# The Banning of Shodan

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-banning-of-shodan/853763>\
**Category:** About This Message Board\
**Created:** [May 14, 2020, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-banning-of-shodan/853763 "2020-05-14T02:33:13Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 20\
**Page:** 21

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**Author:** ![octopus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/octopus/32/3716_2.png) [@octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/octopus)\
**Post date:** [May 16, 2020, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-banning-of-shodan/853763/403 "2020-05-16T22:20:43Z")

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> [@Oakminster](#):
>
> And I’m not bending over backwards trying to see a way to justify banning a guy over this.

That’s because you aren’t a participant in the great game of trying to get certain posters banned. For some it’s a decades long diversion.

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**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\
**Post date:** [May 16, 2020, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-banning-of-shodan/853763/404 "2020-05-16T22:27:52Z")

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> [@bucketybuck](#):
>
> I doubt anybody will actually miss Shodan or wants him back.
> 
> Its just that a horseshit banning is still horseshit even when its given to somebody who had it coming.

This is a good point. If they want to just operate on the basis of ostracizing the unpopular, they should make it explicit. Have a monthly nominating process, run a poll, ban the poster who gets the most blackball votes. I’m sure I wouldn’t last too long, depending on how many other higher priority targets were ahead of me. But it would be interesting to see what it would turn the board into after a while, and whether (just as in the French Revolution) some of the people who led the charge to drive people out at one stage would later be themselves purged.

I’d watch.

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**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\
**Post date:** [May 16, 2020, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-banning-of-shodan/853763/405 "2020-05-16T22:48:22Z")

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What is the point of asking over and over again why a decision was made when you have already established that you will refuse to accept the answer given? I am genuinely curious as to what the goal is here.

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**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\
**Post date:** [May 16, 2020, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-banning-of-shodan/853763/406 "2020-05-16T22:50:14Z")

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Who’s asking why it was made? I think we know why, and are voicing our dissatisfaction with the moderation. I thought \*that \*was the point.

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**Author:** ![Sunny\_Daze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunny_daze/32/438_2.png) [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)\
**Post date:** [May 16, 2020, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-banning-of-shodan/853763/407 "2020-05-16T23:04:42Z")

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There is documented evidence of poor behavior going back years. He got banned.

You seem very stuck on the word “harpy” rather than the poor behavior that caused the banning. **Czarcasm** is right. What exactly are you protesting and why?

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**Author:** ![What\_the](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f4b2a3/32.png) [@What\_the](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_the)\
**Post date:** [May 16, 2020, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-banning-of-shodan/853763/408 "2020-05-16T23:16:22Z")

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Using the word caused the banning. Unless it was just a reason to do something they wanted to do a long time.

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**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\
**Post date:** [May 16, 2020, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-banning-of-shodan/853763/409 "2020-05-16T23:21:37Z")

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> [@What\_the](#):
>
> Using the word caused the banning. Unless it was just a reason to do something they wanted to do a long time.

This makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. The man has been a jerk for years, so if they wanted him gone they could have done it _years_ ago. In this weird conspiracy theory of yours, what was the “real” reason they couldn’t dump him all this time?

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**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\
**Post date:** [May 16, 2020, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-banning-of-shodan/853763/410 "2020-05-16T23:23:12Z")

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**Shodan** had some good input, despite his… controversial opinions.

I think think the SDMB should do some soul searching…

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**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\
**Post date:** [May 16, 2020, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-banning-of-shodan/853763/411 "2020-05-16T23:42:37Z")

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> [@Sunny\_Daze](#):
>
> You seem very stuck on the word “harpy” rather than the poor behavior that caused the banning.

😕 Are you addressing this at me? You posted it below my post, long enough later that it clearly wasn’t a “ninja” type deal. But that’s odd, since although there have been posters ITT really focusing on the word “harpy”, I was not one of them.

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**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\
**Post date:** [May 17, 2020, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-banning-of-shodan/853763/412 "2020-05-17T00:41:37Z")

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> [@SlackerInc](#):
>
> Who’s asking why it was made? I think we know why, and are voicing our dissatisfaction with the moderation. I thought \*that \*was the point.

I thought the moderation was very reasonable, given his history. I have still asked them to give him one more chance, on a very short leash.

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**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\
**Post date:** [May 17, 2020, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-banning-of-shodan/853763/413 "2020-05-17T00:44:07Z")

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> [@What\_the](#):
>
> Using the word caused the banning. Unless it was just a reason to do something they wanted to do a long time.

No, not at all. _His entire history caused his banning._ If he had just used that word, with no prior history, it would have been a warning or a note.

It’s like the3 strikes criminal with a rape and manslaughter as two priors, then he steal a bike. He aint getting life for stealing the bike.

and this has been pointed out repeatedly and you guys keep coming back to that, even tho it is quite wrong.

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**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\
**Post date:** [May 17, 2020, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-banning-of-shodan/853763/414 "2020-05-17T01:05:01Z")

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> [@Czarcasm](#):
>
> In this weird conspiracy theory of yours, what was the “real” reason they couldn’t dump him all this time?

There was no casus beli since his suspension. Until he called some professor that put herself in the public eye with controversial policy suggestions a harpy. And he then gets the ban hammer for something that should not have drawn any mod action at all.

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**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\
**Post date:** [May 17, 2020, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-banning-of-shodan/853763/415 "2020-05-17T01:13:30Z")

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> [@DrDeth](#):
>
> I thought the moderation was very reasonable, given his history. I have still asked them to give him one more chance, on a very short leash.

Depending on what “short leash” means, I would hope he would not take a deal like that. I’ve heard people say he should be topic banned from anything to do with politics, and that’s ridiculous. (You want to backdoor ban me? Give me a topic ban, because homey don’t play that shit.)

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**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\
**Post date:** [May 17, 2020, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-banning-of-shodan/853763/416 "2020-05-17T01:21:41Z")

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Homey gets to play by House Rules, just like the rest of us.

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**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\
**Post date:** [May 17, 2020, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-banning-of-shodan/853763/417 "2020-05-17T01:21:47Z")

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> [@DrDeth](#):
>
> No, not at all. _His entire history caused his banning._ If he had just used that word, with no prior history, it would have been a warning or a note.

On the contrary, if he had used that word with no prior history, as many other people have done, it would have passed unnoticed with no moderator action at all. Because it isn’t, in fact, any violation of the rules at all.

> [@](#):
>
> It’s like the3 strikes criminal with a rape and manslaughter as two priors, then he steal a bike. He aint getting life for stealing the bike.

It’s like the3 strikes criminal with a rape and manslaughter as two priors, who then goes and buys a bike, and the police say they will treat it as theft, even though he bought it legally, and he gets a life sentence for prior offenses, even though he didn’t actually do anything wrong this time.

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**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\
**Post date:** [May 17, 2020, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-banning-of-shodan/853763/418 "2020-05-17T02:02:13Z")

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Jeezily fuck, I leave for a couple days and the board falls apart!

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**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 17, 2020, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-banning-of-shodan/853763/419 "2020-05-17T02:08:21Z")

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> [@dropzone](#):
>
> Jeezily fuck, I leave for a couple days and the board falls apart!

Hey! Glad you’re back.

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**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\
**Post date:** [May 17, 2020, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-banning-of-shodan/853763/420 "2020-05-17T02:11:07Z")

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I see a pattern here, so I think I’m going to use the War Games maneuver.  
And welcome back, _dz_!

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**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\
**Post date:** [May 17, 2020, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-banning-of-shodan/853763/421 "2020-05-17T02:27:49Z")

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> [@bucketybuck](#):
>
> I doubt anybody will actually miss Shodan or wants him back.

Eh…I dunno. I never, ever agree with the guy (ok, maybe there were one or two times but mostly never) but I think this message board is better with some consistently right-leaning voices willing to go against the predominant left lean of the board.

Shodan has been one of the few to keep at it. Without him and a few others like him the whole thing becomes more of a circle-jerk and useless as a place for good debate (you see this happen a lot in sub-reddits on Reddit and it sucks).

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**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\
**Post date:** [May 17, 2020, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-banning-of-shodan/853763/422 "2020-05-17T02:41:15Z")

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Gratuitous swipes against either side, as in that “harpy” post, is not conducive to good debate.  
Full disclosure: I reported that post – for trolling.

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