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[viciouskillersquirrel]

I think GAF moderation, on the whole, is fantastic once you accept that Christianity is not a protected class.

Unless you live in Egypt or the Sudan or some other place where religious persecution, harrassment or vilification of Christians occurs, you shouldn't need the added support of the moderating staff. If you live in a place where Christianity is the majority belief or a big part of the majority cultural background, why would it need protection?

Yes, there are those here who are openly hostile to Christianity, a few who are more than a little irrational in their disdain and some who readily swallow and parrot the most ludicrous pseudohistory if it makes Christianity look even slightly bad. It doesn't change the fact that as a faith and as a cultural force, Christianity has got it pretty good.

Female, gay and trans posters, though, don't have it so good. Not in their everyday lives and certainly not on the wider Internet. By banning slurs, like bitch, cunt, fag, dyke, trap and tranny, you create a safe space where people who fall into the aforementioned categories can speak their mind without having to put up with the kind of poison they have to deal with every day.

So yeah, unless your family is living in fear of being rounded up and imprisoned/tortured for not making sacrifices to an implacable emperor, you can stand to take a little criticism every now and again.

 

[Roland Garros]

The cunt ban (or cunt-gate as the press are reporting it) confuses me a bit.

Which one of the following is ban-worthy?

Mr X is a cunt.
Mrs X is a cunt.
Mr/Mrs X acted like a total cunt in the pub last night.
Mr/Mrs X went out drinking last night and got absolutely cunted.
Stopping anyone using the word Edge in the title of their games is really cuntish.
Football Team X are a right bunch* of useless cunts.
Some cunt just spilled my pint.
Mr/Mrs X is my best friend, I fucking love the silly cunt.
Paid DLC is often a cunt's trick.
Forum X is full of nerds cunting off left, right & centre.

*The collective term for cunts is bunch, pack or stack.

If it's used as a verb or used to describe an action or an un-named person is it acceptable? Is it only frowned upon when used to describe a specific named person.

I'm a Brit, we use the word constantly even in an affectionate way. We're cunts like that.

Yeah, the banning of the word is silly. The price we pay for having a US-centric forum. =P If this forum had British roots, it would not be banned in my opinion.

 

[Johnny Cage In The Shower]

Didn't some GAF members lose thier tags becasue it had links to stuff about them and people kept posting it and made fun of them or soemthing?

the rules are indeed always evolving, but I guess that's a good thing.

 

[spiderman123]

You shouldn't be afraid to post on GAF. As long as it isn't ignorant, racist or factually incorrect. Posting an educated response regardless of ideology should not get you ban as long as you follow the rules which is pretty consistent with most forms ( or the ones I've been too)

 

[UrbanRats]

Is "son of a bitch" banned? How offensive is it in the US?

 

[CrushDance]

I should clarify that I don't agree with the religion bashing, even if it is a choice. People should be able to express themselves without fear of reprisal. I think the reason why religion is always lunged at is because many posts here are American. And we all know the correlation between conservatives and religious fanatics. It is wrong and shouldn't be accepted, that's true. Yet I haven't seen any poster attacked for having faith, so much as for posting and defending some racial or sexual news story and using religion as their support. It's only during those times that I see things spin out of control. People criticize religion, but rarely specific posters.

 

[A Human Becoming]

I think it is sometimes. In a lot of threads, you just know that a lot of people aren't posting their opinions because they don't want to get baited or banned. So you end up with a lot of circle jerking and a false sense of the overall value system of the forum.

I do think this happens. People who go against the general consensus can be ridiculed or accused of trolling. Most of the time it seems like the person dissenting is banned, not the people giving personal attacks.

I think it has become a little more strict lately, but the current group of moderators are very fair.

 

[lexi]

Didn't some GAF members lose thier tags becasue it had links to stuff about them and people kept posting it and made fun of them or soemthing?

the rules are indeed always evolving, but I guess that's a good thing.

I mysteriously lost my tag a while back, this might have been the reason why.

 

[UrbanRats]

Didn't some GAF members lose thier tags becasue it had links to stuff about them and people kept posting it and made fun of them or soemthing?

the rules are indeed always evolving, but I guess that's a good thing.

Yeah, i think Count Dookkake lost his tag, too.
As everything, i think making fun of a tag in a lighthearted way in a lighthearted thread is alright, using it as an argument in a serious thread is idiotic.

 

[spiderman123]

I mysteriously lost my tag a while back, this might have been the reason why.

I think it may have had to do with thread derailing as well. Look at Kosmo's tag

 

[Owl]

I don't think so. It keeps things happily sane here, but still allows people to express their thoughts and opinions in a reasonable manner.

 

[Schrödinger's cat]

It's one of the few properly moderated forums.

Agreed.

I am very late to the GAF scene and, as you can see, still Junior scum.

However, I've seen my share of game forums and GAF seems to truly benefit from the active moderation it has.

I've seen topics here that stay civil and focussed that would have degenerated to name-calling and snarkiness in seconds on other sites. Given the size of this place and the often volatile nature of vocal gamers it's a credit to the community and the way it is run.

This is also about the only place where I've seen someone not only appreciate another's point of view, but after the broadening of another's understanding, seen that person thank another and shift their views based on the new information. In my experience gamers often seem to have their mind made up and dig their heels in when they feel challenged.

I'm a bigger fan of GAF now and have much respect for the way its run. I'm sure if I got myself banned then I'd be the only one to blame.

Forums are not democracies but dictatorships. Please don't take that as a criticism. I just tend to think that detail often gets lost when folk review how a community is run.

 

[Sye d'Burns]

I was serious for the most part. My point was that if you have a problem with a post too many people assume that the mods are deliberately ignoring something rather than not seeing it because they're not reading that particular topic. I think you'll find that most of the mods are dedicated to the gaming side so they're not reading OT. And yet a ton of the problematic posting is DONE on the OT.

I apologize if I took you the wrong way.

 

[user8503492]

Didn't some GAF members lose thier tags becasue it had links to stuff about them and people kept posting it and made fun of them or soemthing?

the rules are indeed always evolving, but I guess that's a good thing.

Well, Ive had my tag for maybe 2 weeks and in a thread I had started for help with a contest I was called about 20 derogatory terms, past post about me being unemployeed for an extended amount of time and looking for work were brought up adding to the personal attacks, and just tonight in the Breaking Bad thread when I said I was "rooting for the bad guy" my tag was once again brought up. All this because I was honest about my own personal demons from 20 years ago..so being open and honest in opinion threads scare me due to the "Drum circle, Ultra Lib" mind set and the "tell your story" threads are off limits cause I have a mired past.

So, Im pretty much done with GAF slowly but surely.

 

[Trent Strong]

The cunt ban (or cunt-gate as the press are reporting it) confuses me a bit.

Which one of the following is ban-worthy?

Mr X is a cunt.
Mrs X is a cunt.
Mr/Mrs X acted like a total cunt in the pub last night.
Mr/Mrs X went out drinking last night and got absolutely cunted.
Stopping anyone using the word Edge in the title of their games is really cuntish.
Football Team X are a right bunch* of useless cunts.
Some cunt just spilled my pint.
Mr/Mrs X is my best friend, I fucking love the silly cunt.
Paid DLC is often a cunt's trick.
Forum X is full of nerds cunting off left, right & centre.

*The collective term for cunts is bunch, pack or stack.

If it's used as a verb or used to describe an action or an un-named person is it acceptable? Is it only frowned upon when used to describe a specific named person.

I'm a Brit, we use the word constantly even in an affectionate way. We're cunts like that.

Don't use it in a misogynistic or sexist way.

 

[Johnny Cage In The Shower]

I mysteriously lost my tag a while back, this might have been the reason why.

If you don't mind me asking, what was your tag of/about?

I can totally see the "thread derail' with some of the tags, since they always say something ridiculous and some even have links to even more ridiculous things, mixed that with the ridiculous post said tag bearer makes... it can all add up to a deadly combination.

 

[Team Filler]

Don't use it in a misogynistic or sexist way.

Spiderman?

 

[Sye d'Burns]

Religion is a choice.

So are bronies. Did you have a point?

Pro-tip: I think most religious view it as more than a choice.

 

[spiderman123]

Spiderman?

Hey, what now?

 

[Broder Salsa]

Hey, what now?

I think he just called you the C word!

 

[Gustav]

I think GAF moderation, on the whole, is fantastic once you accept that Christianity is not a protected class.

And fat people. In every fatty thread people freely state how lazy and disgusting fat people are. Some even cant wait for them to "sort themseles out". Imaging this happening with gay people.

"Gays are disgusting, let the STDs sort them out."

 

[lexi]

If you don't mind me asking, what was your tag of/about?

'another internet virgin'. After I lampooned someone who made a stealth 'I just had sex' thread.

I think he just called you the C word!

I'll leave when I'm good and ready.

 

[Sye d'Burns]

And fat people. In every fatty thread people freely state how lazy and disgusting fat people are. Some even cant wait for them to "sort themseles out". Imaging this happening with gay people.

"Gays are disgusting, let the STDs sort them out."

I do remember the Wii demo exception to that. The ban hammer came down hard on the golfing.

 

[spiderman123]

I think he just called you the C word!

LOL, Well he can take the Z word up the I word while doing the A word on my B word.

 

[Trent Strong]

Spiderman?

I don't get it.

 

[Arjen]

Don't use it in a misogynistic or sexist way.

During the Euro cup someone was banned for calling Ballotelli a cunt.
How is that misogynistic or sexist?

 

[Team Filler]

I'll leave when I'm good and ready.

I've made a huge mistake.

 

[Thunder Monkey]

LOL, Well he can take the Z word up the I word while doing the A word on my B word.

That is terribly indecent young man.

A proper young man would first tie his D word to his S word, and relax his M word before T wording his W word.

 

[Broder Salsa]

I don't get it.

The point was someone (Sculli?) got banned for saying spiderman (the character, in the movie thread) was one. Same thing goes for any sport person, team or whatever, if you search for cunt you can see pretty much everyone who has said it recently has gotten banned. So it's not just misogynistic or sexist ways that gets you banned, unless you see the word as being misogynistic in itself.

 

[Johnny Cage In The Shower]

Well, Ive had my tag for maybe 2 weeks and in a thread I had started for help with a contest I was called about 20 derogatory terms...
So, Im pretty much done with GAF slowly but surely.

That sucks, sorry to hear that man. Tags are stupid if you ask me, I don't think it should be left to the average GAFer to use his imagination and try to use light hearted humor about one's tag (with a link) that's totally exposing them, by making fun of their lifestyle or family etc from a thread and a post made ions ago.

It's too late here and maybe I am not explaining myself clearly, but why give someone a Tag that may make them more vulnerable and let others easily and quickly ridicule them and then ban those people who do insult the said Tag bearer or simply derail the thread? Why instigate it? Why not just give most a family friendly TAG that doesn't allow others to ridicule them? Or is this GAF's way of population control?

|
V ...Trent Strong, great guy and a nice postive tag to boot, why not try to give everyone a positve if not, a neutral Tag?

 

[Trent Strong]

During the Euro cup someone was banned for calling Ballotelli a cunt.
How is that misogynistic or sexist?

I don't know who or what this Ballotelli is, but maybe I'm wrong about the C word. Maybe you can't call anyone a C word at all.

 

[Wafflecakes]

I think the moderation for the most part is fine.

The one exception is when someone is on the other side of the majority of gaf/mods on a subject they are much more likely to get banned than someone on the other side even if both are posting just as passionately/pushing the boundaries of acceptability.

Also don't agree with the blanket "cunt" bans. Now if directed at another member or in other specific offensive circumstances sure. However, it is way over enforced.


(Also mods need to be more careful with tags imo. They should be fun.....not derogatory....the vast majority of GAF will be unaware of the context)

 

[Castor Krieg]

I do wander around other forums and websites, and whenever GAF comes up and someone disses it, the one universal gripe that comes up is that : it is too strict.

Do you agree with this? From the long waiting-list to get in, to the taboo subjects that is not taboo on nearly all other forums.

Yes, I agree with this. I've been banned a few times for being to aggressive in posting, but this is what makes a discussion board for me - a discussion. Sometimes people argue. I personally do not like the idea of "everything is an opinion" so we can all be good to each other, and avoid any confrontation. It is the same as giving kids award just for participation.

 

[Trent Strong]

The point was someone (Sculli?) got banned for saying spiderman (the character, in the movie thread) was one. Same thing goes for any sport person, team or whatever, if you search for cunt you can see pretty much everyone who has said it recently has gotten banned. So it's not just misogynistic or sexist ways that gets you banned, unless you see the word as being misogynistic in itself.

Oh, I see. I guess it's all bannable then.

 

[MIMIC]

GAF is only strict when it comes to particular subjects; lax as fuck when it's anything else. Ever been banned for allegedly replying to a thread without having read the OP? Ever done the same thing in another thread and avoided a ban?

Yeah...

 

[spiderman123]

I find the c word offending. There exists a whole library of expletives which are GAF approved that can communicate your displeasure.

 

[Arjen]

I don't know who or what this Ballotelli is, but maybe I'm wrong about the C word. Maybe you can't call anyone a C word at all.

He's a footballplayer from Italy.

 

[lexi]

Well, Ive had my tag for maybe 2 weeks and in a thread I had started for help with a contest I was called about 20 derogatory terms

I'd consider it karma. Your debt to the universe has substantially lessened.

 

[Johnny Cage In The Shower]

So what other derogatory and slang words are banned?

I think "Tranny" is another one, again thanks to someone's Tag about "something something trannies"

 

[spiderman123]

So what other derogatory and slang words are banned?

I think "Tranny" is another one, again thanks to someone's Tag about "something something trannies"

Or the fact that we have Transgenders on GAF who find the word offensive, which it is. I think the term "tranny surprise" an inappropriate term too.

 

[Neki]

Well, Ive had my tag for maybe 2 weeks and in a thread I had started for help with a contest I was called about 20 derogatory terms, past post about me being unemployeed for an extended amount of time and looking for work were brought up adding to the personal attacks, and just tonight in the Breaking Bad thread when I said I was "rooting for the bad guy" my tag was once again brought up. All this because I was honest about my own personal demons from 20 years ago..so being open and honest in opinion threads scare me due to the "Drum circle, Ultra Lib" mind set and the "tell your story" threads are off limits cause I have a mired past.

So, Im pretty much done with GAF slowly but surely.

I want an awesome tag like yours!

 

[Dead Man]

I think the moderation is pretty spot on most of the time. I do miss smileys and animated avatars, I haven't noticed the great increase in the level of discourse that was promised when each disappeared.

So what other derogatory and slang words are banned?

I think "Tranny" is another one, again thanks to someone's Tag about "something something trannies"

It's not banned or at least not strictly, it is frowned upon, and it's because people find it offensive.

Well, Ive had my tag for maybe 2 weeks and in a thread I had started for help with a contest I was called about 20 derogatory terms, past post about me being unemployeed for an extended amount of time and looking for work were brought up adding to the personal attacks, and just tonight in the Breaking Bad thread when I said I was "rooting for the bad guy" my tag was once again brought up. All this because I was honest about my own personal demons from 20 years ago..so being open and honest in opinion threads scare me due to the "Drum circle, Ultra Lib" mind set and the "tell your story" threads are off limits cause I have a mired past.

So, Im pretty much done with GAF slowly but surely.

Meh, tags are just tags.

 

[Broder Salsa]

Or the fact that we have Transgenders on GAF who find the word offensive, which it is. I think the term "tranny surprise" an inappropriate term too.

I think he meant he noticed it was banned thanks to that tag, not that the word was banned because of the tag?

 

[CrushDance]

So are bronies. Did you have a point?

Pro-tip: I think most religious view it as more than a choice.

Did you miss the entire post after the first?

 

[KtSlime]

And fat people. In every fatty thread people freely state how lazy and disgusting fat people are. Some even cant wait for them to "sort themseles out".

I don't think anyone is bashing those with legitimate weight problems, just those who are lazy, overeat, and were not taught to enjoy exercising/activity.

 

[Gustav]

I don't think anyone is bashing those with legitimate weight problems, just those who are lazy, overeat, and were not taught to enjoy exercising/activity.

Man, I don't even know where to begin with this one. It's a lost cause.

 

[Johnny Cage In The Shower]

I think he meant he noticed it was banned thanks to that tag, not that the word was banned because of the tag?

Yes, someone's tag was "sleeps with trannies" or " likes trannies" something really stupid and awful like that, and needless to say, people were quoting that guy and his tag left and right, derailing threads that had nothin to do with Transgender sex, offending transGAF, it was actually pretty chaotic.

But I think the days of offesnive tags like that are behind us now?

 

[Wafflecakes]

I don't think anyone is bashing those with legitimate weight problems, just those who are lazy, overeat, and were not taught to enjoy exercising/activity.

Not true. You obviously have not read a GAF fatty thread.

Its what teen suicide is made of. Its that vicious sometimes.

 

[MIMIC]

I don't think anyone is bashing those with legitimate weight problems, just those who are lazy, overeat, and were not taught to enjoy exercising/activity.

And members undergo the effort to separate the two?

 

[Dead Man]

I don't think anyone is bashing those with legitimate weight problems, just those who are lazy, overeat, and were not taught to enjoy exercising/activity.

No, lots of posters assume they are one and the same, and bash away. It gets tedious.