Code of Conduct Changes - Do better at least for optics

If the intention is to allow the community to write down condolences in an safe and protected way, we should build an proper officially recognized single OT-graveyard-thread instead of plastering every corner with an overabundance of corpses and RiP-threads, needless to say we should also offer a wide array of burrialceremonies from tossing em into a swamp, burying them next to stonesculpturs, fire arrows at the ships, tossing the ashes into rivers and incinerating their worldly remains.

People could actively favourisite a certain pagenumber and be easily able to return to the graveyard-thread if additional mourning is in order.

A decision will have to be made if it´s ok to also allow the intake of
fictional marvel heroes that died recently,
illusionary concepts like free-will, speech or liberty,
or the other unnamed and never mentioned childs that die in africa every 10seconds according to unicef as a symbol.
As a first i would bury the "idea that moderation gets easier if theres less to discuss", in there.

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Another key factor we discussed at length regarding this change is the effect these kinds of topics have on our staff. Forum and game moderation is no easy task and while many players do abide by our Code of Conduct, there are also many players that do not. There are a significant number of really horrible chat and forum postings our team deals with on a daily basis. We hope to significantly reduce the strain on our staff for the benefit of their mental well-being.

Quite sure it will help moderators cope easily with the remaining sludge of sickening homophobia, transphobia, and misogyny, all far lesser evils than the topics of religion and politics, eh?

Sure, removing the obvious and easy makes sense, I've long been surprised the Trump thread is even a thing for how much trouble it causes. Forgive my wry laugh that targeting religion and politics isn't such an assault on the core Gamer Dude supporter base culture, either.

Someone make a first they came for the Trumpsters, then they came for ... and then they came for the PC Master Race... macro?

^ Test.

Will be good to see harder moderation on some of the religious bigotry in chat.

Still, it's not so much what you say, it's how you say it.

Overall, blanket banning of two vital topics - yes, even on a gaming forum - is against my values so fundamentally I'm not sure about how it'll affect me using Off Topic. No loss in the scheme of things, and certainly not cause for calling the waambulance. Guess we'll see how it all pans out.

Not bad timing though, this, interesting and apt, even.

This is disappointing and stupid. I respect you guys for your game, and plenty of other things, but this is plain a let down.

If this is to deal with people being abusive, then deal with people being abusive. Don't ban legitimate conversation about important topics because it's hard to see people disagree with each other on the internet.

For the record, I don't really even use these forums already, but any hope that I might is thoroughly squashed. That likely means my opinion is less valid, and that's fine, but I saw this on Reddit and honestly thought it was a joke until I came and looked.

Curious whether dealing with the content is the issue or dealing with pissy people arguing about the rules/ bans afterwards or complaining and wanting something done is. Suspect it's really the latter, for which some training would be helpful.

Moot, I guess, as things will be so much easier now.

ed: Isn't Tiananmen Square History, not Politics? Hmm...

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erdelyii wrote:

Curious whether dealing with the content is the issue or dealing with pissy people arguing about the rules/ bans afterwards or complaining and wanting something done is. Suspect it's really the latter, for which some training would be helpful.

Moot, I guess, as things will be so much easier now.

ed: Isn't Tiananmen Square History, not Politics? Hmm...

It's many things--all of them ultimately taboo as far as the Chinese Communist Party is concerned. But we better not really talk about that, because it's definitely an inflammatory topic.

I expect that about 99% of the discussions this ends up banning are things that will indeed have quite specifically not been making the community a better place; I totally get that angle. This kind of response is still always a bit disappointing in other respects.

I mean sure, there's the "the topics themselves aren't the problem" bit. I do believe that, but at the same time GGG are a game company, and there's no particular problem if they decide they don't want to host religion discussions or whatever. That's, you know, okay, whatever.

Mainly I just wish companies would feel comfortable taking a stand on ("horrible") behaviour without couching it in language like "passionate", "someone is always going to disagree" etc. This sort of thing always sounds like they're trying to reassure (and sometimes it almost slips into outright praise) the very people doing the things they want people to stop doing. I don't see how you make a better community by placating the people causing problems.

It’s about time, imo. While I lament the long-form post I’ve been slowly cultivating, I appreciate the enforcement of community standards as a necessity to sustain a niche / hole-in-the-internet-wall community. I also appreciate the fee fees regarding censorship and freedom of expression, but GGG-OT is not social media, not a public platform. Precisely the reason I like it here rather than reddit, or what have you; I resent the platform homogenization and apparent shrinking of such holes in the wall.

There are a few forum posters whose opinions I enjoy watching compete, but most of us at our cores are good gamers, terrible political creatures. And I do mean terrible creatures, as in have no cages for those beast-parts lurking in those particular shadows. We’ve seen the worse natures of some people who, otherwise, are or were good company for an off topic game forum.

My only interest in “that” thread was for the discussion of the political philosophical meta, but opportunity for that has long since been dead, at least for me, being driven nearly paralyzed by my inarticulateness and the eager willingness of others to so quickly “other” another.

Will be interesting to see how others handle pushing those beast-parts back out of the spotlight, and how enforcement develops for those who will predictably fail to do so.

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GusTheCrocodile wrote:

I expect that about 99% of the discussions this ends up banning are things that will indeed have quite specifically not been making the community a better place; I totally get that angle. This kind of response is still always a bit disappointing in other respects.

I mean sure, there's the "the topics themselves aren't the problem" bit. I do believe that, but at the same time GGG are a game company, and there's no particular problem if they decide they don't want to host religion discussions or whatever. That's, you know, okay, whatever.

Mainly I just wish companies would feel comfortable taking a stand on ("horrible") behaviour without couching it in language like "passionate", "someone is always going to disagree" etc. This sort of thing always sounds like they're trying to reassure (and sometimes it almost slips into outright praise) the very people doing the things they want people to stop doing. I don't see how you make a better community by placating the people causing problems.

And it's not like the people who truly behave horribly are simply going to disappear. Their horribleness will just continue to manifest itself in other ways and in other topics. There are plenty of those people who already use throwaway accounts to spout garbage in global chat and on the forums.

The rule change does absolutely nothing to stop that. It only truly affects those of us who already follow the rules (or mostly follow them at least :D) but still enjoy some occasional discussion and debating of non-PoE topics with other members of the "community".

Thank god we are still able to discus cultural dogma's, social structural developments of thought that contributed to the development of humans to who we are in this day and age and spirituality.

[Removed by Support]

The good way to get to know members of your community is to routinely bite your tongue when asked a pertinent question about a topic you care for.

How are my optics, did i succeed?

Peace,

-Boem-

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aggromagnet wrote:

And it's not like the people who truly behave horribly are simply going to disappear. Their horribleness will just continue to manifest itself in other ways and in other topics. There are plenty of those people who already use throwaway accounts to spout garbage in global chat and on the forums.

The rule change does absolutely nothing to stop that. It only truly affects those of us who already follow the rules (or mostly follow them at least :D) but still enjoy some occasional discussion and debating of non-PoE topics with other members of the "community".

Well, this new rule change does affect/solve social behavior to a degree.

Its hard to deny that a lot of people get carried away in political threads (myself included), and exhibit less than model behavior.

Pretty much everyone here in this thread is guilty of this.

I also don't see Xav around. So, RIP on his behalf.

That said, politics/religion will be a missed topic. There were some discussions like social responsibility that were pretty interesting.