# Management and enforcement. **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [November 30, 2004, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/management-and-enforcement/277350 "2004-11-30T17:10:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Iceland\_Blue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/4bbf92/32.png) [@Iceland\_Blue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iceland_Blue)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2004, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/management-and-enforcement/277350/41 "2004-12-03T17:31:05Z")
Sounds pretty good to me. One point- if the general voice of the board is that Poster X did not deserve to be banned, then will the ban be lifted? Hypothetically you could have a situation where Mod X dislikes Poster X and decides to remove him/her/it from the board before posting that they broke the rules based on intelligence only Mod X has and Poster X can’t reply to defend himself. If the board decides that there was nothing to justify it,then Poster X should be reinstated… Not that poster X didn’t deserve it 🙂 And the most pressing question…WHO broke into Tuba’s house and ate her cat?We must be told! ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2004, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/management-and-enforcement/277350/42 "2004-12-03T18:43:16Z")
> [@Iceland\_Blue](#): > > Sounds pretty good to me. One point- if the general voice of the board is that Poster X did not deserve to be banned, then will the ban be lifted? Hypothetically you could have a situation where Mod X dislikes Poster X and decides to remove him/her/it from the board before posting that they broke the rules based on intelligence only Mod X has and Poster X can’t reply to defend himself. > If the board decides that there was nothing to justify it,then Poster X should be reinstated… > > Not that poster X didn’t deserve it 🙂 > > And the most pressing question…WHO broke into Tuba’s house and ate her cat?We must be told! This is not a democracy, it’s a benign dictatorship. Or maybe an oligarchy. We all knew that before we paid. You either trust the Mods to do the right thing or go to another board. I don’t think that there can be a situation where one person bans another for personal reasons. The way I understand it only an Administrator can ban, not a Mod. I have always heard that they consult with at least one other person before they come to that conclusion. The exception is of course obvious spammers and socks. ---
**Author:** ![Aldebaran](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Aldebaran](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aldebaran)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2004, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/management-and-enforcement/277350/43 "2004-12-03T18:52:27Z")
> [@Iceland\_Blue](#): > > Sounds pretty good to me. One point- if the general voice of the board is that Poster X did not deserve to be banned, then will the ban be lifted? You want to transfer the decision-making to the the members with use of a popularity poll. Bad idea. > [@](#): > > you could have a situation where Mod X dislikes Poster X and decides to remove him/her/it from the board before posting that they broke the rules based on intelligence only Mod X has and Poster X can’t reply to defend himself. The way it is done now, moderators/administrators seem to have brought upon themselves a kind of obligation to give examples of where and how a member was officially warned, and warned more then once. In my view that excludes the possibility to bann a member merely because one moderator/administrator developped an aversion against that member. > [@](#): > > If the board decides that there was nothing to justify it,then Poster X should be reinstated… It is not the board that should decide instead of the administration as long as you like moderators to be around. Salaam. A ---
**Author:** ![fortytwo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f9ae1b/32.png) [@fortytwo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fortytwo)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2004, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/management-and-enforcement/277350/44 "2004-12-03T18:56:27Z")
> [@Iceland\_Blue](#): > > Sounds pretty good to me. One point- if the general voice of the board is that Poster X did not deserve to be banned, then will the ban be lifted? Hypothetically you could have a situation where Mod X dislikes Poster X and decides to remove him/her/it from the board before posting that they broke the rules based on intelligence only Mod X has and Poster X can’t reply to defend himself. > If the board decides that there was nothing to justify it,then Poster X should be reinstated… I’m no expert on board protocol but I was under the impression that a banning was discussed between more than one moderator before being enacted. ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2004, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/management-and-enforcement/277350/45 "2004-12-03T19:13:29Z")
While **Liberal** ’s “bad” notice is not advisable, it sure would be a hoot to see! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![gum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bbe5ce/32.png) [@gum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gum)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2004, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/management-and-enforcement/277350/46 "2004-12-03T19:22:24Z")
Good idea. Thanks, **TubaDiva**. hehehehe, **Liberal**. Nice links. 🙂 I, also, want to thank you for your decency in the pile-on-the-banned threads. ---
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2004, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/management-and-enforcement/277350/47 "2004-12-03T20:01:01Z")
> [@Aesiron](#): > > Now that we have this in effect, is there any chance of having a grandfather clause and being able to find out precisely why prolific posters before \*\*vanilla \*\*and **Zagadka** were banned if asked? We’d rather not rehash old business, please. > [@Loach](#): > > I like the new rule and how it was recently used. I have one question. Since it is going to be explained in ATMB are the inevitable Pit threads going to be closed? Depends on the circumstances, as always. Certainly any sort of dogpile on a banned poster would be stopped, as is the case now. The Pit is where criticism of moderator actions are placed, so that would also stay the same. > [@grienspace](#): > > I think the administration can be proud of its efforts to be just and fair to everyone. In the spirit of the above statement, I’d like to make the following suggestions. > > 1. A limited time period for posters to register their comments regarding the banned person in one thread only. > > 2. Allowance for the publication of an e-mailed post by the banned person (self defence) in the designated thread at the discretion of the administration. You’ve always been able to make comments – within limits. This is not new policy. To allow a banned member to interact on the board, even second hand, just drags out the whole business and makes it even more disagreeable that it was to begin with. It’s never a happy day when someone transgresses enough to be thrown out. By the time someone has reached that point, we have warned them and counseled them numerous times; what use is further discussion? > [@Iceland\_Blue](#): > > Sounds pretty good to me. One point- if the general voice of the board is that Poster X did not deserve to be banned, then will the ban be lifted? Hypothetically you could have a situation where Mod X dislikes Poster X and decides to remove him/her/it from the board before posting that they broke the rules based on intelligence only Mod X has and Poster X can’t reply to defend himself. > > If the board decides that there was nothing to justify it,then Poster X should be reinstated… > > Not that poster X didn’t deserve it 🙂 > > And the most pressing question…WHO broke into Tuba’s house and ate her cat?We must be told! In most cases (spammers being the notable exception), it takes multiple offenses to get banned. A pattern of bad behavior is what we’re looking at in the great majority of cases. We do not moderate by popularity contest. There are people who have committed some really unpleasant acts and made some ugly choices who have been excused because they had followers in the community willing to overlook their faults. We’ve also had members who felt that someone who was way out of line but entertaining in a trainwreck, watch the jackass sort of way was entitled to a pass. That’s a lousy way to run a message board, or much of anything else. You can disagree with our actions, but the decision of management must be final. The majority of management decisions, especially bannings, are not single-person decisions and are reached through staff discussion and consensus. We don’t hash over everything, but out of the everyday course of events sort of stuff, yes, we do discuss. We have good and sufficient reason for what we do, even if you do not agree. your humble TubaDiva Administrator ---
**Author:** ![PosterX](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9fc29f/32.png) [@PosterX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PosterX)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2004, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/management-and-enforcement/277350/48 "2004-12-03T22:59:50Z")
Sounds like an excellent and well thought out idea. I lurk a lot and have always made a point of reading locked threads whenever I find them just to find out why they were locked. Now I know more than ahandful of reasons that a thread may get locked. I think that a boneyard of banned posters would be an easy place to learn about how the rules work/are applied and what the practical limits of behavior are. Just ftr, I have not been banned, nor have I engaged in bannable behavior. ---
**Author:** ![Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troy_mcclure_sf/32/4150_2.png) [@Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troy_McClure_SF)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2004, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/management-and-enforcement/277350/49 "2004-12-03T23:22:18Z")
> [@Fenris](#): > > Any other olde-tymers read this bit and suddenly remember Bj0rn’s old anti-sarcasm/irony/humor campaign and have scary [Bj0rn](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=10648) flashbacks? 😉 Hey, where’d the ø in his name go? This board has seen a lot of changes, but god dammit, if there is no ø in bjørn, then, well, this is not _my_ SDMB! ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2004, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/management-and-enforcement/277350/50 "2004-12-04T01:55:46Z")
> [@neuroman](#): > > I think that bannings of long time members are likely to result in discussion anyway, might as well put them in the Pit to begin with. ATMB is not well read,… I don’t read ATMB either, but I’ll make it a point to check in here regularly now. I go for weeks at a time without going in the Pit, which I find a vewy, vewy scawy pwace, so I’m glad there’s a place where I can check out what’s new without taking my life in my hands. Excellent decision, mods – and excellent implementation. Thanks again for all your hard work. [/suckup] ---
**Author:** ![moriah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b2d939/32.png) [@moriah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moriah)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2004, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/management-and-enforcement/277350/51 "2004-12-04T02:58:13Z")
People keep looking for a public trial over banned posters. Partly because they want a say in whether they should be banned. Partly because they want to investigate whether the banning was ‘just.’ It’s a fact of this board: there will be no public trials. Confidential information will be kept confidential. The judge and jury and prosecutors are the mods and admins. The fact that they will allow us to complain is commendable. The fact that they will now try to justify what they’re doing as much as they are able is even more commendable. # But if one thinks that this is the start of or the invitation to look over their shoulders and possibly overrule them or to demand an investigation and subpoena private emails… that ain’t gonna happen (as I understand board policy). > [@PosterX](#): > > Sounds like an excellent and well thought out idea. > > I lurk a lot and have always made a point of reading locked threads whenever I find them just to find out why they were locked. Now I know more than ahandful of reasons that a thread may get locked. > > I think that a boneyard of banned posters would be an easy place to learn about how the rules work/are applied and what the practical limits of behavior are. > > Just ftr, I have not been banned, nor have I engaged in bannable behavior. I knew it would be a matter of days before someone took that handle. Welcome to the posting side of the board, infamous **PosterX**. Peace. ---
**Author:** ![Iceland\_Blue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/4bbf92/32.png) [@Iceland\_Blue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iceland_Blue)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2004, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/management-and-enforcement/277350/52 "2004-12-04T14:05:15Z")
We still have not found out who ate the cat 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![MysteryFellow63427](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e4f/32.png) [@MysteryFellow63427](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MysteryFellow63427)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2004, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/management-and-enforcement/277350/53 "2004-12-04T20:16:48Z")
> [@Iceland\_Blue](#): > > We still have not found out who ate the cat 🙂 Didn’t **PosterX** do it? In the dining room with the lead pipe? ---
**Author:** ![Iceland\_Blue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/4bbf92/32.png) [@Iceland\_Blue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iceland_Blue)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2004, 10:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/management-and-enforcement/277350/54 "2004-12-06T10:43:25Z")
I represent the poster known as **PosterX**.Recently,several insinuations have been over this poster being banned,verbally attacking other dopers and even accusations of murder.This must stop! Dopers who have evidence of wrongdoing must present it to the Mods,who can take appropriate action.If not,then please allow the good name of **PosterX** to go unsullied. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/management-and-enforcement/277350.md?page=2)