# I know, here's my hat... uneven modding **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [May 6, 2020, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-know-heres-my-hat-uneven-modding/853268 "2020-05-06T14:49:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2020, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-know-heres-my-hat-uneven-modding/853268/41 "2020-05-06T19:05:42Z")
> [@cmosdes](#): > > There are a couple of issues which I tend to very much differ from the mainstream left platform. Ending the lockdown is one. I’ve issued warnings to both pro and anti lockdown posters in the last month for political comments in QZ. Please show a pattern of issuing warnings to anti-lockdown posters. > [@](#): > > But in most other areas, I’m very left leaning. Healthcare, gun control, abortion, removal of Trump, etc. are all areas I’m in agreement with the left. Then you don’t have differing opinions, do you? > [@](#): > > No mod is going to moderate and put, “I’m doing this because I don’t like your stance.” So no, I can’t prove it. I can demonstrate how moding is being handled unevenly. No, you have entirely failed to demonstrate even that. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2020, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-know-heres-my-hat-uneven-modding/853268/42 "2020-05-06T19:05:54Z")
> [@cmosdes](#): > > You can mock me, call me paranoid, whatever makes you feel better. If you find this place better without differing opinions, keep doing what you’re doing. This place is better without people who act like jerks. One way people act like jerks to rail against perceived bias in moderation without providing any evidence for it. Up until now I had no idea who you were, let alone what your opinions were. Honestly, after reading this thread I still don’t. I’m not sure why you think the moderation staff cares either. Is moderation based on political views possible? Sure. Has it ever happened here? I think so, on rare occasions. Did it happen with you? Most assuredly not, based on your posting history. ---
**Author:** ![Isosleepy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/isosleepy/32/479_2.png) [@Isosleepy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isosleepy)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2020, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-know-heres-my-hat-uneven-modding/853268/43 "2020-05-06T19:11:46Z")
I believe there is something to your assertion of the SDMB having turned into an echo chamber. Unlike you, I don’t believe the process is completed, but I do think we have less diversity of thought than we used to. I especially miss the more nutty-flavored viewpoints. But unlike you, I think that is poster-driven, and not because of moderation (apart from the bans of complete nutcases, which is of course mod-driven). And the examples you list do not in any way prove or even mildly support any of the assertions you made in your op. You did things inviting mod action. Mod action occurred. The system works. You then assert that other people, who hold opinions differing from yours, were not or would not be modded because their opinion isn’t as outlier as yours. First off, I doubt that the former is true in any systemic fashion. But even if it were (which it isn’t), it is a tall order to prove, or even argue, that the opinions you hold are the cause for this difference in moderation. And you fail in making that argument. Entirely. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2020, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-know-heres-my-hat-uneven-modding/853268/44 "2020-05-06T19:12:44Z")
> [@cmosdes](#): > > Did you read the post I linked to by Miller??? Seriously, did you? > > “It’s also a very minor, largely technical violation of the rule. There was obviously no intent to deceive, and there was no ambiguity about who had written the editorial text. Consider these two alternative posts:” As a general rule, “This was modded differently in the a different forum!” is not a strong argument. The different fora have different standards for what is allowed, and for how strongly rules violations are moderated. GQ and GD tend to have the highest standards for what is allowed. The Pit, by design, has the lowest - as I explained in the post you linked to, the Pit is intended to be a rules-light forum, where there are fewer rules to violate, and where the repercussions for violating the rules we do have are much lighter. It’s very rare that I give a warning to someone in the Pit - I almost always lead with a mod note, and only give warnings if they persist in the behavior they were told to drop. So, that post of mine you linked to is not really relevant to your situation. It’s predicated on what is allowable behavior in the Pit, not what is allowable behavior in GD. Also, while I certainly do not think **Jonathan Chance** is an asshole either in general, or in the particulars of this case, “ **Miller** thinks you’re an asshole,” is not an argument for reversing any mod action. Any rules infraction can be subject to a warning. It’s 100% moderator discretion whether an infraction gets a warning, or a mod note. The fact that one moderator might have decided a post deserves a lighter sanction is in no way controlling on any other moderator’s actions. ---
**Author:** ![cmosdes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a587f6/32.png) [@cmosdes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmosdes)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2020, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-know-heres-my-hat-uneven-modding/853268/45 "2020-05-06T19:13:46Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > That’s not how multiple choice works. You apparently don’t think C is the right answer. Cool. What DO you think is the right answer? Here, you must pick one of these: 1. LHOD is not smart to realize he has setup a quiz that is biased and completely without merit. 2. LHOD thinks he is so smart he can setup a 4 question quiz and demand one of his own predetermined answers are the only possibilities. Remember, you can MUST pick one of these. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2020, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-know-heres-my-hat-uneven-modding/853268/46 "2020-05-06T19:23:05Z")
> [@cmosdes](#): > > 1. LHOD is not smart to realize he has setup a quiz that is biased and completely without merit. **Moderator Note** Now, this is definitely insulting and being a jerk. If you continue to post in this fashion, you will be warned and this thread will be closed. And I still have no idea what your politics are. Colibri ---
**Author:** ![cmosdes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a587f6/32.png) [@cmosdes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmosdes)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2020, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-know-heres-my-hat-uneven-modding/853268/47 "2020-05-06T19:25:15Z")
> [@Isosleepy](#): > > I believe there is something to your assertion of the SDMB having turned into an echo chamber. Unlike you, I don’t believe the process is completed, but I do think we have less diversity of thought than we used to. Yeah, that is where I stand. I’ve said what I need to say. I can’t prove any mod action taken against me had any particular bias and a single instance isn’t going to convince anyone. But there is a pattern that has emerged, and each individual case can be dismissed. Over the years, those cases have added up, and it is still ignored that it is happening. So this is just one more case. ---
**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:** [May 6, 2020, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-know-heres-my-hat-uneven-modding/853268/48 "2020-05-06T19:31:12Z")
> [@cmosdes](#): > > Yeah, that is where I stand. > > I’ve said what I need to say. I can’t prove any mod action taken against me had any particular bias and a single instance isn’t going to convince anyone. > > But there is a pattern that has emerged, and each individual case can be dismissed. Over the years, those cases have added up, and it is still ignored that it is happening. So this is just one more case. A pattern comprising individual meritless cases is a meritless pattern. Thinking otherwise is at the heart of many conspiracy theories. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2020, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-know-heres-my-hat-uneven-modding/853268/49 "2020-05-06T19:32:10Z")
So far, the only “different opinion” you’ve stated you have is that the lockdown should be ended. Well, I certainly didn’t moderate you for that, because my moderation of you was from long before that was even a topic of discussion. > [@](#): > > But there is a pattern that has emerged, The only pattern that has emerged is that you have interacted with the moderators on multiple occasions. That’s… not a very interesting pattern. If you think there’s more to the pattern than that, point it out. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2020, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-know-heres-my-hat-uneven-modding/853268/50 "2020-05-06T19:35:44Z")
To answer the OP: I don’t think you are or have been singled out for unfair treatment by the mods. That being said… > [@cmosdes](#): > > …an echo chamber where \*\*unpopular opinions are told to take their hat and leave. \*\* This is in a certain sense true, indeed, it is even [official policy:](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=887710) > [@](#): > > Scientific racism or any particular argument about why any particular group of humans is inherently better than any other group > Holocaust Denial. Seriously, guys. If someone wants to seriously debate whether the holocaust occurred, we can safely say they’re not someone we want here > Encouraging discrimination against any minority groups. This can include race, gender, sexual orientation or any other group into which a person might belong. Such depresses debate and discussion and in contrary to the goals of Great Debates and Elections > Men’s Rights Advocacy. This can include threads about how men are somehow disadvantaged in society, women are somehow genetically inferior or have a predisposition toward specific gender roles and other threads about the ways in which men are somehow naturally entitled to be in charge > 9/11 Truthers. This includes any information about how either 9/11 didn’t happen, it was a false flag operation by the government or any other idea that denies the events of that day. > Climate Change Denialism. We believe the science. While there is room to debate ways to deal with climate change, the existence of such is an observed fact. Now, some of the topics in that above list (such as 9/11 Truthers, climate-change denial, Holocaust denial, etc.) are banned because they are wrong, but some others are banned because they are offensive. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2020, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-know-heres-my-hat-uneven-modding/853268/51 "2020-05-06T19:43:03Z")
Sounds like this whole thing is about things you feel are obviously objective fact, but they are indeed your feelings. I’ve been warned (unfairly, of _course!),_ I’ve felt singled out. When I calmed down, I realized that the mods don’t even know who I am… which was quite liberating, and meant I could stop worrying about my feelings and learn to express myself in a less jerkish way. Reread this (I have): > [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > cmosdes, I have no doubt you feel it’s ideologically driven. What in question isn’t your feelings, what’s in question is whether there’s any evidence to back them up. It seems much likelier to me that you have this feeling because it feels bad to get a warning, and if you can come up with a reason for the warning that’s not your fault, you’ll feel anger instead of shame, and anger’s a more pleasant thing to feel. > > But that puts the locus of control outside of you. You messed up, unambiguously, and you can stop getting these bad feelings by changing your behavior. And this (yay for mods being too busy to notice us, so I bolded the important part!): > [@Colibri](#): > > None of your warnings were based on “unpopular opinions.” In fact, I as I told you when you complained by PM, **I had no idea who you were or what your opinions were when I issued you that warning.** You accused me of being “after you” also just because[I edited a thread title of yours](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=893308) in order to clarify it. > > It appears to me that you are looking for reasons to feel you are being unfairly persecuted. We would be much less popular I’m sure if we didn’t moderate people for jerkish behavior, which you acknowledge you’ve been guilty of. And my reply to your OP? > [@cmosdes](#): > > …It has all the feel of being ideologically driven. > [@](#): > > It is one thing to argue against the popular opinions, it is another to realize the mods have put a target on your back and are encouraging you to not post anymore. “That’s like, your _ **feeling,** _ man…” ---
**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:** [May 6, 2020, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-know-heres-my-hat-uneven-modding/853268/52 "2020-05-06T19:43:06Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > To answer the OP: I don’t think you are or have been singled out for unfair treatment by the mods. That being said… > > This is in a certain sense true, indeed, it is even [official policy:](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=887710) > > Now, some of the topics in that above list (such as 9/11 Truthers, climate-change denial, Holocaust denial, etc.) are banned because they are wrong, but some others are banned because they are offensive. This is true. But I have found that banning them hasn’t reduced interesting conversations, any more than a restaurant dooms itself to a bland menu when it refuses to serve dishes containing arsenic, cat shit, rotten shark fin, or durian fruit. There’s a whole world of other dishes out there, and there’s a whole world of other topics out there. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2020, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-know-heres-my-hat-uneven-modding/853268/53 "2020-05-06T19:55:17Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > or durian fruit. Well, durian fruit is pretty good, although in my opinion overrated. Still, you wouldn’t want to serve it in a restaurant, but in a booth by the road way out in the fresh air.🙂 ---
**Author:** ![crowmanyclouds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crowmanyclouds/32/19884_2.png) [@crowmanyclouds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crowmanyclouds)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2020, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-know-heres-my-hat-uneven-modding/853268/54 "2020-05-06T20:03:17Z")
If you start a thread about uneven modding and proceed to break rules in said thread without receiving warnings is that an example of uneven modding? CMC fnord! ---
**Author:** ![Fotheringay-Phipps](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/d9b06d/32.png) [@Fotheringay-Phipps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fotheringay-Phipps)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2020, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-know-heres-my-hat-uneven-modding/853268/55 "2020-05-06T21:21:05Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > We’re more often accused of being biased against conservative posters, so I guess a complaint by someone who says they’re left-leaning is a change of pace. But as I said, I had absolutely no idea what your politics were when I warned you. I’m not following any of this, so this is just a suggestion. But it’s possible that csmodes’ feeling which he’s failing to articulate well is that he was a strong minority/unpopular opinion in the thread in which he was modded, and feels that the moderation was done on that basis, and not due to any objection to his overall ideological orientation (which indeed the moderators were probably unfamiliar with). Again, just a suggestion. (I did see a bit of csmodes’ exchange on the women’s sports issue and it seemed to me at the time that there was a lot of talking past each other, so I’m wondering if there’s some communication issue which could be manifesting itself here as well.) ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2020, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-know-heres-my-hat-uneven-modding/853268/56 "2020-05-06T21:36:13Z")
> [@Fotheringay-Phipps](#): > > I’m not following any of this, so this is just a suggestion. Y’know, there are links in the OP, so you could see what we’re talking about before commenting on it. The OP agreed that that particular warning was merited. > [@](#): > > But it’s possible that csmodes’ feeling which he’s failing to articulate well is that he was a strong minority/unpopular opinion in the thread in which he was modded, and feels that the moderation was done on that basis, and not due to any objection to his overall ideological orientation (which indeed the moderators were probably unfamiliar with). **cmosdes** wasn’t even participating in the thread in which I warned him. He just popped in to attack another poster, who also wasn’t participating in the thread, for something that poster had said in an entirely different thread. That was his one and only post. It was entirely out of left field, which is why it was so jerkish. ---
**Author:** ![Fotheringay-Phipps](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/d9b06d/32.png) [@Fotheringay-Phipps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fotheringay-Phipps)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2020, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-know-heres-my-hat-uneven-modding/853268/57 "2020-05-06T21:53:11Z")
I had clicked on all the links in the OP, and picked up that they were on the women’s sports issue and on opening the economy. I had followed the first thread at the time and he was clearly very much in the minority on that issue, and he himself identified opening the economy as another issue on which he was a minority, so it looks like all 3 moderator actions were is such situations. So I thought it’s not necessarily the case that he’s claiming that bias against him as a poster is influencing moderator action on unrelated matters. But I didn’t read the entirety of the two covid-related threads, so there might have been more going on. And in any event, I’m not making any claims that he’s right about any of this, only that this might be his position (especially in light of what seems to me to be a history of communication issues), and it might be helpful to know that if indeed such is the case. I don’t think your particular warning is the issue, since he himself agrees that it was justified, as you note. ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2020, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-know-heres-my-hat-uneven-modding/853268/58 "2020-05-06T22:26:26Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > Well, durian fruit is pretty good, although in my opinion overrated. Still, you wouldn’t want to serve it in a restaurant, but in a booth by the road way out in the fresh air.🙂 Durian ice cream and durian cream puffs are awesome and can be served in restaurants without offending nearly diners who don’t like it. Mediocre durian is fine but not extraordinary, and in that way I agree that the fruit can be overrated. But when you get a top-quality durian … oh my, it is a fabulous experience. The only thing that comes close, in my book, is a perfect tomato that was just picked and has all the wonderful complexity and acidity of an ideal vine-ripened fruit. (Snerk. Auto-correct just made that say “an ideal vine-ripened fetus.” I’m slightly sorry I caught that before submitting.) ---
**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:** [May 6, 2020, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-know-heres-my-hat-uneven-modding/853268/59 "2020-05-06T22:37:59Z")
> [@CairoCarol](#): > > Durian ice cream and durian cream puffs are awesome and can be served in restaurants without offending nearly diners who don’t like it. > > Mediocre durian is fine but not extraordinary, and in that way I agree that the fruit can be overrated. But when you get a top-quality durian … oh my, it is a fabulous experience. The only thing that comes close, in my book, is a perfect tomato that was just picked and has all the wonderful complexity and acidity of an ideal vine-ripened fruit. That’s kinda why I put 'em on the list. Even if you think those are perfectly delicious dishes, do you go to restaurants that won’t serve durian and scold them for making their entire menu bland and echo-chambery just because they won’t use this one ingredient? No matter how much you like durian ice cream, I bet you don’t do that. ---
**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:** [May 7, 2020, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-know-heres-my-hat-uneven-modding/853268/60 "2020-05-07T01:37:01Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > **cmosdes** wasn’t even participating in the thread in which I warned him. He just popped in to attack another poster, who also wasn’t participating in the thread, for something that poster had said in an entirely different thread. That was his one and only post. It was entirely out of left field, which is why it was so jerkish. So what you’re saying is that there is a clear moderator bias against people who violate the board rules, as evidenced by the fact that people who **don’t** break the board rules are almost never given warnings whereas people that do often are? Aha! Now we see the violence inherent in the system! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-know-heres-my-hat-uneven-modding/853268.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-know-heres-my-hat-uneven-modding/853268.md?page=4)