoke an angry response. Alright. Thank you for the explanation.