Taking suggestions for sub-forum reorganization

[Hawkfeathers]

Re: Taking suggestions for sub-forum reorganization

This forum is a candle in the window. I am sick to death of trolls.

[Medusa]

Re: Taking suggestions for sub-forum reorganization

I used to be on a Manson forum. OMG. It was like troll scratch fever over there! Its where I honed my clawing skills. The mods pretty much let us eat them up till they got bored. I think it's a good balance here. Though I do find it funny when a troll finds their way here. I'm like, really? Here? Then I think they really must be coocoo and I'm like how did you function to just log on to your computer there nutty?

[Hawkfeathers]

Re: Taking suggestions for sub-forum reorganization

Somehow, I got mixed up with Yahoo trolls about 7 years ago. When Yahoo took down their message boards, several private boards were made, with the idea of trolls trolling each other, and a handful of us trying to keep order. Some of those boards are still around but they're pretty lame now.

[Rae'ya]

Re: Taking suggestions for sub-forum reorganization

I stay away from Yahoo but I've made the rounds of terribly run pagan forums. The worst was pretty much run by the trolls... if you weren't on their elite list then you were fodder for the elite and you couldn't do shit about it. How it managed to stay such a large forum for so long I'll never know.

[Heka]

Re: Taking suggestions for sub-forum reorganization

There used to be one really good Yahoo board I was on as a teenager. I was sad when they went away.

[ChainLightning]

Re: Taking suggestions for sub-forum reorganization

I don't really see the issue in debates, or its easy access, to be a troll problem, but more like Rae'ya said about expectations. I think.

Some people want to discuss a controversial topic without having to debate or argue it. Just looking for other people's thoughts. But, often, such a discussion turns into a debate. Typically, on some specific aspect of the topic. This is why we HAVE the debates as their own area. Debates go there. The exchange of thoughts and feelings don't.

Then there's members here that hate debates, and want nothing whatsoever to do with them.

Mix that all up and there's an obvious disconnect, at least for some few members that feel obliged to debate anyone's and everyone's beliefs, as it were. That, in a nutshell, is what we're hoping to put a lid on -- that entire can of worms.

[Ophidia]

Re: Taking suggestions for sub-forum reorganization

I, personally, love heated debates. I enjoy working with logic, semantics, and whatnot, to undermine social norms, for instance. There's no sources, no dictionaries, no extraneous links and quotes, just language. Language being carefully applied to describe an alternative truth. Those are fun! But people still reveal thin skin even in such frivolous, good-natured arguments. It's like it takes a special breed of person to take on arguments/debates as they're meant to be - discussions of opposing viewpoints, with supporting statements, and see where that puzzle takes us.

This is why, whenever I have the opportunity, I take the pro-consentual-cannibalism stance

I truly love debates, and I love learning how to be a master debater (heh). This has been one of the best forums for me because our Debates threads actually do maintain some sense of decorum. It kind of helps me see where my own arguments and opinions could use some polish. In a lot of other forums, you start out with a civilized debate about something even mildly controversial, and within a page or two it becomes the Mad Hatter's Tea Party.

[Heka]

Re: Taking suggestions for sub-forum reorganization

This is why, whenever I have the opportunity, I take the pro-consentual-cannibalism stance

I truly love debates, and I love learning how to be a master debater (heh). This has been one of the best forums for me because our Debates threads actually do maintain some sense of decorum. It kind of helps me see where my own arguments and opinions could use some polish. In a lot of other forums, you start out with a civilized debate about something even mildly controversial, and within a page or two it becomes the Mad Hatter's Tea Party.

I agree. I love debating, it helps me be better at defending myself, and often helps me to reevaluate my opinons/beliefs. Also helps me with words, learning to say what you actually want to say.

[Rick]

Re: Taking suggestions for sub-forum reorganization

In a lot of other forums, you start out with a civilized debate about something even mildly controversial, and within a page or two it becomes the Mad Hatter's Tea Party.

That's cuz respect isn't just s word in the rule book here. It's something that's actually practiced here by virtually all parties involved.

[ChainLightning]

Re: Taking suggestions for sub-forum reorganization

That's cuz respect isn't just s word in the rule book here. It's something that's actually practiced here by virtually all parties involved.

That's true. There's horror stories, of almost anywhere, except here. I would think the few argumentative members that we do have to cope with are very likely accustomed to those horrific debate places.

I can tell you all, having been involved in some the best debates this site has seen, the problematic events are the exception, not the rule. Bonus! If it were left to me, which, thankfully it isn't, anyone that couldn't behave themselves in a respectful, though maybe heated, debate, they would lose access to debates, if not the site. I cannot respect someone that disrespects our members... our family. It's as simple as that.

That should explain, at least in one sense, why member input, on how to cordon off our most adversarial section, is important to the not just the administration but the entire staff.






However, as usual, I could very well be talking out my ass. That happens.

[Hawkfeathers]

Re: Taking suggestions for sub-forum reorganization

We have an awful lot of sub-sections here already....but one forum I still visit from the old days I mentioned a few posts back has a "Flaming" section, where people go simply for the purpose of arguing. Most of the members who are active there aren't active anywhere else - it's really just a license to troll nastily and I don't think that would work here. It'd be against the whole feeling of this place......I personally think the debates are handled pretty well now - we all know pretty much how far to go in public, and people can always take it private.

Some topics will naturally morph into debates - but as some have noted, they generally stay respectful. I've found a nice balance here of "freedom of speech" and "common sense" - perhaps we should stop discussing reorganizing the forum, and start discussing reorganizing the world? Kidding....kinda....

[MaskedOne]

Re: Taking suggestions for sub-forum reorganization


A number of posts have been removed from this thread.

Since they were up long enough to be noticed by most of the active participants at the time, I'm going to make a very brief statement and not answer questions.

1) Disciplinary measures while a concern that the staff does look at internally from time to time and may (or may not) at some point in the future request commentary on are beyond the scope of this thread and will be considered off topic and removed without warning for the duration of this specific thread.

2) The overwhelming staff annoyance expressed in several of the removed posts have to deal with matters extending beyond the scope of this thread and while the staff largely shares the same general annoyance over those concerns, we arguably should have kept that annoyance out of this thread. With that said, back to forum re-organization.

[Shahaku]

Re: Taking suggestions for sub-forum reorganization

Coming into this a little late, but what if, instead of having to check a box or whatnot, there was a simple reminder that automatically shows up anytime a thread gets listed as a debate at the top of the page? Something quick and simple, in bold red to make it noticable: Please remember to keep respectful. No flaming. No trolling. Etc.

Say somewhere in this area:
PF Debate2.jpg

On another note, under the Friends and Family Board, what about a relationship subforum? Also, I feel like Hobbies could be broken down a little more. Maybe a tech subforum for anything technology related. An arts and crafts subforum? Any interest in subforums for the Adult section?

[Heka]

Re: Taking suggestions for sub-forum reorganization

It could be like a permanent announcement type thing along the top perhaps?

But I also am thinking that we know the rules. If you break them, disciplinary measures follow. It's that simple. Be polite. If you can't be polite, then politely F*** off.

[Shahaku]

Re: Taking suggestions for sub-forum reorganization

Yea, it's just I also understand on the otherside, a friendly reminded where it's most common for things to get out of hand and quickly, isn't going to hurt anything.