# The moderation here is getting ridiculously heavy handed **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [July 23, 2014, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-moderation-here-is-getting-ridiculously-heavy-handed/693869 "2014-07-23T19:46:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2014, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-moderation-here-is-getting-ridiculously-heavy-handed/693869/21 "2014-07-23T20:22:07Z")
> [@Giraffe](#): > > Ah, then you’ll want to reverse all those warnings because no one except the OP did that. And on this note, although I’ll cop to making the obvious joke, how on earth does it follow that my comment was considered _complaining_? Wouldn’t that be closer to pointing out who the OP was talking about than griping about it myself? Regardless, I’ll deal if you truly believe that’s what it was. Because there’s no way for me to explain it otherwise. But this whole thing has been a mystery. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2014, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-moderation-here-is-getting-ridiculously-heavy-handed/693869/22 "2014-07-23T20:28:00Z")
> [@Giraffe](#): > > Ah, then you’ll want to reverse all those warnings because no one except the OP did that. That’s not how I read the thread. But I may take another look at this later on. ---
**Author:** ![Giraffe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giraffe/32/129_2.png) [@Giraffe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giraffe)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2014, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-moderation-here-is-getting-ridiculously-heavy-handed/693869/23 "2014-07-23T20:28:55Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > That’s not how I read the thread. But I may take another look at this later on. I think that’s the right thing to do. This stuff sometimes reads differently once some time has passed and you’re out of the moment. ---
**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:** [July 23, 2014, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-moderation-here-is-getting-ridiculously-heavy-handed/693869/24 "2014-07-23T20:29:09Z")
> [@Tamerlane](#): > > I’d say it was pretty obvious he understood the joke. Not to speak for him, but I suspect he was more likely to argue that calling a joke brilliant doesn’t deserve a warning. And IMHO it does not. Closing the thread is perfectly appropriate. Maybe warning the OP, though a simple “don’t do this again” would have been my preference. > > But a warning for cheering a joke is over the top. > > But even if you disagree on the merits of **GrandWino** ’s warning ( and I’m guessing you do since you made it ), his complaint about being warned is perfectly within reason. I don’t think he deserved his warning, so I don’t find it unreasonable that he wouldn’t agree either. And this is the forum to discuss your choice of moderation. There is nothing frivolous in that thread. > > I’m sure you’re pissed about this and no argument it is a shitty job to have to read people bitching about your decisions ad nauseam. But I’m afraid you did sign up for it. Agree to all of the above. ---
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2014, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-moderation-here-is-getting-ridiculously-heavy-handed/693869/25 "2014-07-23T20:30:49Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > That’s not how I read the thread. But I may take another look at this later on. Thank you, **Marley**. I don’t think we can ask for more than that. ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2014, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-moderation-here-is-getting-ridiculously-heavy-handed/693869/26 "2014-07-23T20:32:34Z")
Do I have all the principle players? Czarcasm The Mods Blank Slate Posters contentious about what seems just versus what is ruled Posters who appreciate satire (whom I am among on GP’s since _you know who else didn’t allow satire?_) OK, Shame on all of them to varying degrees. But if a lowly poster can’t offer an opinion on those degrees with impunity, doesn’t that effect the actual proportionment? ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2014, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-moderation-here-is-getting-ridiculously-heavy-handed/693869/27 "2014-07-23T20:32:54Z")
Look - the ruling was that saying “Poster X gets special breaks because he was once a mod” was a personal insult to Poster X. OK - personal insults go in the Pit and the Pit thread should not have been locked. Or else saying “Poster X gets special breaks because he was once a mod” is a complaint about the moderation, in which case it goes in ATMB and the ruling was wrong and the ATMB thread should not have been locked. Or else the ruling is “Poster X gets special breaks because he was once a mod” is not allowed in any forum. Regards, Shodan ---
**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:** [July 23, 2014, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-moderation-here-is-getting-ridiculously-heavy-handed/693869/28 "2014-07-23T20:41:21Z")
\*\*Marley \*\*- In case it wasn’t clear from the other ATMB thread that you locked (and warned me for), I’m still complaining about the Pit warning (as well as the ATMB warning now) and ask for them to both be rescinded. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2014, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-moderation-here-is-getting-ridiculously-heavy-handed/693869/29 "2014-07-23T20:43:43Z")
No one should have been warned for any of this shit. My first thought on seeing the ATMB thread locked with a frivolous warning was “If this was my board, I’d be looking for a new moderator…” ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2014, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-moderation-here-is-getting-ridiculously-heavy-handed/693869/30 "2014-07-23T20:47:59Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > That’s not how I read the thread. But I may take another look at this later on. As I recently said in another ATMB thread. > [@Idle Thoughts - Please reconsider JohnClay's warning](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idle-thoughts-please-reconsider-johnclays-warning/693848/18): > > I agree. One of the best traits of this board are the mods who listen to the poster-base and take what they have to say into consideration **whether they reverse a decision or not**. It shows that they care about the board and the posters. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Borgia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/larry_borgia/32/156_2.png) [@Larry\_Borgia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Borgia)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2014, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-moderation-here-is-getting-ridiculously-heavy-handed/693869/31 "2014-07-23T20:51:13Z")
No one should have been warned for any of this. The Pit OPwas funny and on point. “Fucking Brilliant” gets a warning now? ETA: But thanks for taking some time and re-thinking this, **Marley**. ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2014, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-moderation-here-is-getting-ridiculously-heavy-handed/693869/32 "2014-07-23T20:57:49Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > Look - the ruling was that saying “Poster X gets special breaks because he was once a mod” was a personal insult to Poster X. OK - personal insults go in the Pit and the Pit thread should not have been locked. > > Or else saying “Poster X gets special breaks because he was once a mod” is a complaint about the moderation, in which case it goes in ATMB and the ruling was wrong and the ATMB thread should not have been locked. > > Or else the ruling is “Poster X gets special breaks because he was once a mod” is not allowed in any forum. > > Regards, > Shodan Saying “Poster X gets special breaks because …” needs to be reworded as “The Mods favor Poster X because…” and then forumlated so it’s not insulting to anyone, and is ATMB material about moderator action. The particular thread under discussion was NOT just about that topic, but was a not-so-thinly disguised comment on moderator actions, and as such was a rules violation. As a footnote, I can see why some feel that **Giraffe** gets preferential treatment as an ex-moderator, but I assure you that it’s not so, no one gets preferential treatment. (Well, OK, that’s not 100% accurate, we are much more lenient with some situations, such as new-comers who don’t know the rules yet, people on medications or with difficult illnesses, etc.) ---
**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:** [July 23, 2014, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-moderation-here-is-getting-ridiculously-heavy-handed/693869/33 "2014-07-23T21:02:00Z")
“If you want to talk about [**Czarcasm**], then go to the Pit or some other forum where it’s appropriate.” - **Dex** , two days ago. Anyone else feel like they’re trapped in a Joseph Heller novel? ---
**Author:** ![Eutychus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Eutychus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eutychus)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2014, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-moderation-here-is-getting-ridiculously-heavy-handed/693869/34 "2014-07-23T21:08:39Z")
> [@Skywatcher](#): > > “If you want to talk about [**Czarcasm**], then go to the Pit or some other forum where it’s appropriate.” - **Dex** , two days ago. > > Anyone else feel like they’re trapped in a Joseph Heller novel? “Something Happened?” ---
**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:** [July 23, 2014, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-moderation-here-is-getting-ridiculously-heavy-handed/693869/35 "2014-07-23T21:12:16Z")
> [@Eutychus](#): > > “Something Happened?” “God Knows.” ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2014, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-moderation-here-is-getting-ridiculously-heavy-handed/693869/36 "2014-07-23T21:12:38Z")
> [@Skywatcher](#): > > “If you want to talk about [**Czarcasm**], then go to the Pit or some other forum where it’s appropriate.” - **Dex** , two days ago. > > Anyone else feel like they’re trapped in a Joseph Heller novel? “Yep. Oh, you want to bitch about me? Go to the Pit! Oh wait, can’t do that, because moderator discussions belong in ATMB! Thread closed.” Well played, guys. Well played. Seriously, what has happened to this place? Are the mods burned out or something? Are the coffee cups painted with lead? ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2014, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-moderation-here-is-getting-ridiculously-heavy-handed/693869/37 "2014-07-23T21:13:22Z")
> [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](#): > > As a footnote, I can see why some feel that **Giraffe** gets preferential treatment as an ex-moderator, but I assure you that it’s not so, no one gets preferential treatment. Actually, it seems to me that if **Giraffe** gets any special treatment around here, it’s that some otherwise-completely-oblivious-and-non-responsive moderators will actually, from time to time, stop and listen to what he has to say rather than dismissing him out of hand as a troublemaker or a malcontent. Of course, when this happens, it’s often the case that a bunch of other posters have made similar points and been ignored or dismissed by the mods. It would be nice if some moderators actually bothered to take those points seriously when made by regular members, but if **Giraffe** ’s status as an ex-mod at least leads to some small opening of the ears and minds once in a while, then i’m all for continuing to give him some preferential treatment. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2014, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-moderation-here-is-getting-ridiculously-heavy-handed/693869/38 "2014-07-23T21:23:28Z")
> [@GrandWino](#): > > Nope. I got an official warning for complaining about moderation here in the proper forum. Actually, for “being a jerk” because apparently it’s jerkish to not just bend over and accept a warning without whimper. Yeah, that’s sortof how I got my only warning as well: I simply posted that a Mod note admonishing for something was inccorect as I had not said what I was admonished for saying. BAM! I got a warning for Not Following A Mod’s Instructions. :rolleyes: **GrandWino** ’s warning is an even bigger pile of bullshit than mine was, tho. ---
**Author:** ![Bozuit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/edb3f5/32.png) [@Bozuit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bozuit)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2014, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-moderation-here-is-getting-ridiculously-heavy-handed/693869/39 "2014-07-23T21:44:07Z")
I don’t know what sort of forums everyone else has had the luxury of participating in, but the modding here is, on the whole, much better than anywhere else I’ve been. I was once a member of a forum where you would get warnings (a few warnings and you got a ban) for any posts the mods deemed off-topic, or for not including enough words in a post. Everyone hated it and the mods didn’t give a shit. There have been some poor decisions today, but I disagree that the modding “is getting ridiculously heavy handed”. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have some apples to polish! ---
**Author:** ![Emiliana](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f0a364/32.png) [@Emiliana](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Emiliana)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2014, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-moderation-here-is-getting-ridiculously-heavy-handed/693869/40 "2014-07-23T21:44:41Z")
I don’t normally give two hoots about moderation threads, seeing as I’m generally so well behaved. But the recent Czarcasm kerfuffle is just bad modding. And the warning to GrandWino for complaining about moderation in a forum dedicated to complaints about moderation is particularly undeserved. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-moderation-here-is-getting-ridiculously-heavy-handed/693869.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-moderation-here-is-getting-ridiculously-heavy-handed/693869.md?page=3)