# Trolls R Us redux \[Now the argument clinic\] **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [June 27, 2020, 6:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolls-r-us-redux-now-the-argument-clinic/913349 "2020-06-27T06:30:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 230
**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:** [September 10, 2021, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolls-r-us-redux-now-the-argument-clinic/913349/4603 "2021-09-10T20:49:35Z")
It’s not the wrath of the mods. It’s the lack of socialization with the mods. Tall difference. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolls-r-us-redux-now-the-argument-clinic/913349/4604 "2021-09-10T20:51:36Z")
Gosh, it’s almost like you’re doing a cowardly dance around saying something even you know better than to say outright… ---
**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolls-r-us-redux-now-the-argument-clinic/913349/4605 "2021-09-10T20:53:24Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > Wrath of the Mods Sounds like the title of a book chapter. _Chapter seven, wrath of the mods._ ~Max ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolls-r-us-redux-now-the-argument-clinic/913349/4606 "2021-09-10T20:55:31Z")
> [@octopus](#): > > It’s not the wrath of the mods. It’s the lack of socialization with the mods. Tall difference. For someone who the mods hate so much, you sure get a lot of leeway commenting on mid actions in the Pit. ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolls-r-us-redux-now-the-argument-clinic/913349/4607 "2021-09-10T20:56:20Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > You and the Cephalopod somehow invoked the Wrath of the Mods, huh? Have you tried sacrificing a goat in penance? I think it’s because I often take up positions that run contrary to most of the people in the thread. I almost always keep it high minded and intellectual in debate, but they often personally attack me in response and get no moderation or get generic “everyone cool it” moderation, as if we’re all equally guilty of personal attacks. An example of where this happens a dozen times would be the No Man’s Sky thread from years ago, where I stuck to the issues and a lot of people who were butthurt about me being right couldn’t argue on the merits and personally attacked me and no mods gave a shit, but I could probably dig up more examples if I were so inclined. I don’t particularly mind it, because I’m a big boy and I can take it and dish it out, but I’ve noticed that they let people get away with saying shit about me that would get moderated if almost anyone else was the target. ---
**Author:** ![DemonTree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/demontree/32/8646_2.png) [@DemonTree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DemonTree)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolls-r-us-redux-now-the-argument-clinic/913349/4608 "2021-09-10T20:56:35Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > “No, even under that hypothetical I would not rape the last woman on Earth.” > > “Yes, in that hypothetical I would rape the last woman on Earth.” And why is that your reading, when the hypothetical was specifically written to be gender neutral? ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolls-r-us-redux-now-the-argument-clinic/913349/4609 "2021-09-10T20:57:50Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > _GD_ is not one of those places, so your entire tedious argument dies right there. I think the intent is for it to be. I think it more or less was when I joined this board 20 years ago. If it isn’t now, I think it’s due to either changes in moderating or caving in to the side that demands that nothing that might offend them be allowed on the boards. Edit: Incidentally, to those of you who are asking of thinking of the practical effects of allowing such discussion: if someone here posts controversial but honest discussion, and then the people here argue against their point or otherwise enlighten them, that’s a good outcome. If someone doesn’t come here because discussion of potentially offensive topics is banned and then wanders over instead to some hate group echo chamber where such discussion is allowed for the wrong reasons (because it bonds them in hatred rather than because of open intellectual discussion), then they may be radicalized by alt right/incel type hate groups. Having people come here to discuss uncomfortable ideas and get them responded to in a smart, empathetic way is better than sending them to the dregs of humanity. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolls-r-us-redux-now-the-argument-clinic/913349/4610 "2021-09-10T21:01:52Z")
> [@SenorBeef](#): > > I think the intent is for it to be. Says you. > [@SenorBeef](#): > > I think it more or less was when I joined this board 20 years ago. I’ve been here just as long, and it was never without bounds. Sure, there was more shit like racism and stuff allowed, but even then, there were limits. > [@SenorBeef](#): > > the side that demands that nothing that might offend them be allowed on the boards. See, it’s characterizations like that that absolutely _reek_ of disdain. And the whole “we have to fight them here” argument is privileged bullshit, exactly the kind of thing we always hear from people who can afford to be cavalier with other people’s trauma. Just fuck off, now, you don’t have anything useful or novel to say. ---
**Author:** ![crowmanyclouds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crowmanyclouds/32/19884_2.png) [@crowmanyclouds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crowmanyclouds)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolls-r-us-redux-now-the-argument-clinic/913349/4611 "2021-09-10T21:03:19Z")
It really would be nice to have a list of these potentially offensive topics the discussion of which is banned. ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolls-r-us-redux-now-the-argument-clinic/913349/4612 "2021-09-10T21:03:41Z")
Why does that reek of disdain? Isn’t the ENTIRE FUCKING JUSTIFICATION FOR ALL OF THIS that we should not allow topics that are offensive to people in GD? ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolls-r-us-redux-now-the-argument-clinic/913349/4613 "2021-09-10T21:06:28Z")
No, the # ENTIRE FUCKING JUSTIFICATION FOR ALL OF THIS is that _“when is it OK to rape?”_ is not a topic we should allow in GD, nothing more. See, I can shout, too, shit-for-brains. Louder, even. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolls-r-us-redux-now-the-argument-clinic/913349/4614 "2021-09-10T21:08:15Z")
> [@crowmanyclouds](#): > > It really would be nice to have a list of these potentially offensive topics the discussion of which is banned. It would! (were you being sarcastic? I’m not) ~Max ---
**Author:** ![crowmanyclouds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crowmanyclouds/32/19884_2.png) [@crowmanyclouds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crowmanyclouds)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolls-r-us-redux-now-the-argument-clinic/913349/4615 "2021-09-10T21:09:43Z")
Serious as a heart attack. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolls-r-us-redux-now-the-argument-clinic/913349/4616 "2021-09-10T21:10:56Z")
With you, I can never tell. 😉 ~Max ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolls-r-us-redux-now-the-argument-clinic/913349/4617 "2021-09-10T21:11:13Z")
… Which is a topic that offends you, so you want it banned, which is what I said. Certainly “In what circumstances can torture be justified” has been a GD topic before. Do you think that should be banned? If not, why is rape worse than torture? Why is one fine for a discussion topic and the other must be banned? I did not read the entire thread about the rape hypothetical, but I also don’t think your characterization at least as far as the OP goes is accurate. It’s not “when is it okay to rape?” but “in this particular scenario, is rape the least bad option?” ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolls-r-us-redux-now-the-argument-clinic/913349/4618 "2021-09-10T21:14:44Z")
> [@SenorBeef](#): > > … Which is a topic that offends you, so you want it banned, which is what I said. No, you said more than that. You erroneously expanded from the specific to the general. > [@SenorBeef](#): > > Certainly “In what circumstances can torture be justified” has been a GD topic before. Do you think that should be banned? No. Because “we should not allow topics that are offensive to people” is your fucking idiotic strawman > [@](#): > > If not, why is rape worse than torture? Why is one fine for a discussion topic and the other must be banned? It’s _been_ explained to you, and you refuse to listen, so I see no reason to fuck that chicken for your amusement, thanks but no thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolls-r-us-redux-now-the-argument-clinic/913349/4619 "2021-09-10T21:15:29Z")
> [@crowmanyclouds](#): > > It really would be nice to have a list of these potentially offensive topics the discussion of which is banned. If you are questioning whether your topic would be on the wrong side of the line, message a moderator and get a ruling before you post. A bit of a burden on the poster, but hopefully you’re not started a vast number of threads that tread close to the line. ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolls-r-us-redux-now-the-argument-clinic/913349/4620 "2021-09-10T21:17:37Z")
I have not seen one consistent explanation as to why the topic about the hypothetical last two people should be banned, but other subjects which may similarly deal with traumatic issues should not be. Could you point me to where you believe that this complete, consistent explanation was posted? ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolls-r-us-redux-now-the-argument-clinic/913349/4621 "2021-09-10T21:20:06Z")
> [@SenorBeef](#): > > Could you point me to where you believe that this complete, consistent explanation was posted? I AM TRYING TO EAT BREAKFAST ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolls-r-us-redux-now-the-argument-clinic/913349/4622 "2021-09-10T21:22:53Z")
> [@SenorBeef](#): > > Do you think that should be banned? If not, why is rape worse than torture? Why is one fine for a discussion topic and the other must be banned? Because the threat of getting tortured is not a situation that is routinely faces by many millions of Americans every single day. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolls-r-us-redux-now-the-argument-clinic/913349.md?page=229) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trolls-r-us-redux-now-the-argument-clinic/913349.md?page=231)