# Thread closure **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [August 18, 2015, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thread-closure/728212 "2015-08-18T20:50:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2015, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thread-closure/728212/21 "2015-08-19T14:22:42Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > Oooh, mod death match! Where do you think **Coldfire** went? Two mods enter, one mod leaves. ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2015, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thread-closure/728212/22 "2015-08-19T16:34:53Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Where do you think **Coldfire** went? Two mods enter, one mod leaves. A motel? ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2015, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thread-closure/728212/23 "2015-08-19T16:35:35Z")
nm ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2015, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thread-closure/728212/24 "2015-08-19T16:38:03Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Where do you think **Coldfire** went? Two mods enter, one mod leaves. I dunno. I remember **Coldfire** , and he didn’t strike me as someone who would lose one of those things… ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2015, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thread-closure/728212/25 "2015-08-19T16:40:28Z")
I had no idea we had that many squealers. The job of a mod is harder than I thought. ---
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2015, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thread-closure/728212/26 "2015-08-19T17:33:25Z")
> [@VinylTurnip](#): > > I had no idea we had that many squealers. The job of a mod is harder than I thought. Reported. Not really. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2015, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thread-closure/728212/27 "2015-08-19T17:37:54Z")
> [@VinylTurnip](#): > > I had no idea we had that many squealers. The job of a mod is harder than I thought. There are quite a few reports each and every day in Great Debates and Elections. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2015, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thread-closure/728212/28 "2015-08-19T18:01:35Z")
> [@VinylTurnip](#): > > I had no idea we had that many squealers. The job of a mod is harder than I thought. It’s interesting tho. On the surface, the Mods claim they want you to report posts. The reality seems the opposite. ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2015, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thread-closure/728212/29 "2015-08-19T18:04:11Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > It’s interesting tho. On the surface, the Mods claim they want you to report posts. The reality seems the opposite. From my perspective and conversations with the other mods, that’s not quite true. There are definitely times people are using the report button in a less than productive way, but we really do rely on posters reporting issues so we can jump in and review it. Just because we don’t reply or act on a report does not mean we don’t want people to send them in. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2015, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thread-closure/728212/30 "2015-08-19T18:14:16Z")
> [@IvoryTowerDenizen](#): > > From my perspective and conversations with the other mods, that’s not quite true. There are definitely times people are using the report button in a less than productive way, but we really do rely on posters reporting issues so we can jump in and review it. Just because we don’t reply or act on a report does not mean we don’t want people to send them in. Sure, no doubt reporting a Spamster is fine. But **Colibri** has posted right here that he didnt like me reporting posts in GQ. So, it appears that yes, it’s a handy tool for you guys- but if we do it _wrong_ (and we have no way to know what is right and what is wrong) peevishness and grudges set it. Thus it’s damned if we do it wrong, and nothing if we do it right. It’s more secret rules. Like the secret rule of “You’re free to start a new thread on the subject if you wish” which _really means_ that if you do so and it irritates us we’ll really hold a grudge. So as I said “It’s a trap!”. \*You’re free to start a new thread on the subject if you wish- but we’ll punish you if you do so. \*Double-secret probation at best. ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2015, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thread-closure/728212/31 "2015-08-19T18:18:11Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Sure, no doubt reporting a Spamster is fine. But **Colibri** has posted right here that he didnt like me reporting posts in GQ. > > So, it appears that yes, it’s a handy tool for you guys- but if we do it _wrong_ (and we have no way to know what is right and what is wrong) peevishness and grudges set it. > > Thus it’s damned if we do it wrong, and nothing if we do it right. It’s more secret rules. > > Like the secret rule of “You’re free to start a new thread on the subject if you wish” which _really means_ that if you do so and it irritates us we’ll really hold a grudge. > > So as I said “It’s a trap!”. \*You’re free to start a new thread on the subject if you wish- but we’ll punish you if you do so. \*Double-secret probation at best. Well, in my general experience, as a poster and as a mod, that’s not true. I’m not doubting your experience, but I disagree it’s universal. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2015, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thread-closure/728212/32 "2015-08-19T18:26:42Z")
> [@IvoryTowerDenizen](#): > > Well, in my general experience, as a poster and as a mod, that’s not true. I’m not doubting your experience, but I disagree it’s universal. Well tell me this- going back over the moderator discussions, which has happened more? “That soandso assbite reports too many fucking posts and it making too much goddam work for me” vs “Hey, Poster XXXXX has been really helpful in pointing out posts to my attention!” ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2015, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thread-closure/728212/33 "2015-08-19T18:49:12Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Well tell me this- going back over the moderator discussions, which has happened more? > > “That soandso assbite reports too many fucking posts and it making too much goddam work for me” > > vs > > “Hey, Poster XXXXX has been really helpful in pointing out posts to my attention!” Honestly- while I wouldn’t add the sticky-sweet language, the attitude and tone are hands-down more like the latter. The vast majority of the time it’s a business-like response: eg “these reports have come to my attention so can we all discuss it.” I was really surprised, when I became a mod, how many reports came through. It’s beyond rare that I’ve seen a mod express a negative opinion about reports. Sometimes there is frustration about having to deal with the situation being reported, but not the reports or reporters themselves. Now, if someone was using the report button to make a point, report things that are clearly not issues over and over again, report the same item multiple times etc, then yeah, that would be an issue. But the average Joe making reports is usually met with appreciation or neutral response. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2015, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thread-closure/728212/34 "2015-08-19T19:07:07Z")
I’ve got to concur with ITD. I’ve never seen any other mod take the approach that ‘he reports too much…I’ll ignore him’. That’s just a strange position to take unless you have some sort of specific evidence to which you can point. As for the ‘start a new thread’ thing? I was being perfectly serious. LinusK is more than welcome to start a new thread on the subject and discussion can be ongoing provided it doesn’t head down the same destructive path as the previous one. It’s an opportunity to start fresh, possibly with fresh eyes and participants. I can’t help it if you believe I’m lying or somehow misrepresenting the situation. You’re wrong, but I can’t help that. ---
**Author:** ![Fenris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fenris/32/498_2.png) [@Fenris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fenris)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2015, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thread-closure/728212/35 "2015-08-19T19:09:41Z")
> [@VinylTurnip](#): > > I had no idea we had that many squealers. The job of a mod is harder than I thought. Reported. ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2015, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thread-closure/728212/36 "2015-08-19T19:10:44Z")
> [@Fenris](#): > > Reported. Dammit, again? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Fenris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fenris/32/498_2.png) [@Fenris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fenris)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2015, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thread-closure/728212/37 "2015-08-19T19:18:49Z")
> [@IvoryTowerDenizen](#): > > Dammit, again? > > 😃 Dammit again! Reported for mod abuse. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2015, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thread-closure/728212/38 "2015-08-19T19:33:57Z")
I’ll add my wagon to **Ivory Tower** and **Jonathan Chance** ’s circle. Conversation about reported posts are almost never about who sent the report. Such conversations _do_ happen, but they’re usually in the context of an overall problem with a poster’s behavior. If a poster is, himself, a regular source of problems, we might reference the fact that they make a lot of frivolous reports as evidence that they’re really not getting the board rules/culture. We also get the occasional person through here who’ll get modded for, say, calling someone in GD an “asshole,” who will then run through the entire board, reporting every post with the word “asshole” in it, even when the word isn’t being used against another poster. And it’s something that comes up (often in a positive way) when we’re evaluating candidates for new moderator positions. But absent those larger contexts? I don’t think I’ve ever seen a moderator just start up a dish session on a poster simply because they make too many reports, or argue that they should be treated differently solely because of their use of the Report function. ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2015, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thread-closure/728212/39 "2015-08-19T19:54:20Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > I’ll add my wagon to **Ivory Tower** and **Jonathan Chance** ’s circle. … Point of order. **2** wagons cannot make a circle. They were parallel parked. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2015, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thread-closure/728212/40 "2015-08-19T20:03:45Z")
Nonsense. The ability to make a wagon circle with only one wagon is [well attested to in the historical record.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsj4s9z-EAE) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thread-closure/728212.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thread-closure/728212.md?page=3)