Airbag/How Am I Driving?

[Guest cobainwasmurdered]

Hey Jingus, at the Pit I logged into Leena's account like 12 hours before you said not to, don't ban me!

 

Banky doesn't get too much mention so far in the Staff folder. FrigidSoul gets way more.

[Guest]

Unfortunately, most of the Frigid bitching is in separate threads. Like, five or six of them. Maybe even more!

[Guest Vitamin X]

We could merge em, you know. Amalgamated Fridge.

 

Adam's kind of a funny character these days. You could tell from his recent posts that he's far, FAR removed from being the poster he was a long time ago, and when he posts it's like OOO the old legend speaks- but he doesn't really have anything much to say. "Yo, I got baked today." "God I took a huge dump." etc.. It's kind of like how Banky is now. TSM Hall of Fame.

[Failed Bridge 0]

[Guest Vitamin X]

See?

 

Old sage. I still like him, though. But I miss his days of being a hellraiser.

[Nighthawk 0]

He's still a hellraiser. He just doesn't talk about it here.

[geniusMoment 0]

You might as well just get rid of the gulag now, seriously what's the point? The problem with it is that it's boring in it's execution, as the general population can't respond or post with people in whiny bitches. It becomes a blog of sorts for the poster there, one that really isn't that interesting to read. People who are sent there get tired of it and just don't post that much, I say either alter how things work there or just scrap it.

[Dandy 0]

I say either alter how things work there or just scrap it.

THUNDERDOME!

[Guest College Party]

New rules, but not really. Here:

 

Welcome to TSM Forums. We generally employ a hands-off moderation policy here compared to other boards, which we like to think will facilitate discussion and maximize enjoyment. However, to maintain some semblance of order, we do ask you to follow these five guidelines, which are very simple and very obvious, but will be enforced:

 

1. Do not contribute non-worksafe content or unacceptably inflammatory discussion outside of the unmoderated "NSFW" folders. (Current Events is to be lightly moderated as per a member referendum; use your discretion when viewing or posting.)

 

2. Do not host illegal or illicit files on our server.

 

3. Cite your sources when posting articles from other sites.

 

4. No spamming.

 

5. Do not register more than one account for general use, and do not steal existing accounts.

 

When absolutely necessary, report objectionable conduct to a member of the staff, listed on the main directory under "The Moderating Team."

 

Have a wonderful day!

 

Last Updated: Cinco de Mayo '08

[The Man in Blak 0]

That's a good start, but I think people are still looking for more details regarding the actual enforcement of these rules. (e.g., What offenses constitute a complete ban from the site? What offenses get you gulag'd? Any escalation in enforcement for repeated offenses?)

[Guest College Party]

Nah, I'm just gonna play it on the bounce here. See, when I was a young lad, I had the misfortune of transferring in the middle of a school year, 4th grade, to be exact. My old school had no concrete policy w/r/t discipline, and issues were handled as they arose. My new school had the whole system of names on the board, followed by checkmarks, followed by "steps," which were missing recess, or having conferences, being suspended, and so forth. Overall, the behavior was exponentially better when kids just somehow knew not to screw up, rather than being engaged in some byzantine system of arbitrary tiers of misconduct and escalating punishments and so on (not to mention imposing this creepy [and rather Swiss-cheesy upon closer inspection of the administration] Shiny Happy People mentality, but that's not germane to this).

 

Is it stupid and ill-advised to base my board policy on my 4th grade life experiences? Yeah, probably, but it's better than basing my board policy on previous board policy. I don't anticipate fleshing out the rules further. I feel that our rules are like branches: the shorter they are, the tougher they are to break. I'll handle the punitive stuff case-by-case, and hopefully won't be put in the position to ban contributing members (spammers are fair game to zap), because I don't want to deny someone the use of this place until absolutely necessary. If the board actually dies on my watch because I didn't enforce the rules well enough, at least I was true to the spirit of the place.

[Guest]

I can tell you for sure which of these will get a ban.

 

stealing existing accounts

 

spamming

 

The other stuff are gulagable (what a word) offenses. After more than one time in the Gulag, we may ban someone. If they are a constant problem, but likely not. Constant meaning we get constant (valid) complaints about the person. We'll warn people before sending them in, but in a "please don't do that" way. Not a "DON'T FUCKING DO THAT ON THIS BOARD ANYMORE" way. I've done the latter to someone. It was wrong, don't want to do it again.

[The Man in Blak 0]

Then why not put those in the rules?

 

I'm not asking for more rules just for the sake of having more rules; in fact, I'm not even asking for more rules at all. All that I'm saying is that laying down the rules only answers half of the questions. If you don't lay out how those rules will be enforced, even if you're completely reserving the right to case-by-case judgment, then you're going to bring about questions about how and why things are being done, questions that may or may not be conveniently raised here in Site Feedback, questions that speak to the "bias" that's perceived around here, questions that may lead people to go somewhere else.

 

The amount of detail you put in the community guidelines is inversely related to the amount of justification that people will expect for administrative decisions. If you want to spend time answering the same questions again and again about the Gulag (just to pick out a specific example), that's your prerogative, but isn't that detrimental to the whole "hands-off moderation" approach?

[Guest]

If you don't lay out how those rules will be enforced, even if you're completely reserving the right to case-by-case judgment, then you're going to bring about questions about how and why things are being done, questions that may or may not be conveniently raised here in Site Feedback, questions that speak to the "bias" that's perceived around here, questions that may lead people to go somewhere else.

We're getting to that part. We wanted to see what you guys had to say about these rules before moving forward and talking about potential "punishments" and the like.

[The Man in Blak 0]

Which is why Czech responded with an assurance that he'd handle that stuff, case-by-case, right?

 

If those are the rules, then sure, I've got no problem with those...but that wasn't exactly clear from the original post (or from the posting of those rules at the top of the forum as "Community Guidelines").

[BUTT 0]

Nah, I'm just gonna play it on the bounce here. See, when I was a young lad, I had the misfortune of transferring in the middle of a school year, 4th grade, to be exact. My old school had no concrete policy w/r/t discipline, and issues were handled as they arose. My new school had the whole system of names on the board, followed by checkmarks, followed by "steps," which were missing recess, or having conferences, being suspended, and so forth.

4th grade? I don't think they did that in my school past kindergarten. My elementary school was pretty great at punishment. During lunch they had a teacher at all times holding a fucking microphone so that they could monitor all the students and dispense punishments from afar. I did something out of line and the whole cafeteria hears "RYAN, YOU LOSE RECESS." I got sent to the Principal's office twice that year. Once for picking up pebbles at recess and dropping them on the ground ("HE WAS THROWING ROCKS") and once for mockingly saying, "fire!" during a fire drill. OMG HE COULD HAVE SCARED THE CHILDREN. I WAS 6 YEARS OLD. IT'S A FIRE DRILL. THERE'S FLASHING RED AND WHITE THINGS ON THE WALL THAT SAY "FIRE". SHOULD I HAVE KNOWN BETTER? I also got detention in third grade. Nobody in my elementary school ever got detention, but I did, for the heinous crime of talking during lights out at lunch. Did everyone else have a lights out period in elementary school lunch? During the last few minutes of lunch, they'd turn the lights out, and we'd have to all be silent and rest our heads on the table until our teachers led us out. I never thought it was unusual at the time, but in retrospect, the whole thing seems kind of weird. My constant outbursts during third grade were a pretty big problem for me. If this had happened in 2008 rather than 1994, I'm sure I would have been put on Ritalin. Which really wouldn't have been a bad thing because the more I think about it, I'm sure I had A.D.D. My parents protested vigorously. Even my dad called the principal and he never got involved with my school issues. But I'll give the school credit. They didn't bitch out. My parents should have threatened to sue. That would have done the trick. But my mom was a district employee at the time. It wouldn't have been a good idea for her, to be sure. I took the goddamn detention. I was there with another kid in my class. We sat at a table in a room full of books. We were not to touch the books. He picked up a copy of "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs." The book's pages had eraser shavings on them. This other young man told me they were drugs. Years later, I was told that the elementary school had started giving out detentions for students who had not accumulated the required number of Accelerated Reader points for the month, which somewhat dimishes the badassness of my third grade detaining. That was the only school year where I was really a troublemaker. I was actually probably the smartest kid in the class, too, which made it all the more confusing for my poor teacher. But I was in a class with all the other bad kids. It was sink or swim. If I was going to be bad, I was going to be the worst. The funny thing was, I wasn't really the worst. There were kids who did worse things, like the two kids who carried on a private conversation during a class lecture, and then when the teacher asked one kid what the other had said to him, he replied, "I'M SUING YOU FOR NIGGER-NAPPING". Maybe it was because I had so much potential that they were upset with my behavior, whereas they saw the others as lost causes. Whatever. The point is, when you're 9, it's fun to be a bad kid.

[Guest College Party]

Did everyone else have a lights out period in elementary school lunch? During the last few minutes of lunch, they'd turn the lights out, and we'd have to all be silent and rest our heads on the table until our teachers led us out. I never thought it was unusual at the time, but in retrospect, the whole thing seems kind of weird.

That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard. The weird lunch quirk that I never got was back in 2nd grade, we had to eat lunch at assigned tables based on our classroom, which in all likelihood, wasn't completely necessary. However, Friday was "Freebie Friday," where we could sit wherever we wanted and fraternize with our non-class friends. The existence of Freebie Friday belied any logistical necessity for assigned seats at lunch. Unfortunately, Friday at lunch was also the day that our principal would read us Shel Silverstein poems, which naturally, I appreciated, being a big Shel Silverstein fan at the time, but I also appreciated the opportunity to sit with my friends from my old class, because my parents removed me from my original 2nd grade class (along with other children via their concerned parents) because the teacher was absolutely nuts (this may be further elaborated upon in a new thread. stay tuned). So I, along with the rest of the youngsters, would talk to friends during the poetry readings, because this was the only chance to do so. Without fail, the princiPAL would get irritated and her feelings would be hurt and she'd threaten to take away Freebie Friday. What I was always afraid to ask was why Shel Silverstein Friday had to be coterminous with Freebie Friday. By moving one of the two, we could listen to our favorite selections from Where the Sidewalk Ends AAAAAAAND talk to other 2nd graders without fear of discipline. By 3rd grade, Freebie Friday was no longer a lunchtime concern. Instead, we had Fitness Friday, where all the 3rd grade classes had gym at the same time and did step aerobics to "Mr. Vain" by Culture Beat, and "Takin' Care of Business" by BTO.

 

If this had happened in 2008 rather than 1994, I'm sure I would have been put on Ritalin.

I thought '94 was the Year of the Ritalin.

 

EDIT: Curious to see if I've repeated this anecdote, I found this:

Friday was Fitness Friday, when all five homerooms had gym together, and we'd have to do, like, step aerobics. Songs we stepped to included, but were not limited to, "Be My Lover" by La Bouche, "Mr. Vain" by Culture Beat (my fave at the time), "Takin' Care of Business" by Bachman-Turner Overdrive, and "Runaway" by Real McCoy. Looking back on it, it's almost kind of surreal. Step aerobics?

Almost two years to the day. Uncanny.

[Twisted Intestine 0]

Did everyone else have a lights out period in elementary school lunch? During the last few minutes of lunch, they'd turn the lights out, and we'd have to all be silent and rest our heads on the table until our teachers led us out. I never thought it was unusual at the time, but in retrospect, the whole thing seems kind of weird.

That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard.

 

I think I had the same thing, except we were already in our class, just before class started. It makes sense to me, as all the kids are wound up from lunch, and it gives them a chance to settle down before class begins.

[FroGG_NeaL 0]

They tried that shit at one of the elementary schools I went to. There was nearly a riot.

[alfdogg 0]

In my school, our twist on "lights out" was they had one of those big traffic lights in the cafeteria, like you may see at a novelty store or something, and just changed it to red when they wanted us to be quiet.

[Broward83 0]

We had stop signs for our quiet time during lunch..

[Twisted Intestine 0]

You guys need to get your shit together. We always have one mod saying "We're not your overlords, we're janitors", while another mod is waving his powers around over personal issues.

[Guest]

Truthiness was trying to start a flame war with me. I ended it. What's wrong with that?

 

No flaming in the WWE Folder. That's one of the WWE Folder rules. Simple, no? Someone that's been warned for it in the past gets a shorter leash in the present.

[Twisted Intestine 0]

1st off man, I wasn't even talking to you, 2nd off I didn't even read your post in the raw thread, so I didn't know you said that.

 

 

It could have been avoided, but whatever, nobody likes Truthiness enough to riot.

 

 

[The Truthiness 0]

Truthiness was trying to start a flame war with me. I ended it. What's wrong with that?

 

No flaming in the WWE Folder. That's one of the WWE Folder rules. Simple, no? Someone that's been warned for it in the past gets a shorter leash in the present.

 

That's a lie man and you know it.

[The Niggardly King 0]

its like ya gif dawg. u be kennedy and he be regal, u jus got knocked da fuck out son

[Guest]

Truthiness was trying to start a flame war with me. I ended it. What's wrong with that?

 

No flaming in the WWE Folder. That's one of the WWE Folder rules. Simple, no? Someone that's been warned for it in the past gets a shorter leash in the present.

 

That's a lie man and you know it.

No it's not. When you responded to me, you didn't say a single thing about the comment I had left which was actually part of the discussion. You were just looking for someone to argue and trade insults with, so no, I do not know it.

 

Didn't I tell you not to post in that thread? You just want me to do something, don't you. I'll delete all your posts, but next time you post in there, I'll know you're trolling, and then, well....I don't want to do that though. So don't!

 

We've gone weeks without problems, I don't think we need one right now.

[The Ghost of bps21 0]

heh.

 

I stopped talking to him and now he's everybody's problem.

[Guest]

I honestly think he's trying to make me look like nikjohns. Seriously now, why not just leave this alone so that there's no more problems?

[Guest cobainwasmurdered]

1st off man, I wasn't even talking to you, 2nd off I didn't even read your post in the raw thread, so I didn't know you said that.

 

 

It could have been avoided, but whatever, nobody likes Truthiness enough to riot.

 

If you weren't talking about King then who were you talking about? If you're going to complain about a mod/mods post a link and be specific.