# Posts linked to Pit Threads

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posts-linked-to-pit-threads/915314>\
**Category:** About This Message Board\
**Created:** [July 14, 2020, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posts-linked-to-pit-threads/915314 "2020-07-14T14:46:23Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 7\
**Page:** 2

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\
**Post date:** [June 18, 2021, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posts-linked-to-pit-threads/915314/21 "2021-06-18T21:37:47Z")

</div>

Wow, ninja’d me. I was about to bump this.

> [@codinghorror](#):
>
> There’s no good technical way to prevent these links between topics from being created

Is it possible to somehow mark the post-links with category specific information so we can hide them with site theme CSS?

This is what I get from inspecting the post links from post #1 in this topic:

```auto
<ul class="post-links">
  <li>
    <a class="track-link inbound" href="https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-rule-about-thread-titles-when-pitting-other-posters/944549/14"><svg class="fa d-icon d-icon-link svg-icon svg-node" aria-hidden="true"><use xlink:href="#link"></use></svg><span>New Rule about Thread Titles when Pitting Other Posters</span></a>
  </li>
  <li>
    <a class="track-link inbound" href="https://boards.straightdope.com/t/masking-posts-linked-to-the-pit/944471"><svg class="fa d-icon d-icon-link svg-icon svg-node" aria-hidden="true"><use xlink:href="#link"></use></svg><span>Masking posts linked to the Pit</span></a>
  </li>
  <li>
    <a class="track-link inbound" href="https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rittersport-pitted-to-showcase-linking/915333"><svg class="fa d-icon d-icon-link svg-icon svg-node" aria-hidden="true"><use xlink:href="#link"></use></svg><span>RitterSport pitted to showcase linking</span></a>
  </li>
</ul>

```

Perhaps it is possible to make a site-specific class for each category, and to mark each `<li></li>` 's class attribute with exactly one category class.

~Max

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\
**Post date:** [June 18, 2021, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posts-linked-to-pit-threads/915314/22 "2021-06-18T21:53:50Z")

</div>

Putting category information in the post-links list could allow you to hide post-links when a user has muted an entire category. Even on other boards if someone doesn’t want to deal with meta drama, they can ignore the meta category and have a clean Discourse experience.

Right now, if I’m not mistaken, muting a category does not save you from seeing drama spill over via post-links. (Otherwise we could simply have the Pit muted by default)

~Max

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**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:** [June 19, 2021, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posts-linked-to-pit-threads/915314/23 "2021-06-19T23:02:54Z")

</div>

> [@codinghorror](#):
>
> So, let me get this straight, there’s a whole category for making fun of specific community members? And each topic in that category is like a “roast” of that person?

Actually, no, that’s not a fair characterization of the Pit. More accurately, it’s a place where many of the normal rules of civility don’t apply. Think of it as a forum with minimal moderation. Sometimes this exemption is used to attack other posters, but a lot of the time it’s also used for rants about the world, politics, and the events of everyday life. And believe it or not, conversations there have sometimes evolved into informative and constructive discussions.

> [@codinghorror](#):
>
> A culture of snark always ends badly in my experience. Sure, it starts out fun, but the descent into negativity that it encourages often ends up being a self-fulfilling prophecy. It might be better to _not_ do this kind of thing?

There may be some truth in that observation, but it’s obviously not correct to say that the existence of such a forum “always” ends badly, since the Pit has existed in the SDMB for a great many years and in my view, and the view of many members, the SDMB remains one of the best general-purpose message boards on the internet today in terms of quality of discourse. I don’t think you’re wrong in the typical general case, but the SDMB membership by and large is not “typical”.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\
**Post date:** [June 20, 2021, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posts-linked-to-pit-threads/915314/24 "2021-06-20T02:19:06Z")

</div>

> [@codinghorror](#):
>
> A culture of snark always ends badly in my experience.

I agree, _but_, people being people, there can be bad feelings about other posters. If there’s no outlet for it, it keeps popping up in other forums, with perpetual bad blood between different posters.

The idea of the Pit is that’s a safety valve to drain off the bile and venom from the other fora.

Personally, I’ve never been really convinced of that. I think it drives off frequent Pittees, even if they contribute to other fora. Too much of a dog pile for my taste.

Far better to have _cough_ other boards _cough_ for vileness.

I rarely go to the Pit, except for threads about non-Dope people, like a certain delusional former federal official.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![codinghorror](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/codinghorror/32/4242_2.png) [@codinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/codinghorror)\
**Post date:** [June 28, 2021, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posts-linked-to-pit-threads/915314/25 "2021-06-28T21:00:46Z")

</div>

> [@Why is the SDMB membership declining, and what's the best way to add younger members?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-sdmb-membership-declining-and-whats-the-best-way-to-add-younger-members/944208/426):
>
> The BBQ pit is vile and awful. It should be called the Cess Pit. I never visit but just the smell puts me off. Someone upthread said it contaminates the reputation of the other forums the way that some of the seedier subreddits put people off Reddit even if they never visit those subreddits. It pollutes everything.

> [@Northern\_Piper](#):
>
> Far better to have _cough_ other boards _cough_ for vileness.

This is correct. The idea that having “just a little” toxic waste nearby is OK? You’ll still suffer the same consequences. Don’t just toss a tarp over it. Bury it deep, deep underground at a remote location!

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\
**Post date:** [June 28, 2021, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posts-linked-to-pit-threads/915314/26 "2021-06-28T21:26:04Z")

</div>

I used to feel the way you did about the Pit. I’ve participated in online discussions since the old AOL days (not SDMB specifically back then) and I’ve been a moderator at a number of sites. This is the first site I ever was a part of that had anything like the BBQ Pit and I was uncomfortable with it. I avoided reading it for years and avoided participating in it for longer.

But for some time now I’ve spent a lot of time there. There’s something very appealing about a place where you can be uncivil without being called out for it. And strangely enough, most of the conversation there is pretty productive. For some reason it actually works here. I don’t think it would work very well in other places. Maybe it helps that it has always been here, and the culture evolved around it. Sort of like animals that live in harsh deserts or frozen landscapes; not only are they able to survive there, they would struggle in other environments. That doesn’t mean that your hamster would be fine if left in the Sahara or you should take your Chihuahua on a casual stroll on an iceberg so approach with caution.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\
**Post date:** [July 10, 2021, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posts-linked-to-pit-threads/915314/27 "2021-07-10T18:48:27Z")

</div>

> [@codinghorror](#):
>
> The idea that having “just a little” toxic waste nearby is OK?

If I remember correctly all debates on _Firing Line_ began with a light roasting.

~Max

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