Close the Politics Forum?

[Dr. Freeman]

I'm going to post this here, the other main thread on the Closure of this forum:

Serious discussion isn't outlawed, far from it, such discussions exist, it's the seeming news-reporting that goes on.

Bad theads:

US Conservatives call Canada 'Retarded'

Zomg US Lies Again

Bush wanted to bomb Al-Jezeera

(I don't mean to single out threadposters, don't take it that way )

Examples of good theads:

Vote For 2006

Public Smoking Ban in the UK (poll)



I'd like to underline that this does not mean an end to serious, sensible, rational discussion on this website.

if the Politics forum is going to be closed, why bother having serious threads?
i am asking because serious threads often tend to have heated debate.
i don't quite get why after so much time the forum is now being closed as opposed to a few months ago...

the impression i got from the comment about the mods continully having to close, delete, warn and ban people...it seems more like mods are tired of moderating more than anything... but that should not be a reason to close the Politics section.

 

[JFry]

Make Stern and Ghost moderators. Mwahaha!

Seriously tho, I think Politics should stay open for the same reasons others have stated already. I am yet another one of the people who reads it every day yet rarely posts. I thought this was important enough to post for.

 

[AzzMan]

The thing I liked about this forum, is that I could go in the Off-Topic forum without seeing millions of politics threads.....

 

[Neo_Kuja]

i don't quite get why after so much time the forum is now being closed as opposed to a few months ago...

The main reason for closing the politics forum - from my understanding - is because, due to the serious nature of the debates taking place inside it, grudges and various other insults are being passed between members because of difference of opinion (Radical Conservatives vs Radical Liberals, and so on ...) outside of this particular forum. Rather than going through the tedious process of eliminating the main suspects and letting the forum remain (albeit heavily moderated), the moderators have decided to cut off the source of the problem the the source by eliminating the forums altogether, and in the process saving themselves alot of hassle. Other moderators have expressed concern that these forums are becoming far too serious and they are supposed to be "gaming forums" (filled with teenagers of medium IQ's) and so therefore have also decided that the politics forum - the root of serious discussion - must also go.

If I'm off the mark, moderators - please feel free to correct me.

 

[bigburpco]

I think it's fine...

 

[Absinthe]

The thing about these supposed grudges and rivalries is that... well, they're largely nonexistent. I know I've traded insults with a fair amount of people in here (Glirk, gh0st, Kerberos, etc.), but it's never extended into other sections. On the contrary, I've found that amiable posts are exchanged between me and such members more often than not. So the idea that Politics is somehow contaminating the rest of HL2.net is exaggerated at best. Hell, even Stern, the man who's probably had to lick the most wounds out of anybody here, gets along very well outside of the context of political debate.

The most valid issue I can see out of all this is that the discourse here can get pretty nasty, but there's nothing in recent memory that stands out (which causes me to wonder what prompted this decision).

 

[satch919]

WTF?!?!

This is a great forum! While I may not agree with everything said on here, I still think it's healthy to debate such current topics and events. Plus, people have provided me with further reading that I may not have found otherwise. Keep this place open!

What bugs me is that some people here enjoy debating and talking about more important stuff than I <3 prostitutes poll. Why waste bandwidth on that crap? I mean, people dispute over valid political reasons while those in the off-topic section post polls about whores. At least you have to use more of your brain to provide a valid point when discussing politics.

 

[Dr. Freeman]

The main reason for closing the politics forum - from my understanding - is because, due to the serious nature of the debates taking place inside it, grudges and various other insults are being passed between members because of difference of opinion (Radical Conservatives vs Radical Liberals, and so on ...) outside of this particular forum. Rather than going through the tedious process of eliminating the main suspects and letting the forum remain (albeit heavily moderated), the moderators have decided to cut off the source of the problem the the source by eliminating the forums altogether, and in the process saving themselves alot of hassle.

hold on...let me stop you right there.
what makes anyone think that eliminating the Politics section is going save them alot of hassle? for those that think it will...have they looked into the Off-topic section?

my point (if i did not make it in that previous post) is that if certain staff members feel they can no longer mod a forum, then perhaps its time to step aside let someone else try...now that may sound like i am ungrateful for the job mods do here everyday and have done here in the past but the truth is... moderating is an on-going process, it never stops even when one may want it to.

anyway...i don't think closing this section eliminates anything really as long as serious threads are allowed...and well if serious threads are outlawed, then theres really no point in visiting this forum because lets face it, theres definitely not much gaming news to discuss on a daily basis.

 

[Neo_Kuja]

i don't think closing this section eliminates anything really as long as serious threads are allowed...and well if serious threads are outlawed, then theres really no point in visiting this forum because lets face it, theres definitely not much gaming news to discuss on a daily basis.

True, but remember you'll have to sift through all the junk to actually get to the serious discussions, and for people who don't have the luxury of not having work to go to and so on, it's an unnesessary waste of time, and so therefore catagorising it and putting it in one forum makes it a hell of a lot easier for people to view and post in it. I would hate to wade through :

"I <3 prostitutes"
"Red Bull before exam, good or bad ?"
"You'll never look at Mischa Barton the same way"
"Bmw!"
"Zombie OvA eats you "
"Ebaumsworld becomes more evvilll!!!"
"Borgasm Industries"

... just to find an intelligent thread. As to your idea of hiring extra moderators ... it's an good idea (and efficient one at that), but the mods seem to have "It's certainly going to happen, complain all you want, we don't care" attitude, and the banning of Solaris has shown us how far some of them will go to silence dissent (except ComradeBadger, who actually is trying to explain why to the masses ... as well as Sulkdodds, who is against it) ... :|

 

[Ikerous]

"I <3 prostitutes"

Hey, that's a serious thread about gang violence.

and evil magicians

 

[Pi Mu Rho]

True, but remember you'll have to sift through all the junk to actually get to the serious discussions, and for people who don't have the luxury of not having work to go to and so on, it's an unnesessary waste of time, and so therefore catagorising it and putting it in one forum makes it a hell of a lot easier for people to view and post in it. I would hate to wade through :

"I <3 prostitutes"
"Red Bull before exam, good or bad ?"
"You'll never look at Mischa Barton the same way"
"Bmw!"
"Zombie OvA eats you "
"Ebaumsworld becomes more evvilll!!!"
"Borgasm Industries"

... just to find an intelligent thread. As to your idea of hiring extra moderators ... it's an good idea (and efficient one at that), but the mods seem to have "It's certainly going to happen, complain all you want, we don't care" attitude, and the banning of Solaris has shown us how far some of them will go to silence dissent (except ComradeBadger, who actually is trying to explain why to the masses ... as well as Sulkdodds, who is against it) ... :|

I am amused.

 

[^Ben]

To The General Topic Forums Again!

 

[jondy]

*stampedes*

 

[AzzMan]

The second I see a politics thread on the general Off Topic forum, I'm gonna choke someone out

"Too close, you too close!!"

 

[Angry Lawyer]

I found that the Politics forum was just people ignoring other people opinions and simply posting links, and then saying "HAH, YOUR SIDE IS WRONG", or "ALL CHRISTIANS ARE SCUM/STUPID/SHOULD DIE", or something similar. It's just a place that propogated hate. And I already have plenty of hate. HATEHATEHATEHATEHATE!

-Angry Lawyer

 

[Llama]

I found that the Politics forum was just people ignoring other people opinions and simply posting links, and then saying "HAH, YOUR SIDE IS WRONG", or "ALL CHRISTIANS ARE SCUM/STUPID/SHOULD DIE", or something similar. It's just a place that propogated hate. And I already have plenty of hate. HATEHATEHATEHATEHATE!

-Angry Lawyer

Agreed

But all you need is love <3

 

[brink's]

Love, love is all you need

Angry Lawyer speaks the truth, I check this forum pretty often and i must say, I havn't seen a single mind thats been changed by the multitude of links and arguing that occurs here.

 

[CptStern]

ya but that can be said about any section of the forums

"CS 1.6 is better"

"NOOO you idiot, CS:S is better!!"

"really? ok then you've changed my mind"

 

[Dr. Freeman]

Love, love is all you need

Angry Lawyer speaks the truth, I check this forum pretty often and i must say, I havn't seen a single mind thats been changed by the multitude of links and arguing that occurs here.

just because this section never changed anyone's mind doesn't mean it was useless or whatever...if forums were based on changing everyone's perspective on things, they would become useless after initial threads...

 

[brink's]

ya but that can be said about any section of the forums

"CS 1.6 is better"

"NOOO you idiot, CS:S is better!!"

"really? ok then you've changed my mind"

True, but I've never seen a thread in the cs forum include 15 pages of bitching before a moderator has no other choice but to close. Doing so in vein, because in 2 minutes a slightly different thread will open attracting the same response.

 

[CptStern]

True, but I've never seen a thread in the cs forum include 15 pages of bitching before a moderator has no other choice but to close. Doing so in vein, because in 2 minutes a slightly different thread will open attracting the same response.

yes but how much discussion could there possibly be around a game that based around shooting the other person? ...international politics on the other hand ...

 

[brink's]

just because this section never changed anyone's mind doesn't mean it was useless or whatever...if forums were based on changing everyone's perspective on things, they would become useless after initial threads...

Then whats the point of arguing for 10 pages? Let's throw pointless facts at eachother for 2 days knowing that its not going to get us anywhere!!

 

[brink's]

yes but how much discussion could there possibly be around a game that based around shooting the other person? ...international politics on the other hand ...

That's beyond the point, I'm not saying that having 15 pages in a thread is a bad thing, I'm saying that the majority of threads in this forum either die off or end violently.

/srry for the double post

 

[Dr. Freeman]

Then whats the point of arguing for 10 pages? Let's throw pointless facts at eachother for 2 days knowing that its not going to get us anywhere!!

you have got to be kidding me...right?
sheesh...whatever happened to just having a good discussion... or just opening up one's mind on current issues in the news?
regardless of what my stand in current issues is, theres stuff i know now after reading it in this very section which i did not know before.

hey, if changing people's minds is all that forums are about, then lets just close down the entire Halflife2.net forum.
i don't believe forums are there to just change minds on issues...its more than that but hey... if people don't see it that way, its not my problem.

 

[CptStern]

That's beyond the point, I'm not saying that having 15 pages in a thread is a bad thing, I'm saying that the majority of threads in this forum either die off or end violently.

/srry for the double post

ya but that also happens here ..in fact I bet you'd find more threads that simply die off or are locked because of spamming rather than because of arguing ..seriously besides the odd argument the politics forum isnt as bad as it was 6 months ago

 

[brink's]

you have got to be kidding me...right?
sheesh...whatever happened to just having a good discussion.

That's exactly my point, there non existent in this forum

... or just opening up one's mind on current issues in the news?.
regardless of what my stand in current issues is, theres stuff i know now after reading it in this very section which i did not know before

I totally agree

, if changing people's minds is all that forums are about, then lets just close down the entire Halflife2.net forum.
i don't believe forums are there to just change minds on issues...its more than that but hey... if people don't see it that way, its not my problem.

I could care less if these forums are shut down, I have other sources besides hl2.net, I'm just saying that most threads become quite unenjoyable after the first post. And no i don't think forums are purely based on changing people's minds, that just seems to be many posters intent.

 

[Dr. Freeman]

I could care less if these forums are shut down, I have other sources besides hl2.net, I'm just saying that most threads become quite unenjoyable after the first post. And no i don't think forums are purely based on changing people's minds, that just seems to be many posters intent.

lets not talk about what another person's intent may or may not be because theres no way to really know that.
this section has been informative to many people despite the flaming.

to you, this section may not mean much...in which case i'd say its better to stay out of it but it does mean something to others and it has value to others.

 

[Reaktor4]

That's exactly my point, there non existent in this forum
I totally agree
I could care less if these forums are shut down, I have other sources besides hl2.net, I'm just saying that most threads become quite unenjoyable after the first post. And no i don't think forums are purely based on changing people's minds, that just seems to be many posters intent.

couldnt.

 

[brink's]

couldn't

 

[RakuraiTenjin]

Then whats the point of arguing for 10 pages? Let's throw pointless facts at eachother for 2 days knowing that its not going to get us anywhere!!

That's not exactly what happens. And for me, even when it gets heated, debate is VERY fun and I actually take something away from it in the end, regardless of whether or not both sides came to agree. I can't say the same thing about someone whining about a server admin kicking him and that going on for 15 pages.

 

[Lucid]

Meh, It's just a flame-war forum in a quite obvious disguise.

 

[Absinthe]

People have this absurd notion that the value of a topic is determined by how many people agree with each other by its end.

 

[spookymooky]

I speak:


I like this forum. Not as much as gaming, or general off topic. It is not as useful as News, or 3rd party mods, but I like it. It pleases me.


That is all.

 

[Laivasse]

People have this absurd notion that the value of a topic is determined by how many people agree with each other by its end.

And also that argument=flamefest :/

 

[Reaktor4]

couldn't

i refuse to waste time using unnecessary apostrophes.

 

[Yuri]

True, but remember you'll have to sift through all the junk to actually get to the serious discussions, and for people who don't have the luxury of not having work to go to and so on, it's an unnesessary waste of time, and so therefore catagorising it and putting it in one forum makes it a hell of a lot easier for people to view and post in it. I would hate to wade through :

"I <3 prostitutes"
"Red Bull before exam, good or bad ?"
"You'll never look at Mischa Barton the same way"
"Bmw!"
"Zombie OvA eats you "
"Ebaumsworld becomes more evvilll!!!"
"Borgasm Industries"

... just to find an intelligent thread. As to your idea of hiring extra moderators ... it's an good idea (and efficient one at that), but the mods seem to have "It's certainly going to happen, complain all you want, we don't care" attitude, and the banning of Solaris has shown us how far some of them will go to silence dissent (except ComradeBadger, who actually is trying to explain why to the masses ... as well as Sulkdodds, who is against it) ... :|

The best thing about that post is how you think that the Politics section has all "intelligent" threads in it. Best thing.

Or maybe its how you said that you don't have the luxury of not having to go to work, and that sifting through threads is a "waste" of your valuable time.

I am also amused.

 

[Jandor]

http://forums.civfanatics.com/forumdisplay.php?f=3

I quite like the political debates that go on in the above forum.
Its mainly a forum for a turn based strategy series, but half the people don't even play it anymore .
Their politics goes in off-topic.

It's also extremely low on flaming, an example of how it can work.

 

[CptStern]

http://forums.civfanatics.com/forumdisplay.php?f=3

I quite like the political debates that go on in the above forum.
Its mainly a forum for a turn based strategy series, but half the people don't even play it anymore .
Their politics goes in off-topic.

It's also extremely low on flaming, an example of how it can work.

omg I'd get eaten alive in those forums:


random thread:

topic: First Day for Gay couples to 'tie the knot'

"...Its certanly a step in the direction of the immoral road. A man and a woman are the only ones ..."

" ....don't believe that they should even get this right..."

"...After gay marrages, then people would start marrying animals and objects.."

:O mind you two of those comments were from the same person


but then some other member redeemed the thread:


same homophobe:

"Gay sex produce nothing"

other member replies:

"Except catharsis from the sexual urges, feelings of intimacy and bonding, and an additional reason for two people to cooperate in the struggle called 'life'."


hmm I may have a look see

 

[Absinthe]

I don't care for other Politics forums because I'm interested in the members I currently have discourse with.

 

[CptStern]

I guess my point is that politics is discussed in every forum, you cant avoid it ..and you cant stop people from expressing their POV ..for better or worse