# Marley--here we go again. **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [May 14, 2013, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marley-here-we-go-again/658321 "2013-05-14T16:00:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**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:** [May 15, 2013, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marley-here-we-go-again/658321/121 "2013-05-15T14:28:43Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > People, can **Oak** and I just grab a beer together and everybody else drop it? We’re getting too worked up over nothing at all, and there are more important things we could be talking about and dealing with, like whether or not this milk smells funny. People? **Oak** is the one getting all worked up. Seems like you should petition him to let it drop. Have a beer if you’d like, but his beef isn’t with you. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2013, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marley-here-we-go-again/658321/122 "2013-05-15T14:31:21Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > People, can **Oak** and I just grab a beer together and everybody else drop it? I’m happy to drop it. To put this in perspective, I didn’t claim he gave you mortal offense- I asked him to stop making a type of comment (and not just to you). The rest of this has been an explanation of why I did that. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2013, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marley-here-we-go-again/658321/123 "2013-05-15T14:38:40Z")
This thread would make a Hollywood plastic surgeon proud. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2013, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marley-here-we-go-again/658321/124 "2013-05-15T14:42:52Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > They do when it’s actually threadshitting. No true Scotsman ever threadshits. **Oakminster** says “boo hiss” and gets a mod note. **Der Trihs** says that conservatives are willing to have their children murdered by guns, and that pro-lifers want women to suffer and die, and **elucidator** does nothing but post unsubstantive snark, and the silence is deafening. If **Oakminster** ’s remarks were thread-shitting, then remarks that are much worse from liberals should be considered thread-shitting. But they aren’t. > [@](#): > > We’ve never done this… _:shrugs:_ **tomndebb** has done this. Your statement is false. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2013, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marley-here-we-go-again/658321/125 "2013-05-15T14:58:18Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > **Der Trihs** says that conservatives are willing to have their children murdered by guns, and that pro-lifers want women to suffer and die, and **elucidator** does nothing but post unsubstantive snark, and the silence is deafening. Those things have been modded, as I have explained over and over in many other threads on this subject. > [@](#): > > If **Oakminster** ’s remarks were thread-shitting, then remarks that are much worse from liberals should be considered thread-shitting. It’s a different kind of comment, and sometimes it _is_ treated that way. > [@](#): > > **tomndebb** has done this. I’ll be polite and say this is news to me, and I’ll predict that if you post a cite I will have a different opinion on what was said. In any event this has nothing to do with why I gave **Oakminster** a mod note. ---
**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:** [May 15, 2013, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marley-here-we-go-again/658321/126 "2013-05-15T15:00:53Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > No true Scotsman ever threadshits. > > **Oakminster** says “boo hiss” and gets a mod note. **Der Trihs** says that conservatives are willing to have their children murdered by guns, and that pro-lifers want women to suffer and die, and **elucidator** does nothing but post unsubstantive snark, and the silence is deafening. [It is?](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=16249212&postcount=78) ---
**Author:** ![mlees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@mlees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mlees)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2013, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marley-here-we-go-again/658321/127 "2013-05-15T15:10:22Z")
> [@Measure\_for\_Measure](#): > > Der gets a pass because he doesn’t break the rules generally. He puts forth substantive opinions (unlike most of Oak’s material from the linked thread)-- but almost always without substantiation I’ll readily concede. Wait… what? “He puts forth substantive arguments… without the substantiation…” 😕 ---
**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:** [May 15, 2013, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marley-here-we-go-again/658321/128 "2013-05-15T15:11:41Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > **Oakminster** says “boo hiss” and gets a mod note. **Der Trihs** says that conservatives are willing to have their children murdered by guns, and that pro-lifers want women to suffer and die, and **elucidator** does nothing but post unsubstantive snark, and the silence is deafening. You reported those posts? ---
**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 15, 2013, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marley-here-we-go-again/658321/129 "2013-05-15T15:16:12Z")
> [@mlees](#): > > Wait… what? > > “He puts forth substantive arguments… without the substantiation…” > > 😕 I think I get the idea: Nonsubstantive post: “Boo, hiss!” Substantive post: “Republicans hate women!” Substantive post with substantiation: “Republicans hate women! If you look at a recent Gallup poll, which I’m linking to, you’ll see that 63% of Republicans rate their attitude toward women as hostile or very hostile, and 95% of crimes committed against women, according to these DOJ statistics, were committed by members of the Republican party.” ---
**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:** [May 15, 2013, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marley-here-we-go-again/658321/130 "2013-05-15T15:21:53Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > I think I get the idea: > > Nonsubstantive post: “Boo, hiss!” > > Substantive post: “Republicans hate women!” > > Substantive post with substantiation: “Republicans hate women! If you look at a recent Gallup poll, which I’m linking to, you’ll see that 63% of Republicans rate their attitude toward women as hostile or very hostile, and 95% of crimes committed against women, according to these DOJ statistics, were committed by members of the Republican party.” I would not call #2 “substantive”, especially since there is no such Gallop pole that would substantiate it. ---
**Author:** ![mlees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@mlees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mlees)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2013, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marley-here-we-go-again/658321/131 "2013-05-15T15:22:09Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > I think I get the idea: > > Nonsubstantive post: “Boo, hiss!” > > Substantive post: “Republicans hate women!” > > Substantive post with substantiation: “Republicans hate women! If you look at a recent Gallup poll, which I’m linking to, you’ll see that 63% of Republicans rate their attitude toward women as hostile or very hostile, and 95% of crimes committed against women, according to these DOJ statistics, were committed by members of the Republican party.” Well, actually, I was trying to point out a contradiction I thought I saw in **Measure for Measure** ’s post. Meaty post without the meat. ---
**Author:** ![Ibn\_Warraq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e19b73/32.png) [@Ibn\_Warraq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibn_Warraq)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2013, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marley-here-we-go-again/658321/132 "2013-05-15T15:53:33Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > Look, you did what **tomndebb** does sometimes - you got a report from someone you don’t like and went looking for something to use to send the message “don’t report any more posts”. > > Regards, > Shodan I’m reasonably certain I’m not one of Marley’s favorite people and I’ve reported posts without him deciding to “send a message” to me. In the end, Marley made a judgement call which I think was wrong, but at the same time perfectly reasonable and he has a job which calls for such judgment calls. This particularly true when we have rules as vague as “don’t be a jerk” and don’t threadshit and don’t troll, because reasonable people will disagree on what those are. People will note in the past how we’ve had dramatically different standards and opinions on what constitutes hate speech and we always will. Also, mod notes, while not pleasant to receive are hardly the same thing as warnings. ---
**Author:** ![Knorf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/58956e/32.png) [@Knorf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knorf)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2013, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marley-here-we-go-again/658321/133 "2013-05-15T17:22:42Z")
> [@Ibn\_Warraq](#): > > In the end, Marley made a judgement call which I think was wrong, but at the same time perfectly reasonable and he has a job which calls for such judgment calls. This particularly true when we have rules as vague as “don’t be a jerk” and don’t threadshit and don’t troll, because reasonable people will disagree on what those are. Well said. This is essentially where I come down on this topic as well. Having said that, I still would advocate for a little less moderation rather than more, but it seems clear this is a minority opinion on the SDMB. ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2013, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marley-here-we-go-again/658321/134 "2013-05-15T17:48:43Z")
> [@Knorf](#): > > Well said. This is essentially where I come down on this topic as well. > > Having said that, I still would advocate for a little less moderation rather than more, but it seems clear this is a minority opinion on the SDMB. I’m sure the _silent majority_ agrees with your point. They just don’t find it reasonable to expend the effort necessary to present a case here. So, the mods patiently listen, then in a day or two, delete the thread. But all and all, mods do do a good job moderating threads. Even when they do it prematurely. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2013, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marley-here-we-go-again/658321/135 "2013-05-15T17:54:48Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > And we’ve heard the caged bird sing. If you want to bash other posters, do it in the Pit. > [@Morgenstern](#): > > So, the mods patiently listen, then in a day or two, delete the thread. I assume this is just a typo, but we don’t delete threads unless they’re spam. We sometimes close threads if they get out of hand. ---
**Author:** ![FuriousGeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecae2f/32.png) [@FuriousGeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FuriousGeorge)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2013, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marley-here-we-go-again/658321/136 "2013-05-15T18:22:49Z")
This is not the worst mod note ever, but \*\*Marley \*\* does have a hard-on for **Oak** and he definitely mods with a mind to steering to his political beliefs. Not every mod note and not every thread… but as a general approach, yeah. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2013, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marley-here-we-go-again/658321/137 "2013-05-15T18:23:49Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > If you want to bash other posters, do it in the Pit. Apologies; I never thought the poetry of Maya Angelou would be offensive. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2013, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marley-here-we-go-again/658321/138 "2013-05-15T18:28:17Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Apologies; I never thought the poetry of Maya Angelou would be offensive. I’m not really sure what you were trying to do by calling another poster a caged bird, but as much as I appreciate a literary reference, it has squat to do with ATMB. If your comment is just a dig at another poster, try the Pit. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2013, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marley-here-we-go-again/658321/139 "2013-05-15T19:21:10Z")
Thank you, Marley, for once again demonstrating why I don’t want that job. You made a call to try to keep a conversation constructive rather than devolving into just sniping. And then you have to deal with the return of the parade of repeated false accusations. I will say you should consider **John Mace** ’s comment from post 117: > [@](#): > > The only question I have, for **Marley** and/or **Tom** , is why he always gets just a mod note even though it’s the nth time he’s _done the exact same thing_. Seems like once you’ve been mod’ed 3 or 4 times for “doing x”, you should get an official waring the next time you “do x”. The downside of Mod notes is they are not recorded like Warnings. It is understandable that a certain trend might be overlooked from time to time. But something like this seems like it is frequent enough that each mod should personally witness several episodes, independent of any sharing of a record of mod notes. At some point, shouldn’t a stiffer penalty be enacted, to curb jerkish behavior? ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2013, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marley-here-we-go-again/658321/140 "2013-05-15T19:24:41Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > … > > I assume this is just a typo, but we don’t delete threads unless they’re spam. We sometimes close threads if they get out of hand. I beg to differ with you on that. I’ve seen dozens of threads complaining about one thing or another in this forum, and they sure appear to be missing. I just assumed they were deleted. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marley-here-we-go-again/658321.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marley-here-we-go-again/658321.md?page=8)