Should URL shorteners be banned?

[Gary_Robson]

@Smeghead

We’ve already got rules in place to handle what links we allow. The last thing this place needs is more rules to enforce.

@Chronos

The bigger problem, I think, is YouTube or IMDb links without any context given-- Someone will ask “What’s your favorite movie?”, and someone will reply with a link to IMDb that just says “This one”, or something. It breaks the flow of the conversation to have to follow a link to see what someone is saying.

Yes, we already have rules in force about this. Here’s a relevant excerpt:

@FAQ - Rules for Posting at the Straight Dope Message Boards

(1) LINKS SHOULD BE DESCRIBED
When posting links, please be courteous to your fellow posters: describe what you are linking to. It does not have to be a lengthy description, but “See this political cartoon” is better than “This is funny!”

If your link is primary to the topic when starting a thread, please explain not only what the link is, but why you are linking there. Don’t just post a link to a news story or video and expect people to start a conversation about it.
INCORRECT: “Ain’t this cool?”
CORRECT: “This looks like the coolest electronic cat-feeder ever!”