Regular members cannot change titles after 1 hour edit time is up. Only moderators and a few helpers can edit titles and move posts.
After a few tests, I confirm, the members that flag are not identifiable to the posters, except mods know their identity.
We have a few regular flaggers though, members seem to be able to identify them. Interesting. I guess they are flagging too obviously and maybe they talked about that somewhere.
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Pretty much describes my use of “likes” here.
On a slight tangent, I lurk on a UK politics forum. Moderators post disciplinary action taken against a contributor. I am most definitely NOT suggesting it for here but it does seem to be welcomed there. They have an announcements sub forum where you might read that “Harters has been banned for eternity for repeated unsufferably boring posts”. In truth, most bans there are for abuse of moderators and sock puppetry.
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I’m not sure public shaming is the solution (although your example made me chuckle). I think most contributors are capable of controlling themselves, as I’ve not seen blatant personal attacks or downright mean shit around here.
The groups I run personally have only two rules: no politics & no personal attacks. Everything else is fair game. It’s been working surprisingly well, given some of my groups’ sizes and different personalities.
That said, it’s clear some posters get under each others’ skin (sometimes intentionally, sometimes who knows), and in those cases I think it really is the best solution to use the mute/ignore function – both for their own sake as well as the rest of us 
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Thank you for the example from other forums.
My only question is this, why can’t we just treat each other with RESPECT?
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It takes two.
And, to be perfectly frank, I find it hard to show respect for people I regard as complete arsewipes. Now, I accept that arsewipery is very much in the eye of the beholder. And that my entirely well considered response may well cross a line of a forum’s rules. Which is why the ignore facility is such a valuable feature
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With all due respect, I do not agree with that statement. How does it take two for you not to comment/respond? I’m sure you see arsewipes in all aspects of your daily life, do you feel obligated to walk up to and personally address their real life arsewipery? (no judgement maybe you do, I know I use to as a younger man. i would certainly go up to someone parked in a handicapped spot, without a handicapped tag, and confront them, however with age has come wisdom and the understanding I can’t defend myself like I use to, and/or guns these days)
So I’m not sure how it takes two? At the end of the day, I am the only one accountable for MY actions. Regardless how provoked I might be, it’s my sole discretion how I chose to, or chose NOT to respond.
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I agree, and I’m also of the opinion that ignoring nonsense (which I see here from time to time) is equivalent to condoning it. And that does not make the world a better place. I wouldn’t fault someone for not confronting a driver parked in a handicapped spot (to use the @NotJrvedivici example, because it could be dangerous. But ignoring that just teaches people that they can be jerks without consequence.
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I’m sorry, but nobody said ignore them. Flag them, explain your concern and let the proper “authorities” (for complete lack of a better term) take it from there. Why MUST you be the judge and the jury? Can you explain that?
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People on discussion boards like to give their 2 cents.
I like to have my 2 cents too, however if I disagree wtih your statement I can make my own contrary statement here, without directly engaging or confronting you about your 2 cents opinion. There is a big difference between stating your 2 cents and CONFRONTING someone about their 2 cents and then expressing your own. Just as I’ve done here.
(@prim tagging because this is in response to you, but NOT directly in response to you)
This is an excellent example of what I’m talking about. Express your differing opinion, NOBODY is suggesting NOT participating, but why does the participation have to contain confrontation of others? That is the problem. The two are not excusive of each other.
ETA - we also have private message, so if my post here, contrary to yours so offends you feel compelled to “confront” me, why not message me? Why call me names or berate me as is taking place daily on these boards.
You may be thinking of obviously “flaggable” offenses, like personal attacks or racist comments or off-limit topics like politics. Which I would and have reported, as you know. I’m referring to stuff that needs correction*, either because the poster is ignorant or because the poster is trying to be provocative.
I also think we have different ideas of what constitutes a confrontation. I’m pretty comfortable with semi-heated exchanges, and they don’t get me emotionally riled up at all. If you’re not, then I can see why you’re getting disenchanted with moderating.
*ETA This is the wrong word, but I can’t think of the right one. Response?
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How large is the current problem? I’m kind of concentrated vis-à-vis the boards I visit here, so I may be missing the larger picture - I’ve seen 3 separate couplets recently kind of going at each other.
(Edit - I had missed this last part of your final sentence “call me names or berate me as is taking place daily on these boards”. And your description to small_h below pretty much answers my question.)
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I hear you. In addition to respect, I’ll put in a good word for empathy. Respect + empathy are so powerful together.
It’s only in recent years that I learned my lesson in life that I gotta ignore folks who want to get under my skin, or want to “win” a discussion at all costs. If someone doesn’t care to understand me, I’m outta there. I’m a lot happier since I figured that one out—yeah, it took me awhile. Offering this up in case anybody else might benefit from my hard-won lessons.
And thank you for all you do, @NotJrvedivici!
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This has NOTHING to do with me personally. This is a daily conversation we have as “moderators” on how to stop the “bullying” for lack of a better term. There are a lot of people on this site who truly feel targeted by others and YES, IT IS OBVIOUS.
So the topic isn’t about having differing options, it’s the daily assaulting of people on this site (YES daily in some cases) of people literally stalking other posts, just to call out how “incorrect” they are. No offense but you do not know what the full extent of this is. Again, nothing about me personally at all. This is an attempt to try and call attention to EVERYONE so those few who are abusing it might wake the F up.
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DING DING DING !!! Winner Winner Chicken (or steak) Dinner!!!
This is EXACTLY what I’m asking. Thank you. This is also my philosophy, I have so many better things to do than try to argue chicken soup recipes with someone, or worst of all trying to referee YOUR argument over chicken soup recipes.
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You’re right. I haven’t seen anything like what you describe. Maybe it takes place on boards I don’t visit. But if you know who these posters are, have you considered warning them that they are in danger of getting banned?
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Yes, literally several times a week lately we have discussions among Mods about; “ABC is complaining XYZ is attacking them” we research it, many times it’s “passive aggressive” because some people manipulate the TOS like a chess champion, others are more apparent. Also, many times it is DIRECT insults, which is completely out of line, here or anywhere else.
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Seriously, if posters are being stalked by other posters across the boards, that may justify a slap on the hand and, eventually, exclusion from participating. Yikes.
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I share my thoughts here, recognizing that I am a relatively new community member.
I think, once someone has received feedback and continues to make posts or responses outside the bounds of the responding community member’s sense of decorum (I’m trying to be delicate in my wording here), it can be frustrating when that poster continues to make a series of posts or responses that ignore or, in some other cases, openly clap back upon, that feedback. Especially when more than one member of the community is giving that individual the same feedback. That is how I view likes on feedback posts in these cases. Not “cliquishness”. Particularly when many interactions by some posters do very much technically fall within TOS, but are just someone “needing to be right” or being uncaring about feedback for whatever reason. I look at it as similar to the feedback I give to my students with social pragmatics challenges about “reading the room” in social interactions in the “real world”. That being said, the other feedback I give them is that after a certain point, you just learn to keep things to yourself and go about your day. Vent to someone understanding perhaps (and perhaps, for those that have chosen the “What’s On Your Mind” subthread to do so, that is how they are handling it…although all readers there may not be as understanding as one might hope, but, we all boil at different degrees, right?)
Ignore/Mute will be useful to some and I am glad it is there for those who feel they need it. Mods can’t be everywhere to ask folks to take the conversation private!
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