Edit: I hit Reply too early. Fugg.
Well, now that the thread has been unlocked, let’s see… where to start.
Let’s start with this. This is not my argument. It never was. Did I say you shouldn’t have banned those three? Did I say you should unban them? No. I did not. I said you should not ban someone and then leave snide messages on their posts. A better idea would be to say “This user has been banned and will not be able to reply to any messages.”
Where did I ever ‘defend bad behavior’? I attacked bad moderation practices. It should not be a thing that people get banned and have messages attacking them permanently affixed to their old posts. This is a common sense measure of decency.
And yet you felt the need to include it.
I’m not saying you have to post the evidence. I’m saying:
- If you make a claim about something, THEN you have to provide evidence or a way for people to defend themselves.
- If you cannot do one of those things, or don’t feel comfortable doing so, then don’t make the claim. Just say someone got banned and leave it at that.
See, the problem here is, not many people trust the FEU staff. My memory is a bit longer than a goldfish, so I can easily recall numerous instances, such as the Open Letter, where mods ganged up on people and extolled their virtues while acting like hypocrites. If I really feel the need, I can dig back and find a dozen examples of mods making jackasses of themselves.
If people trusted the FEU staff, then a ban wouldn’t be anything out of the ordinary. You wouldn’t have people, such as me, assuming there are backroom shenanigans going on. I happen to have seen a few leaked mod chats. You guys are not holy arbiters of the light; you’re just as flawed as everyone else.
When the OP of this thread says, and I quote, No flaming, baiting, or bullying. This applies regardless of whether a specific member of the community is targeted.
Then a man has to wonder what those words encompass. Is leaving inflammatory messages on a banned user’s posts not considered flamebaiting? Ah, but you say these people are all bigots, so they deserve the harassment.
By your own words, these three are receiving the ‘public shaming they deserve’. Or rather, the public shaming you say they deserve.
Here’s a hypothetical question: What is the role of a moderator or admin of a website, outside of developing the website? It’s to keep the community safe, make sure members are getting along, etc.
In that respect, banning Tambo is perfectly valid. I don’t care if you ban him. You can ban whoever you want. You can even ban me, if you feel that’s a good idea.
Another role of a moderator is to ensure the community ‘runs smoothly.’ ie, it is to ensure the forum doesn’t go downhill. You don’t want to take actions that will actively harm the forum.
One of the most important traits a moderator can possess is the ‘veneer of impartiality.’ Nobody expects everyone to be wholly impartial, but at the least, when disputes arise, people hope that if the mods step in, they will do so by bringing justice to the wronged, without relying on their current friendships and ties.
Forums live and die based on this notion. In FEU’s case, there are only three mods left that most users can agree are ‘mostly impartial.’ We expect that when disputes arise, if those three step in, they will hand out punishments fairly and not take the sides of their friends and comrades.
This means you cannot, and should not, go out of your way to attack users personally. I am a normal user. I have one weapon to defend myself: My words. A moderator or admin not only has those, but also the shield and sword of muting, locking threads, banning, etc. When you wield those improperly, you tell the community “We don’t care about you plebians, only each other.”
Cam’s post nicely illustrates this.
Cam. Buddy. You always do this. Any time something comes up, you pull out the “I own this site” card. Great. Nobody is impressed. We are appreciative, of course. We are glad that you foot the bill.
But in the end, FEU is a forum where users congregate into a community. The forum is replaceable; the community is not. By constantly talking about how you own the website and your word is law, you alienate yourself from the common users. When people bring up concerns, only for you to shove them away by saying ‘the power is mine,’ you make it clear that the common users don’t matter, and only your power does.
Oddly, I don’t think that’s even the message you want or are deliberately trying to send, but it’s what we hear, loud and clear.
…
Let’s get back to Tambo/etc.
Warning: racism
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/794816392947695617/837831046292570142/Screenshot_214.png
A casual search of FEUcord brings up messages like these. I remember seeing a few of these back in the day, along with other such slurs getting dropped like firecakes.
I’m not here to call out Kirb (Or anyone else, though he specifically does come up a lot). Maybe he’s changed, maybe he hasn’t. My point though is, if you wield the banhammer inconsistently, and if you make a debacle of banning someone only to then shut down any discussion, what message are you trying to send? What is your end goal?
You claim to want to make a community of tolerance. Fair! A community without bullying. Fair! But if that’s the case, then why are mods and admins exempt from the rule? Are you guys above them?
I’d write more but I accidentally posted this early. Oh well, maybe I’ll add more in a bit.
