# "The Usual Suspects" **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [December 21, 2010, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-usual-suspects/564961 "2010-12-21T15:41:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2010, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-usual-suspects/564961/81 "2010-12-22T00:45:37Z")
If you don’t know who the usual suspects on a particular topic are, you might be one of them. Just saying. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2010, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-usual-suspects/564961/82 "2010-12-22T00:57:06Z")
Exactly. 1 out of every 5 people is an asshole. Think of your 4 closest friends. If they are all OK, it’s you. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2010, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-usual-suspects/564961/83 "2010-12-22T00:57:55Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > IMO it got locked down because it was perceived as a “pile on”. And as Giraffee observed, if some poster is doing something a bunch of people think is wrong it will invariably (and rightfully) look just like a pile on. But it aint. Its evidence of a real problem. The hijack was a pileon, like you said, and that’s why it was closed. I can change the “hijack” word to “pileon” if you prefer. The thing is, letting the thread continue wouldn’t have done much more to indicate to the moderators that many people don’t like Diogenes the Cynic’s posting style. So its ATMB purpose was complete. The pileon can continue in the Pit (and pileon’s like that have already happened in the Pit - and I’m pretty sure that the moderators are aware of these pileons in the Pit, and aware that someone’s posting is raising the hackles of a large group of posters.) Having a place where you can discuss message board concerns without being insulted is a good idea. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Robson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gary_robson/32/3448_2.png) [@Gary\_Robson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Robson)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2010, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-usual-suspects/564961/84 "2010-12-22T01:00:09Z")
> [@Giraffe](#): > > I know I’ve said it before, but this is one of my primary objections to moving rule discussions out of the Pit: it may be preferable for the mods to have such discussions here, but this comes at a cost to everyone else. > > (snip) > > I’d love to see rule discussions at least allowed in the Pit, if not moved back entirely. You can always maintain a rule against personal attacks of the mods, if y’all are still too delicate to take your lumps with the rest of us. 😛 There is no SDMB rule against personal attacks on the mods. As far as I know, there never has been. You may feel free to attack me in the Pit at any time. There is a board-wide rule against personal insults outside of the Pit. That includes ATMB. If you wish to complain that I have taken some inappropriate action while posting within my [moderator] tags in one of my forums, please bring it to ATMB and present it sans invective. If you wish to complain because my contributions to game threads are uninformed or I post stupid polls, then treat me like any other Doper and Pit me. > [@Polycarp](#): > > One of the functions of ATMB is to provide a way for members to criticize the moderation of this boards when moderator errors deserve it for their errors. While I tend to agree that it’s been annoyingly far overdone of late, your movement in the direction of “We are the staff and we are above criticism” is what has destroyed other boards as forums for intelligent discussions of ideas. The staff here deserves, and gets, members’ support when it’s doing the right thing – and justly gets brickbats when it screws up. Change that at your peril. I fully agree that the staff here should be complimented when we do a good job and criticized (or questioned) when we don’t. I would ask, though, that you consider the following: [ol] [li]It is not necessary to impugn one’s good faith or question one’s motives when you’re questioning a decision.[/li][li]Our job is to enforce the rules. Vehemently attacking a mod for enforcing a rule really isn’t fair. Come to ATMB and discuss whether the rule is appropriate rather than jumping all over a specific mod for enforcing it.[/li][li]Sometimes, rules are fuzzy. We try our best to interpret them. Sometimes we miss something in the thread and make a bad call. Either way, a polite PM is _far_ more likely to get the decision changed than a personal attack in ATMB.[/li][/ol] ---
**Author:** ![Nzinga\_Seated](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5ac83/32.png) [@Nzinga\_Seated](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nzinga_Seated)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2010, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-usual-suspects/564961/85 "2010-12-22T01:07:55Z")
> [@Oakminster](#): > > If you don’t know who the usual suspects on a particular topic are, you might be one of them. Just saying. Funny you should say that. I am not certain who the usual suspects are, but I am pretty sure I may know who people mean when they use the term. Bucketybuck used the term in a thread I started in ATMB, which I started. Did he mean me?? I certainly never considered myself one. When the whole thing happened with the ‘no cunts in the pit’ rule, I was vocal in ATMB about it. I dreaded the change, and I made that clear. I also spent time over at the Giraffe board, because I thought they were funny, fun and not opposed to folks saying cunt if they felt like it. But since that time, I have learned that it doesn’t pay off to try to tell Zotti how to run his ship; he will do whatever he wants, regardless. So I don’t frequent ATMB with complaints. So, while I don’t consider myself OotUS, I have enough markers (criticised mod decisions, frequented GB) that one could be referring to me when they say it. It’s not a big deal, but I admit, I was a teensy bit put off that buckety seemed to be dismissing my OP as some OotUS shit. Not cool. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2010, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-usual-suspects/564961/86 "2010-12-22T01:10:43Z")
> [@Arnold\_Winkelried](#): > > Having a place where you can discuss message board concerns without being insulted is a good idea. But you just said people were being civil in that thread. IMO Dio deserves nearly every “pile-on” he gets. Bitching in the Pit might be fun, but it certainly doesnt appear to be getting any results from the powers that be. It appears to take a random act of Bezzellbub to even have Dio warned. Instead what usually happens is Dio shows up and the thread gets closed mostly because of his shenanigans. And if that doesnt happen, the thread still often goes to shit. How many damn pittings does he have to EARN before TPTB actually do something/anything? Again, IMO a “pile on” is perfectly legitmate if the complaints are. ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2010, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-usual-suspects/564961/87 "2010-12-22T01:40:54Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > But you just said people were being civil in that thread. What I meant by that: there was no reason to move the thread to the Pit for people to say what they were saying. Having many other people come in there to pile on Diogenes the Cynic (which you could do in the Pit) was not necessary for ATMB purposes either. You complain that the moderators don’t know about Pit threads and that’s why they don’t do anything about Diogenes the Cynic’s posting style. I don’t think that’s it. I think the problem is different: what Diogenes the Cynic is doing, does not constitute a clear-cut breaking of the rules. It’s something difficult to moderate. Do you think you can come up with a fair solution that won’t get a bunch of people complaining about over-moderation or unfair moderation? ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2010, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-usual-suspects/564961/88 "2010-12-22T02:04:14Z")
You guys are talking about me aren’t you? I mean c’mon, every time you see one of those profiles on TV they say the killer is a middle-aged single white male who neighbors would say was nice, but kinda quiet and keeps to himself. That’s me, I’m the usual suspect. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2010, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-usual-suspects/564961/89 "2010-12-22T02:04:42Z")
> [@Arnold\_Winkelried](#): > > . It’s something difficult to moderate. Do you think you can come up with a fair solution that won’t get a bunch of people complaining about over-moderation or unfair moderation? How about just no more flurry of one line responses that are just repeats of his previous statements to people discussing any one of Dio’s any given “points”. Seems to me to be a pretty easy behavior that a mod could tell Dio to knock off. And the whole fair unfair thing is bogus too. People here love to snark/make smart ass/possibly humorous comments that add little to actual discusions at hand. I know I do. But, I’d bet good money if I went on a rampage doing it often enough for people to PIT me for it every couple months because its ruining threads the powers that be would do something about it. And for me to complain that I got singled out would be a crock IMO. ---
**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:** [December 22, 2010, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-usual-suspects/564961/90 "2010-12-22T02:14:40Z")
> [@Nzinga\_Seated](#): > > I am not certain who the usual suspects are, but I am pretty sure I may know who people mean when they use the term. Bucketybuck used the term in a thread I started in ATMB, which I started. Did he mean me?? I certainly never considered myself one. Here’s the beauty of it - it’s vague enough that its intention isn’t to call any specific people out - like SFG said, it’s meant to pre-emptively dismiss anyone who would dare question what the person is defending. Quite simply, it’s poisoning the well. Now - when I open up an ATMB thread on a moderator’s latest borderline call, I expect to see familiar faces. The roster changes on a semi-regular basis, and many of them don’t have any particular agenda or vendetta to maintain - they just have an investment in the board being run consistently and transparently. ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2010, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-usual-suspects/564961/91 "2010-12-22T02:22:59Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > And the whole fair unfair thing is bogus too. People here love to snark/make smart ass/possibly humorous comments that add little to actual discusions at hand. I know I do. But, I’d bet good money if I went on a rampage doing it often enough for people to PIT me for it every couple months because its ruining threads the powers that be would do something about it. And for me to complain that I got singled out would be a crock IMO. So you think that the moderators do notice the Pit threads about Diogenes the Cynic, and if you behaved the same way and got pitted for it you would get moderated, but they don’t moderate Diogenes the Cynic because… because what? I’ve been wrong before, but I would be surprised if telling Diogenes the Cynic to stop posting in the style we describe would not create follow-up threads asking why we don’t apply the rules to other posters who are just as bad, and what exactly does the rule mean, and the problem is with the other posters who keep on arguing with him, if they don’t like it why don’t they just ignore it, etc… With other people saying how the SDMB has too many rules, and it’s over-moderated, and who knows what else. ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2010, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-usual-suspects/564961/92 "2010-12-22T03:22:17Z")
Giraffe boards? Am I missing something awesome? ---
**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:** [December 22, 2010, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-usual-suspects/564961/93 "2010-12-22T03:36:44Z")
Google “Giraffe Message Board” and you’ll see. It’s like here, but not like here. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2010, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-usual-suspects/564961/94 "2010-12-22T03:47:15Z")
> [@Arnold\_Winkelried](#): > > So you think that the moderators do notice the Pit threads about Diogenes the Cynic, and if you behaved the same way and got pitted for it you would get moderated, but they don’t moderate Diogenes the Cynic because… because what? > > I’ve been wrong before, but I would be surprised if telling Diogenes the Cynic to stop posting in the style we describe would not create follow-up threads asking why we don’t apply the rules to other posters who are just as bad, and what exactly does the rule mean, and the problem is with the other posters who keep on arguing with him, if they don’t like it why don’t they just ignore it, etc… With other people saying how the SDMB has too many rules, and it’s over-moderated, and who knows what else. Tell you what. Do what I suggested and act like a thread derailing Dio and see how long you can get away with it. You’ll be warned before you can be pitted even once. Oh, some people will bitch no matter what. But at least it will be reduced to the usual suspects. But at least the bitching would IMO likely be less and not actually IN the forums Dio derails (which would then become internet nirvannas instead). Step one : Tell Dio to knock it off. Result of step one: People bitch about Dio being mistreated in ATMB (yeah right). Step two : Tell people in ATMB to quit complaining. End of problem. ---
**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:** [December 22, 2010, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-usual-suspects/564961/95 "2010-12-22T03:48:31Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > Google “Giraffe Message Board” and you’ll see. For reasons we’ve never quite figured out, you can also get there by Googling “jermain jackson’s hair” and clicking on the second link. ---
**Author:** ![Idle\_Thoughts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/838e76/32.png) [@Idle\_Thoughts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idle_Thoughts)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2010, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-usual-suspects/564961/96 "2010-12-22T04:20:51Z")
What about that one girl with the Russian name? Sherpova somethingava… ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2010, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-usual-suspects/564961/97 "2010-12-22T04:43:34Z")
> [@Giraffe](#): > > For reasons we’ve never quite figured out, you can also get there by Googling “jermain jackson’s hair” and clicking on the second link. Looks like a chicken-and-egg problem, since it’s referring to the post where you pointed out that it’s a popular term. And I assume there is a certain poster in that thread that you are ignoring. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2010, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-usual-suspects/564961/98 "2010-12-22T04:44:49Z")
> [@Giraffe](#): > > For reasons we’ve never quite figured out, you can also get there by Googling “jermain jackson’s hair” and clicking on the second link. Looks like a chicken-and-egg problem, since it’s referring to the post where you pointed out that it’s a popular term. Yes, I see Roo’s post on the subject. Did you? ---
**Author:** ![Autolycus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/22d042/32.png) [@Autolycus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Autolycus)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2010, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-usual-suspects/564961/99 "2010-12-22T04:50:14Z")
> [@Arnold\_Winkelried](#): > > As far as I know, the word isn’t banned. My memory could be faulty, but I seem to recall that a bunch of clever people started saying “buckeye” in threads that had nothing to do with buckeyes, but in which the poster who didn’t like the word had posted, and a moderator might have said “that will be enough of that.” Yeah, you nailed it. I, umm… was just being a wise-ass. Don’t hate me :o ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2010, 5:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-usual-suspects/564961/100 "2010-12-22T05:55:16Z")
At the risk of being labelled one, I have to agree with the OP. Not only does calling someone “one of the usual suspects” border on a personal insult, it is also divisive within the community. Everyone here is a member in good standing; some people are members of other boards as well. If the participation here (which for some members, I think we can all agree, is just for the lulz) does not break any rules, then it doesn’t seem sporting to allow members to label other members. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-usual-suspects/564961.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-usual-suspects/564961.md?page=6)