I claimed to be a mod giving my opinion about the board, which describes the sitaution exactly.
Part of the confusion is that people are now melding a bunch of separate issues. The discussed rule changes are not related to my posts to CarnalK. Does that clear it up?
People shouldn’t assume a proposed rule change means a crackdown and a wave of bannings because, whenever they’ve assumed that in the past, they’ve been wrong.
See, it’s shit like this that is so ludicrous. You’re the one who decided to open the “Carnalk show” by being all bitchy. I pointed out an unambiguous example to counter your “crank” comment and you accused me of just being a trouble maker and being less adept at understanding than a parrot. I clearly wasn’t insulting, off topic or attention whoring. I guess you are trying to score points with the other staff that dislike me, but I have a feeling that most would prefer you just reply to my points that try to make a big production of my horrible reputation.
So to elaborate: yes, I know people get confused about the distinction between when we’re moderating and when we’re just posting. Sometimes I think they’re actually parsing things too closely, but it happens. I was not taking any kind of formal action. If it’s more helpful you could say I was doing in between: I’m posting about how we moderate and what the rules are, but not (for example) giving out warnings.
No to hold myself up as the example of perfection, but I’ve done this a few times: I gave somebody a warning for an NSFW link, and the other mods pointed out that that’s not usually how that’s handled and closing the thread on its own would have been enough, so I took back that warning with an apology. I once warned somebody for a comment in his profile that I felt was insulting to another poster, but they both said no offense was intended or taken, so I took that back. I think I may have done the same thing one other time as well. The other possible conclusion is that I suck at this. 
Which goes to the point that there’s much to enjoy here regardless of the attitude of the staff. Don’t worry, I won’t leave unless the new rules are quite onerous.
I don’t want to get into a pissing contest with you, so I guess I can wait and see.
Not to criticize, but this is a very difficult line to keep clear. Especially since it sometimes happens (not with you) where mods give a sort of “unofficial warning that will become an official warning unless you take the unofficial warning as seriously as you would an official one”. Which lends itself to a certain amount of slop-over. Especially since what you posted was an official mod ruling (albeit from a retired mod).
I can certainly appreciate the difficulties of keeping the roles clear.
Regards,
Shodan
It is. People sometimes suggest a mod sock for this purpose, for example, so there’s an obvious switching of roles. The truth is it’s actually useful to have the lines blur a little: not because you can trip people up, but because if done properly you can give people a hint without having to warn them Officially. Warnings and other official smackdowns tend to derail a thread and if possible you try not to give people a rap sheet.
What happens a lot of the time - and I’m not trying to make this sound like a guilt trip - is that people get cut a bit of extra slack and that can make the rules a little less clear, even though what we’re trying to do is not be heavy handed.
Thanks for your response. Like I said, I would rather not get into a pissing contest with you (or anyone else in the thread), so I will just mention that I appreciate your clarification, believe that overall you do a better job at modding than I could, and leave it at that.
Regards,
Shodan
Sure. I’m not trying to argue about it, just giving you my view on why this gets tricky.
Are you informing me of this insight as a poster, Marley? If so, I don’t really give much of a fuck what you think of my fucking complaint rate, nor should anyone else, since it’s totally fucking irrelevant to the subject at hand–either answer my fucking point, without the fucking snark, or kindly drop dead at your earliest possible convenience, dipshit.
Of course, if you’re posting as a mod, then Thank you, sir, and may I please have a little more?
Not much content here, either. Either you’re just being snarky about the truistic observation that pleasing everyone is impossible, which I used to sum up your vapid point above, or you’re agreeing with me, which is useless since I was pointing out how little that truism means outside of “Who cares what you people think? We’re running this joint and don’t you forget it, bub.”
Again, if you’re posting as a mod then strike the above remark and substitute
“Thank you, sir, and may I please have a little more?”
I realize this is controversial territory and I’m sure you didn’t mean this literally. Therefore, I’m not issuing you a formal warning. On the other hand, I’m sure you have other metaphors in your vocabulary. Please use some that don’t involve the death of other dope-folk in the future.
**Gfactor **
Moderator
While I don’t agree with everything you are saying Marley, I have to give you credit. Anytime there is a discussion like this you jump in and give your opinions. Much more than any other mod or admin. Sometimes it just means you’re digging a bigger hole but who am I to complain about that.
My compliments on this. It is good to see and reassuring.
Not that I use even humorous faux death threats but there seems to be posters that I like that do. I am happy to see a note to stop and not a warning.
Much better, Gfactor. “Drop dead” used in that sense really is just an idiom. I would hate to see such speech taken literally. I don’t like to see it stopped at all, but if some here really don’t understand figurative language and are threatened by it, that’s a shame.
Isn’t that the truth! I think that some of the administrators and some of the mods assume that we automatically know who the ones are that “pile on” (to use Ed’s words) and complain repeatedly are. I have no idea if I’m considered part of that group or not. And I don’t know who else is. (Well, now I no one person who is.)
But I don’t understand why criticism is a bad thing. I can understand why hostile criticism is unwelcome. (That’s one of the things that I complain about!) If you mods think that it bothers you, try to remember what it feels like to be on the receiving end and to be totally powerless at a time when you think you’ve been wronged.
We can usually tell when we have been listened to and when we’ve just been blown off. When you don’t bother to read a complete exchange between two people before modding, you may need something to get your attention.
And as long as it is not against the rules, I will continue to complain in the appropriate forum(s) when I think that criticism is warranted. There are some of you who are not deaf and not thin-skinned. Sometimes you can explain things in a way that calm me down again. Or maybe something eventually gets done or someone “hears” me. Or maybe my complaints go unanswered, but at least I’ve had my say.
Just don’t assume that any of us know what our reputations are among all the staff.
Point taken, G. I actually used “drop dead” before I realized that, “Uh-oh, that’s the big no-no that Ed has willfully misread in the very recent past as a pretext for banning a poster he didn’t care for,” but then I let it stand on the thinking (?) that, **Marley **was most likely speaking as a Mod, in which case my second expression would be the operative one, and the “drop dead” part would be clearly directed at no one, much less Marley, whom I like and certainly wish no harm toward–we’re just disagreeing here, no biggie.
Also I felt that the faux-polite rhetoric I used–“kindly drop dead at your earliest possible convenience”–kinda got me off the hook. I mean, if you’re going to take “drop dead” literally, then I must insist that you also take the rest as literally, and “dropping dead at your earliest possible convenience” is what we would all devoutly wish for–i.e., that we will literally die when we choose to, and not a moment sooner.
Unless **Ed **'s brand-new spanking anti-FOAD policy, which is impressively thought-out to a mentally challenged seven-year old, perhaps, IMO, means that simply to discuss the concept of another poster’s death abstractly is cause for concern.
Anyway, I appreciate the modicum of helpful and mature thought you have brought to this discussion. It’s an improvement. You got your point across, I take your meaning, you didn’t feel any need to threaten me with banning, suspension, or to let me and everyone understand how powerful you are, and how offending you is cause for us to worry deeply–you just expressed your point clearly, and politely (yet firmly) and allowed some room for me to continue the discussion. Thank you.