Moderation standards and excesses

[theSeb]

Originally Posted by robbieduncan

Was this an intentional joke, Freudian slip or just a spelling mistake? Anyway made me LoL

I cannot abide by poor spelling and double check everything before posting.

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Originally Posted by Blue Velvet

Yes, you're right. In future, I'll keep it short.

I wasn't referring to your posts. I enjoyed reading your insights in this thread.

[Blue Velvet]

This is my final contribution to this thread.

Originally Posted by GGJstudios

Note to self: Try not to get on Blue Velvet's bad side (or get off it as soon as possible, if I'm already there!)

Ha, don’t worry. I’m little more than a bitchy troll and a shameless arsehole, which is why I feel so confident in identifying and pinning down others who are just the same. It takes a thief to catch a thief, one to know one, after all.

More seriously, though, this thread is a textbook case of hubris. Knowing that this thread will be forever linked to the OP and that it might even provoke further discussion, if anyone thinks it's a splendid idea to challenge the entire team — three admins, several moderators and once, the involvement of Arn — to put your record and private correspondence in the public domain, then expect someone who is not involved, like me or anyone else with a big mouth, to come and stomp all over it. I’ve been relatively gentle and merciful. I said:

I’ll leave the dissection of it for others.

Meaning that I really felt I couldn’t go there, because I felt embarrassed on behalf of the OP to see that he’d written things to the team, like:

“What really pisses me off is that some childish moderator (probably much younger than me)…”

and:

“Therefore, I hereby demand…”

I mean, I’m not sure what kind of lawyer goes into any form of adjudication trying to win minds and hearts with this kind of attitude and I’m quite sure that no-one here would want someone like this to represent them.

If I or anyone else had continued in this vein, since the OP’s moderation record is out there for public consumption and feedback, anybody could even treat this as a quasi-moderator thread and weigh in, discussing the OP’s record in detail, in the third person, in public, as if they’re really not there.

So, it’s a useful lesson to others, I think, in case anyone feels like pulling a similar stunt. And don’t get me wrong; I’m not automatically on the mod’s side of things and have vented at them before — they hate me, really, and try to ignore me — but this kind of thread, especially when it comes to light that the OP has been presenting a different account of events than what has actually occurred, and then takes it to the brink, is too juicy to pass up.

In a genuine spirit of goodwill, if I personally was BRLawyer at this point, realising that I’d backed myself into a corner, I’d scrape up what little self-awareness I had and politely contact an administrator, Ann or Q perhaps, ask them to lock the thread, or move it into the moderator's forum, so that it’s no longer an easy public target.

I’d then take a few weeks off from MacRumors and enjoy other things in life, because Cupertino is not waiting to read my posts… and then I’d return at some later point when it’s all blown over and start posting again, bearing in mind the advice I’d been given.

Enjoy your weekends, everyone.

[yg17]

If you don't understand what's wrong with using "droidtard" or "_____tard" as an insult, then I'm afraid you're never going to be satisfied with any answers the mods give you.

[ucfgrad93]

Originally Posted by theSeb

You used the offensive term three times. You were warned about the use of the term each time. First it was in a polite way, then you got a warning and then you got a suspension.

Agreed. Sorry, OP, but you got no one to blame but yourself. When you signed up on this site you agreed to obey the rules. If you can't do that then there are consequences. Pretty simple.

[annk]

Originally Posted by Blue Velvet

...

In a genuine spirit of goodwill, if I personally was BRLawyer at this point, realising that I’d backed myself into a corner, I’d scrape up what little self-awareness I had and politely contact an administrator, Ann or Q perhaps, ask them to lock the thread, or move it into the moderator's forum, so that it’s no longer an easy public target...

This is a very good idea, one that I'll follow through on now. We sometimes hesitate to lock a thread, because it can seem that we're trying to suppress members' opinions, or give the impression that we don't approve of the discussion. But in this case, I think it's safe to say that the thread has served its purpose. BRLawyer, you can PM me if you would like me to move the thread to where it's not accessible.

I would also like to say once again that BV's comments about not airing one's laundry in a public thread are sound advice. Most issues can be brought up on a general level if the member wants a public discussion of policy in Site and Forum Feedback. If a member wants to discuss specific moderation and sends a contact, we first discuss it, then offer an explanation as to why we acted as we did. In some cases we agree with the member and reverse the moderation (it doesn't happen often, because we're very careful and thorough, but I reversed one of my one moderation decisions only yesterday because a member pointed out I had misinterpreted a rule ). You might not always agree with the assessment you get from the admins, but we will try to be as clear as possible as to WHY the moderation was done, and we're willing to discuss.

We only ask that the contact messages be polite. Even if it's not - we will respond politely and respectfully.