# Mod Warning in GQ **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [May 22, 2012, 11:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mod-warning-in-gq/622701 "2012-05-22T11:20:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cicero](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cicero/32/3594_2.png) [@Cicero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cicero)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2012, 11:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mod-warning-in-gq/622701/1 "2012-05-22T11:20:36Z")
From Colibri and I am having some difficulty in understanding what it is all about. In this [post](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=652286) at post #25, Colibri states (forgive the amateurish quotes) Moderator Warning Quote: Originally Posted by ralph124c View Post More recently, I very much doubt that engineering marvels like the Hoover Dam, Golden Gate Bridge, Holland Tunnel, could be built today. Not because the engineering talent doesn’t exist…its because the necessary permitting, environmental impact statements, etc. wold take decades to complete. And you would always have some nutbag group protesting it, even after all the hurdles had been cleared. Look what happens when you try to reduce carbon footprints (by building a nuclear power plant)-the protest groups come out of the woodwork-and tie you up in court for years. Moderator Warning ralph124c, you’ve been around plenty long enough to know that political potshots are not allowed in General Questions. This is an official warning. Aruqvan then says nutbag isn’t a political party and Colibri invites us to take the argument here. He states: A political jab doesn’t have to be against a specific political party. The use of loaded terms like “nutbag” and “eco fanatics” is inappropriate for GQ, and doesn’t contribute to the discussion here, and in addition is off topic from the OP. I just can’t understand how the post by Ralph is a “political jab”. Is a jab against an interest group political? For instance, if I have a go at the RSPCA (Royal Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) because of their campaign against whips on race horses- is that also political? If Colibri had issued a warning for using “loaded terms”, I could understand (if not agree with) in that forum. However political seems as if it is drawing a long bow. Anyone care to enlighten me? ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2012, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mod-warning-in-gq/622701/2 "2012-05-22T12:46:58Z")
I don’t see how this merits a warning or even a caution flag, especially because the nutbag group in this case is a hypothetical one (“_some_ nutbag group”). ---
**Author:** ![srzss05](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/898d66/32.png) [@srzss05](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/srzss05)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2012, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mod-warning-in-gq/622701/3 "2012-05-22T12:55:23Z")
Warning? No. I don’t really see anything political about it (though I personally have a similar sentiment, so I may be biased). Note? Probably. It doesn’t really seem to be on topic. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2012, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mod-warning-in-gq/622701/4 "2012-05-22T13:14:33Z")
It’s in GQ, not GD which makes all of the difference. ---
**Author:** ![Cicero](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cicero/32/3594_2.png) [@Cicero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cicero)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2012, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mod-warning-in-gq/622701/5 "2012-05-22T13:22:20Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > It’s in GQ, not GD which makes all of the difference. How? It is still not political in my view. The wording may have been better but the case remains. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2012, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mod-warning-in-gq/622701/6 "2012-05-22T13:40:01Z")
GQ has stricter rules and specific ones against that sort of thing. Maybe this is going to get down to a semantic argument. That type of post was specifically asked not to be made in the OP and could have hijacked an interesting discussion and the poster is a repeat offender for dropping stink bombs like that in threads. The thread was meant to be about engineering and technology, not regulations and laws and snark about environmentalists. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2012, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mod-warning-in-gq/622701/7 "2012-05-22T13:44:29Z")
For all the crap that ralph spews on a daily basis, Colibri chose \*this \*to harp on?!? Totally absurd. But not as absurd as a poster of 11 years not knowing how to use the quote button. ---
**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 22, 2012, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mod-warning-in-gq/622701/8 "2012-05-22T13:45:15Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > and the poster is a repeat offender for dropping stink bombs like that in threads. Not to speak for the mods, but I think this is a big factor. The poster in question has a well established habit of doing this in all sorts of threads, and neither acknowledging the issue nor modifying his behavior. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2012, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mod-warning-in-gq/622701/9 "2012-05-22T13:48:27Z")
I forgave the amateurish quotes, sir, but I _cannot_ abide the bush-league post linking. I shall now take my leave. ---
**Author:** ![Cicero](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cicero/32/3594_2.png) [@Cicero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cicero)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2012, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mod-warning-in-gq/622701/10 "2012-05-22T13:51:12Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > For all the crap that ralph spews on a daily basis, Colibri chose \*this \*to harp on?!? Totally absurd. > > But not as absurd as a poster of 11 years not knowing how to use the quote button. You seem to have a strange set of values. I use them in rhe same thread- starting a new thread and using the multi quotes is a bit of a challenge. I fail to see it as absurd- especially as the quotes have not been in existence for 11 years. Anyway, lets cut to the chase and ignore absurd arguments from posters who have been here for 12 years. ---
**Author:** ![Cicero](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cicero/32/3594_2.png) [@Cicero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cicero)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2012, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mod-warning-in-gq/622701/11 "2012-05-22T13:52:21Z")
> [@VinylTurnip](#): > > I forgave the amateurish quotes, sir, but I _cannot_ abide the bush-league post linking. I shall now take my leave. Bush league? You got me there. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2012, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mod-warning-in-gq/622701/12 "2012-05-22T14:02:53Z")
> [@Cicero](#): > > starting a new thread and using the multi quotes is a bit of a challenge Highlight the text, click the quote button (not the quote button that appears under every post - the quote button that appears when you are typing a post, [looks like this](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/images/editor/quote.gif)). Done. ---
**Author:** ![Cicero](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cicero/32/3594_2.png) [@Cicero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cicero)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2012, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mod-warning-in-gq/622701/13 "2012-05-22T14:06:10Z")
Thanks Munch. Not trying to derail my own thread but I used the multi quote button and that didn’t work. I appreciate your effort. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2012, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mod-warning-in-gq/622701/14 "2012-05-22T14:11:02Z")
Sorry for the derailment - I know that I get a little tweaked when threads I participate in go off the rails. It just…struck me weirdly. Usually if multiquote doesn’t work, there’s a tiny 6-point font sentence under the text box that says something like “multiple quotes not a part of this thread have been selected. Do you want to use them? Yes/No” It’s easy to miss. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2012, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mod-warning-in-gq/622701/15 "2012-05-22T14:31:53Z")
**Colibri** is probably not going to see this thread until the weekend, but speaking as a non-GQ mod, I think the big problem is this part of the post: > [@They built up with their bare hands what we still can't do today...](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-built-up-with-their-bare-hands-what-we-still-cant-do-today/622382/24): > > Look what happens when you try to reduce carbon footprints (by building a nuclear power plant)-the protest groups come out of the woodwork-and tie you up in court for years. This is not a comment about hypothetical protesters, it’s an off-topic political comment about real-world environmental protesters. **Colibri** says **ralph214c** has a history of that, so he took that into account in deciding to hand out a warning. I’ve also fixed the thread title so it’s clear warning was given in GQ, not GD. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2012, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mod-warning-in-gq/622701/16 "2012-05-22T14:35:49Z")
Marley - my concern is that if that’s the benchmark for giving ralph a warning, why doesn’t he have a thousand warnings? That’s honestly an underestimation. ---
**Author:** ![Cicero](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cicero/32/3594_2.png) [@Cicero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cicero)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2012, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mod-warning-in-gq/622701/17 "2012-05-22T14:38:21Z")
Marley, thanks for the title adjustment. In the warning however, Colibri did not mention the aspect you refer to- it was a “political jab”. And that is what I can’t follow. (And obviously I can’t speak for Ralph). ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2012, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mod-warning-in-gq/622701/18 "2012-05-22T14:43:40Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > Marley - my concern is that if that’s the benchmark for giving ralph a warning, why doesn’t he have a thousand warnings? That’s honestly an underestimation. I can’t speak to that one. > [@Cicero](#): > > In the warning however, Colibri did not mention the aspect you refer to- it was a “political jab”. And that is what I can’t follow. He says anti-nuclear protesters are nuts, and that’s a political comment. You don’t have to name a political party to make a comment about a political issue. ---
**Author:** ![Cicero](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cicero/32/3594_2.png) [@Cicero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cicero)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2012, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mod-warning-in-gq/622701/19 "2012-05-22T14:54:20Z")
Marley, with all due respect, I can’t follow that reasoning. Everything is a political issue, if you want it to be. If I don’t get kerbing that is a political issue for me and my council. However, if I say people climbing trees to protest against them being cut down are nuts, it could also mean I fear for their safety. An anti- nuclear movement may be sensitive, but it comes across to me that calling it political is a back door approach to calling it for the actual reason- the author was using inflammatory words. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2012, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mod-warning-in-gq/622701/20 "2012-05-22T15:01:32Z")
> [@Cicero](#): > > Everything is a political issue, if you want it to be. There’s no rule against mentioning something that could be a political issue. The rule proscribes off-topic political comments, and that’s what this was. The thread topic is “What human-made structures could not be rebuilt today?” and it’s a discussion of the feasibility of rebuilding various structures. **ralph214c** ’s comment was basically “anti-nuclear protesters are nuts.” [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mod-warning-in-gq/622701.md?page=2)