temp bans?

[Mr. Tines]

@BeeZerk -- he and V were striking sparks off each other, so they both get time out to cool off

@AchtungAffen
Occasional bouts of (USER WAS BANNED FOR THIS POST) don't seem to do /a/ any harm -- putting the fear of Mod into the crowd every so often actually has a salutary effect.

[majlund]

putting the fear of Mod into the crowd every so often actually has a salutary effect.

More fear of the Randomness of the Mod. Maybe I'm growing nearsighted, but I can't seem to find the consistency in who has been banned and who hasn't.

[Mr. Tines]

That may be because there were three different issues being brought to a head all at once for dramatic effect.

[majlund]

Three different issues or one isn't really influencing my feeling, that some posters escape punishment for ban-able behavior while others don't. That was my point, no more and no less, so I'll shut up now that I've said that.

[Formless One]

I think you should be glad they are just temp-banning people, and not getting more creative liiiiike... playing with the user titles! Punishment via changing peoples titles to something mildly derogatory based on their crime or habits, like Villige Idiot or Passive Agressive, so that whenever they post they have a mark of shame over their avatar, warning people not to act like this person.

Yeah, that one is fun. ;)

I'm just going to shut up now, and be thankful to our moderator staff.

[AchtungAffen]

Well, in evadef they tried to instill the "fear of the mod", and what they actually got done was kicking everyone out destroying a huge community that had been lasting for years.

My opinion on the mod issue about powers, mostly referenced on my previous experience on those now extinct boards is: the more invisible the powers of the MOD are, the better they'll work. The more visible, the more rejection they will cause.

[Mr. Tines]

And apart from the many faces of MaggotMaster, the last use was almost a year ago with Citizen Geek.

[Reichu]

Rhyno- Glad you got the message right. We'd have to reach an incredible level of lowliness to ban someone for a dissenting point of view.

In fact, all of the staff members would have to ban each other.

Three different issues or one isn't really influencing my feeling, that some posters escape punishment for ban-able behavior while others don't. That was my point, no more and no less, so I'll shut up now that I've said that.

Yeah, it makes sense; the thought has crossed my mind, too. Bans are usually tough for me, since there's a certain level of subjectivity in it -- when does somebody really cross the line? how much leeway do you give them? how do you really decide who "gets it" and who doesn't? Like Achtung's brought up, you can't just ban 'everybody'; you're killing the community's lifeblood if you do.

There isn't a COMPLETE arbitrariness to the recent bans. Like Ornette basically said, we more or less decided, "This place is out of control; let's take a gamble and try the temp-ban thing." So six people get hit in rapid succession, for various reasons related to the "out of control-ness". Here's a composite summary:

• Zuggy: Blaming the staff for his own ill actions, i.e., deleting the majority of his most productive posts, and then taking on an "I know, but I won't tell" attitude. Warned to cease the attitude problem; failed. Had it coming.
  
• V: Finally went over the line most people think V crossed long ago (V's list of charges isn't too hot) in the "Big Trouble in Little Discussion" thread. Really had it coming.
  
• BobBQ: Has had an ongoing battle with V he's been unable to drop. In addition, has toted a bad habit of telling the staff how to do their jobs. Had it coming.
  
• chee & Dartz: Unfortunate victims of being the first ones spotted unambiguously hijacking a thread after everyone was quite explicitly told not to.
  
• Anonymous EvaFan: One of the regular posters in the oft-complained-about Discussion Forest who's been "on the radar" for a while, and had the misfortune of having an example of his recurrent behavior noticed for temp-ban potential first. (The marked post wasn't too extraordinary on its own, but... see my earlier explanation for AEF's temp-ban.)

Most of these people are going to be back within the week. (Place your bets on who won't -- if you know, don't tell.) Is anyone else going to get hit? Well, check out the list I posted earlier, take a look at those maligned Rules, use common sense, and just play it safe for now. We'll be watching (some individuals more than others; not directed at maj)...

the more invisible the powers of the MOD are, the better they'll work. The more visible, the more rejection they will cause.

I like this philosophy, although finding a way to make it work consistently in practice seems excruciatingly difficult.

[NemZ]

I looked over some of the Citizen Geek example and I've got to say I don't quite understand what it is I'm supposed to be seeing as DOING IT WRONG.

...unless the problem is the point-by-point, to the bitter end style of argument. That's the only similarity I see between this person and FO (and AEF... and me? Uh oh.)

[BEsERk EVA01]

Oh no, I really hate it when the mods/admins are in this kind of mood. Makes us feel scared.

[THE Hal E. Burton 9000]

I looked over some of the Citizen Geek example and I've got to say I don't quite understand what it is I'm supposed to be seeing as DOING IT WRONG.

well, what you don't see is the fact the character would send nasty PMs to various members of the forum he disagreed with, and would behave in the open forums as if he was pure as the driven snow (interestingly, sunglass-smiley over-user Alaska Slim, BobBQ, Reichu, some others [Jimbo, 7th Child?] as well as myself were at some point targeted)

and, for what it's worth, and I'm not being sarcastic here:

I admit I can be such an armchair mod, and too often I post whatever I think or feel without regard or concern to the context or topic at hand

trust me, I'll do better

however, I can say with absolute conviction that I am NOT one to get into these li'l EPIC rivalries like some who were temp-banned

hell, remember at one point I was "pals" with the weasel Executor, look how far I've come from throwing around THE INFAMOUS MEME

[Formless One]

^ OH, is that all? I thought, judging by the thread that got linked to he got banned for:

1. being stubborn as a locked door

2. being dumber then a sack of knobs

3. being too willing to swing said sack at any and all slights, perceived and otherwise.

And that it was #3 that was getting me compared with him. And rightly so, I suppose. Just to be sure, raise your hand if I have ever PM'd you. I think you might be surprised by the results.

SPOILERS! I have almost never used the PM system. DUH!

[THE Hal E. Burton 9000]

^ OH, is that all?

I could post some of the PMs if you're interested, others may be just as willing

[Formless One]

Er... leave them at the door, I'll read them later. (IE, PM them to me, I don't think this topic needs a recap on something that most people know, but us newbs thankfully missed.)

In the meantime, I'll take your word for it.

Edit: We could make a new thread, "people you should NOT imitate" or something like that, and post these things there. Might be useful as a compendium for newbes.

[slothen]

1. being stubborn as a locked door

2. being dumber then a sack of knobs

yeah these two definitely won't get you banned.

[Formless One]

^ They won't? I could see that before now, but then there's AEF...

[NemZ]

No reason to take swings at someone who isn't here to defend himself, FO.

...Save it a few days.

[Eric Blair]

yeah these two definitely won't get you banned.

^ They won't? I could see that before now, but then there's AEF...

^
Something like that is uncalled for and frankly, makes you look more like any of those characters. That appears to be a constant of yours; you feel the need to undermine/insult/make fun of a person's character to try and make your point more valid; I think that's the reason why people keep comparing you to Citizen Geek.

Just my .02 cents.

Also, it makes your "lurking/Posting Ninja" sig lose credibility.

[Formless One]

I'm not trying to make fun of AEF; its was just that, if he can get banned for being too forceful in presenting his opinions, that sounds similar to getting banned for being too obstinate/not backing down. One of the habits that got him banned was, in Reichu's own words, "playing extended rounds of bumper cars with people" Is that not the same? Please explain that to me, I meant it as a practical example, not an attack on AEF's character.

[Reichu]

well, what you don't see is the fact the character would send nasty PMs to various members of the forum he disagreed with, and would behave in the open forums as if he was pure as the driven snow

We'd also get a lot of PMs from here where he's act essentially oblivious to his bad behavior and attitude problems. Like Ornette posted earlier, the "What? I didn't do anything wrong" syndrome. It was virtually impossible, as I recall, to get CG to acknowledge what was plain as day to everyone else, and he kept on demanding (with a rather suspect politeness) detailed explanations of what exactly he was doing wrong. Total immunity to common sense.

Incidentally, he joined up at ANF after getting banned here, and then shortly thereafter got himself banned AGAIN, probably for being an adversarial and "all too willing to swing the sack" (as FO put it) arse.

I could post some of the PMs if you're interested, others may be just as willing

If you're going to do this, keep the interchanges private, if you could. Unless the other staff members think that putting all of CG's antics on exhibition would be productive, anyway.

yeah these two definitely won't get you banned.

Not on their own, no.

Also, it makes your "lurking/Posting Ninja" sig lose credibility.

I think it lost its credibility a while ago.

if he can get banned for being too forceful in presenting his opinions, that sounds similar to getting banned for being too obstinate/not backing down. One of the habits that got him banned was, in Reichu's own words, "playing extended rounds of bumper cars with people" Is that not the same?

CG wasn't banned for just that by any means; it was an accumulation of all his rotten behavior (and a 'refusal' to submit to warnings), and, if I recall correctly, his nasty PMs finally took him out. I already explained why AEF was temp-banned. Resemblances between CG and AEF don't extend beyond a pretty basic forum-user archetype. You and CG are a bit more comparable, but we're not going to accomplish much by dwelling on that.