Rant: Caring more about politics than baseball

[stlouie_lipp]

Expressing viewpoints, different opinions, being passionate....OK. Celebrating someone's death and calling him a piece of [expletive] minutes after the news breaks isn't OK. "Stay away from the thread", I get that. But when you click on the thread expecting some discourse on the legacy of a SC Justice and see champagne toasts and dancing monkeys in the first five posts it's a turn off. Maybe on some politics message board that's to be expected, but that kind of behavior traditionally hasn't been allowed here. If that's the kind of board we want, fine, just let everyone know anything goes.

I know things change, and maybe it sounds like I'm pining for the "good old days", but more and more people are leaving because of the change in tone of this place. We don't get many new members so when old school posters leave it the impact is felt. Maybe I just need a break, and I plan on taking one, just thought I'd leave my two cents.

[ghostrunner]

So here's something - I hadn't seen the "jumping for joy" gif in the Scalia thread. I'm going to delete that now because it doesn't contribute anything, but I didn't see it when reading the thread this weekend. Not sure if that was a connection/phone issue or what, but the point is - report posts and say why.

To follow up, I think i just missed the whole first page, so the same point stands. Report posts you have a problem with so we know they're there.

[Arthur Dent]

how about making a separate politics forum?

That's in the works.

Ok, I've avoided this conversation so far, but I think this is a really bad idea. For the most part, political discussion have stayed well contained in just a couple threads. There's more than usual right now because it's a Presidential election year and this election is more interesting than most, and because baseball talk opportunities are poor this offseason. So, I don't see any real lack of containment demanding banishment to another place. Further, a dedicated forum, if anything, encourages excessive political talk since it is now a specially recognized thing.

So, I don't get the point and think it likely harmful. If the whole topic turns people off, I really don't understand why the dedicated threads can't just be ignored. I do that for plenty of topics that don't interest me. As far as the excessive inflammatory posts, yeah, more moderating would be a good thing. If finding them is the problem, I guess the report function could be used more, but I'm personally hesitant because much of the issues aren't things that I am bothered by on a personal level, so as a non-mod, it feels strange for me to try and be the police. Also, the issue, such as it is, is more overall tone than specifically awful posts.

[Jocephus]

this AD fellow wants to make GRB great again and i like that.

but seriously that probably sums me up best.

[jim]

I just know that in the past if you said "Brick layin' lesbians", you would have had to clean that up. Not now. That's a clue.

We should also get rid of those compartmentalized people. So the crazies, the hogwash people, the hissy fit throwers, and who else we got? Who am I missing?

Are you honestly referring to one of your own posts as one that should have been cleaned up? Why don't you go edit that post right now?

Jim, I have to say - you've developed a persona on this forum which in the past I thought funny and did not take seriously. Such that I'm now thinking this whole thread might be a joke. If you expect anyone to effectively moderate in that environment, you're going to be disappointed. I feel like maybe I'm a dumbass for having taken this thread seriously.

I'm being serious, this thread is not a joke. I don't know where the post is, and I'm too lazy to find it. I pointed it out because I didn't want to give anyone the impression that I am not immune from saying crappy things about people and to people - even when I'm joking. I pointed the finger at myself as an example of how I've seen things slip.

That's it.

edit to say NOT immune from saying crappy stuff. I left the NOT out which kind of changes the meaning to the opposite of what I wanted to say.

[ghostrunner]

I just know that in the past if you said "Brick layin' lesbians", you would have had to clean that up. Not now. That's a clue.

We should also get rid of those compartmentalized people. So the crazies, the hogwash people, the hissy fit throwers, and who else we got? Who am I missing?

Are you honestly referring to one of your own posts as one that should have been cleaned up? Why don't you go edit that post right now?

Jim, I have to say - you've developed a persona on this forum which in the past I thought funny and did not take seriously. Such that I'm now thinking this whole thread might be a joke. If you expect anyone to effectively moderate in that environment, you're going to be disappointed. I feel like maybe I'm a dumbass for having taken this thread seriously.

I'm being serious, this thread is not a joke. I don't know where the post is, and I'm too lazy to find it. I pointed it out because I didn't want to give anyone the impression that I am not immune from saying crappy things about people and to people - even when I'm joking. I pointed the finger at myself as an example of how I've seen things slip.

That's it.

edit to say NOT immune from saying crappy stuff. I left the NOT out which kind of changes the meaning to the opposite of what I wanted to say.

If you are sincerely bothered, please report it or PM. That's not to say we're going to agree that something needs modding, but as it is I don't know which people you're talking about beyond the Scalia thread which I've gone back and edited. And some new things have been edited there today.

I don't know how you felt about it as a mod, but speaking for myself I tend to second guess myself on whether some things should be modded, or whether someone should be banned. One of those "when you have a hammer everything looks like a nail" things. So some help on what people actually find offensive and opinions we can take under advisement would be useful. And follow up if we don't respond.

[lukethedrifter]

I was a bit surprised by the over the top celebratory tone, but a) he's 79 years old so it's not a tragedy, it's old age, b) he's a public figure, the party- it seems- isn't about a person but a very divisive figure, c) he wrote some very clever but nasty stuff; sighyoung should have posted the appropriate vicious elegy instead of vidor.

[MrCrowesGarden]

My big takeaway from this is PM'ing other people contact information. Strikes me as strange. Not good or bad, just something that's never happened to me and I would never do personally.

[jim]

I just know that in the past if you said "Brick layin' lesbians", you would have had to clean that up. Not now. That's a clue.

We should also get rid of those compartmentalized people. So the crazies, the hogwash people, the hissy fit throwers, and who else we got? Who am I missing?

Are you honestly referring to one of your own posts as one that should have been cleaned up? Why don't you go edit that post right now?

Jim, I have to say - you've developed a persona on this forum which in the past I thought funny and did not take seriously. Such that I'm now thinking this whole thread might be a joke. If you expect anyone to effectively moderate in that environment, you're going to be disappointed. I feel like maybe I'm a dumbass for having taken this thread seriously.

I'm being serious, this thread is not a joke. I don't know where the post is, and I'm too lazy to find it. I pointed it out because I didn't want to give anyone the impression that I am not immune from saying crappy things about people and to people - even when I'm joking. I pointed the finger at myself as an example of how I've seen things slip.

That's it.

edit to say NOT immune from saying crappy stuff. I left the NOT out which kind of changes the meaning to the opposite of what I wanted to say.

If you are sincerely bothered, please report it or PM. That's not to say we're going to agree that something needs modding, but as it is I don't know which people you're talking about beyond the Scalia thread which I've gone back and edited. And some new things have been edited there today.

I don't know how you felt about it as a mod, but speaking for myself I tend to second guess myself on whether some things should be modded, or whether someone should be banned. One of those "when you have a hammer everything looks like a nail" things. So some help on what people actually find offensive and opinions we can take under advisement would be useful. And follow up if we don't respond.

I never worried about over-editing, and I never banned anyone nor would I have. I worried about my own sarcastic tone more than anything, but you don't have that problem. So edit away I say.

[ghostrunner]

how about making a separate politics forum?

That's in the works.

Ok, I've avoided this conversation so far, but I think this is a really bad idea. For the most part, political discussion have stayed well contained in just a couple threads. There's more than usual right now because it's a Presidential election year and this election is more interesting than most, and because baseball talk opportunities are poor this offseason. So, I don't see any real lack of containment demanding banishment to another place. Further, a dedicated forum, if anything, encourages excessive political talk since it is now a specially recognized thing.

I'm not bothered by the prospect of excessive political talk, so that doesn't seem like a problem. I'm with you in spirit, but if people think that might actually help, then I'm fine with it. I browse the forum by "view active topics" so the specific forums are moot to me.

So, I don't get the point and think it likely harmful. If the whole topic turns people off, I really don't understand why the dedicated threads can't just be ignored. I do that for plenty of topics that don't interest me. As far as the excessive inflammatory posts, yeah, more moderating would be a good thing. If finding them is the problem, I guess the report function could be used more, but I'm personally hesitant because much of the issues aren't things that I am bothered by on a personal level, so as a non-mod, it feels strange for me to try and be the police. Also, the issue, such as it is, is more overall tone than specifically awful posts.

Not to be overly critical, but this is muddy to me. If more moderating is good, there has to be some way to know what's bothersome to members, and "tone" is subjective IMO, and hard to moderate.