GUAC News: 9/13/14

Well it's been awhile and I just feel like the stories are piling up. So before this turns into the Olds, let's begin.



Topic locked? Don't cause trouble

Some background: A favorite of mods over at Hellhole and other places they get involved in, a locked topic is not meant to be punishment against a user, it's just that we don't want to hear you anymore and please stop making topics. You can't dispute it, and if you do make another topic after that it will likely mean you're getting punished for wanting to continue a conversation they locked. Some reasons are given, one is that the discussion derailed and it's getting closed for that reason. But sometimes this isn't the topic creator's fault, and some accounts purposefully derail topics in an attempt to get them locked. I've seen quite a few topics myself over at 261 where users, and sometimes even a moderator, start talking about lasagna and cheeseburgers and anime so they can disrupt a topic from someone they don't like and ask the mods to come in to close the topic down.

A little while ago, Realgully had an exchange on Ask the Mods about this issue.

Realgully: It seems like mods are tyrants in this regard. Topic doesn't break a rule, but because they don't like it, they automatically close it. I would like to know why this happens?

Asfand1234: "We don't close topics because we don't like them. I can only think of two scenarios where we close them, if a user is persistent and bumping a topic when the topic is clearly dead and he's already been modded for it (most of the time the user just gets a higher punishment though) and when there's a major flame war going on with no discussion related to what the topic was about."

Realgully: You have to be kidding me. Have you been to CE? I've seen topics closed because the Mods were flat out wrong about something.

Mike1984: More in general, topics are closed when they've either caused trouble but the TC/OP didn't violate any rules to justify the topic being deleted, are likely to cause trouble, or have just plain outlived their usefulness (excessive bumping, pointless discussion, users just fighting, etc.)

Realgully: So basically, it's a judgement call by the mod. No wonder this gets abused.

Mike1984: Well technically, everything is a judgement call by a mod.

...

Realgully: It seems that asking questions gets you nothing but ridiculed and banned on this website. This site has been established far too long for the mods not to have any authority over them. You guys are supposed to be setting examples and the only examples I see being set is stealth trolling better than solid snake.

I JUST DON'T WANT MY TOPICS TO BE CLOSED WHENEVER A MOD GETS A MOOD SWING. I want this complaint to be heard.

RaptorLC: Moderators are held to the same standard. If a moderator violates the rules, then mark them for moderation.

---

Responses from mods laid out the cases where locking would happen in theory, but not in practice. It's more widespread than that. Mike1984's statement that "causing trouble" is grounds for a lock is obviously wide-open, and it does come down to a judgment call where it can happen whenever a mod's upset and it's time for some good old mod discretion, even if TC/OP didn't violate any rules. The user never gets a reason for it, can't do anything about it, so no wonder they're disappointed in the system when it's not even used sparingly, but because of possible "trouble" and other arbitrary reasons.

Must Be Offensive...No Matter What

In "Offensive Connotations?" P4wn4g3 writes at Hellhole that he was recently moderated for a "racial slur" that was not meant to be taken as such. The discussion involved the the abbreviation of a Japanese country code. Long story short, JP or JPN is accepted, JAP is not.

Moderator Cataclysms responded, "the ruling came from CBS so we really have no say in the matter. If it is used, we have to delete it."

"I'm not blaming you guys. It's just that it's the stupidest thing I've ever heard. Next 'white' will be banned...I don't know what to say here. This is stupid. There isn't any disputing it and it isn't really worth arguing over, I just can't think of a worse way to represent yourself than to say that something like this is offensive to you. Glad I don't know who marked me."

It's a minor thing, but moderations over minor things add up. The user obviously wasn't using an offensive term but the hands of moderators have been tied, lest we offend anyone. In a different environment, maybe we'd have moderators with the ability to know the difference between a country code and a racial slur, but at gamefaqs better to be safe and mod someone than be sorry and have one person complain. I know what it's like when I'm posting an acronym to some organization, I always look it up beforehand to see if it means anything else that could get me modded. Because even if it's obvious you didn't mean that version of the word, mods have marching orders. It really insults the mods' intelligence to think they can't tell the difference between two different uses of a word - and besides, I thought it was my job to do that?

Gavi Strikes Back

Gavirulax was on Hellhole and CE to talk about my recent piece on him. Can't fault a guy for defending himself. However, let's not go spreading around false rumors, all right? Here's why Gavi wasn't on his A game.

In a topic titled "LOL who keeps a blog on users/mods/admins from this site? (Krystal/Gavi/others)." New User Ridlaidly may only have a few digits of karma but already he knows about my blog (now that's publicity!), knows who writes it, decides to adopt Gavi's tone and arguments. Quite impressive for a new account that is known from nowhere else. He just jumped right into the conversation didn't he?

Gavi baby, I know it's like a thing of yours to set up alt accounts to stretch out your arguments or pretend-argue with yourself, but you know you can always give it to me straight, right? You got a beef with the T-man, you come right over and we'll work it out.

So what's the guy write to defend Gavi? More stuff that only continues to prove the points I make.

"About Gavirulax...just seems large, obsessed with the user and pretty homophobic."

Not "obsessed" for writing one article that mentioned him, not homophobic for being anti-troll. As I mentioned, one of Gavi's methods was to take on special snowflake status as a supposed member of some aggrieved group, therefore anyone who criticizes his trolling is labeled anti-gay. The shield might fly with some mods over at gamefaqs but it's not gonna stop me here, buddy.

As I also mentioned before, Gavi's been known to lie about himself and has admitted to trolling the politics board with alternate personas, so there's really no reason to believe the orientation and sister wife miracle triplet stories. Sorry if I blew your gimmick but over here we tell it like it is.

"About Krystal, admin. The guy is obsessed with....the new admin. Maybe he wants her to ban gay people?"

Again complete speculation over someone I mentioned once and more scary made-up stuff. I'm used to seeing the racist/sexist/bigot card that's thrown all the time over at board 261, you'll have to do better than that. I've repeatedly made it clear that I will defend anyone's right to free speech, never mark anyone for their opinions, and will push for a more open gamefaqs where less people are punished. I wouldn't go to 261 all the time if I was trying to avoid pro-gay messages. I'll stand to defend a wide range of different opinions. It's a shame I don't get the same courtesy extended to me, but that's how it is.

"Tails posts on HH every so often trying to promote his attention blog thing he uses up there."

Actually Gavi, I've never made a topic promoting my blog, that was all driven by other users. Funny story, the first one to bring it up was begging mods to punish me somehow for daring to do this offsite project because he didn't like it. I've joked that if I promoted the site myself, I'd probably get a moderation for advertising. All the talk's started from other people, so by bringing this up in a way you've promoted it more than I have. Cheers and tyvm <3

"Essentially, it's just a huge "name drop site" because he's starved for views or whatever"

No actually, the thousands who have visited on my little ticker make me feel warm and fuzzy inside. But more important than that, it's the connections I've made with people who sympathized, approved or even contributed to this blog that have really humbled me over these last few months. I'd like to thank everyone who believed in this project and all those who took the time to read even a little of my ramblings, it's been a fun ride so far.

...

I'll do reader comments a little later, but I couldn't pass up on this one:

KingBabyCub posted: "I like when people say homophobic things and then cry about censorship."


Yes that's the same account that called me gay a little while back.

Oh hey, haven't I seen you around in the LGBT topics? It's been a while, did you ever come to terms with your feelings about men? I know you were having a great deal of trouble accepting how men made you feel, and I do hope our kind words of comfort were able to ease your weary soul. Remember, all things aside the most important thing to remember is that it is totally okay for you to like men.

Lol. So I guess spreading rumors and smearing me over my imagined gayness didn't work, so this time I'm anti-gay. How about being honest for once? Hahaha yeah I know, in our dreams. Only lesson he's learned now is to not use the same account to spread those rumors next time.