Transparent Discussion on Dappered Threads' Moderation

[imliuwhoru]

I love Fred but he did deserve to get banned for that alternate account thread. And by that point he really didn't care and was basically asking for it and seeing what it took to get banned. I do agree with him that the threads are a bit too heavily policed. I enjoyed the light hearted Duvel style humor and think there is such a thing as a dumb question and you should be able to take some light ribbing for it so long as people don't start piling on. But that's an entirely different conversation that isn't appropriate here.
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Hah. I liked Duvel, too! I just wished he could have taken it as well as he gave it.

[Siepi]

Let me be clear: I do not disagree with the decision to ban Fred, which was entirely appropriate in the circumstances. I disagree only with the decision not to discuss the details of the events that led to the ban. In my personal opinion our silence has led to far too many people being left with an unjustifiedly rosy perception of and sympathy for an individual who (again, in my opinion) went out of his way to demonstrate that he did not deserve it.

On the contrary, I believe that most of us that have a "unjustifiedly rosy" opinion of Fred know exactly what he did to get banned, and I daresay that his actions haven't really changed our opinion of him. We look on him with sympathy because he was one of the more helpful members here in his time (if not the most helpful by a long shot), and his advice and propensity to communicate great deals is missed.

[LesserBlackDog]

On the contrary, I believe that most of us that have a "unjustifiedly rosy" opinion of Fred know exactly what he did to get banned, and I daresay that his actions haven't really changed our opinion of him. We look on him with sympathy because he was one of the more helpful members here in his time (if not the most helpful by a long shot), and his advice and propensity to communicate great deals is missed.

You are certainly entitled to your opinion. However, given that most of the offending posts were deleted almost immediately and the moderators have not shared the details with the forum readership, it is unlikely that you know "exactly what he did to get banned." Unfortunately, this sort of speculation is precisely the kind of thing that we moderators inadvertently invited when we declined to explain the reasoning behind the ban in the first place.

We are aware (as Vicious has indicated) that Fred reached out to numerous Dappered forum members to try to explain himself after his ban. Even if you've heard directly from Fred (or from another member who was contacted by Fred), you are only getting the story from the perspective of an individual who is obviously interested in defending his reputation.

The fact that Fred had made such a positive contribution to the forum prior to the events in question is, in part, what made his subsequent behavior so bizarre and intolerable. Some of the moderators had considered Fred a friend. The decision to ban him was not made lightly or frivolously.

[bruschetta]

Gentlemen, this thread is intended to serve as an area for discussion of forum moderation decisions. Please contain discussions related to moderation to this thread. We will do our best to answer your questions, explain our actions, etc.

[diversification]

Do Super Moderators get capes? Are they fully canvassed? What type of material are they made out of... not poly I hope? Is that all they're allowed to wear? Can Super Mods fly?

[LesserBlackDog]

Do Super Moderators get capes? Are they fully canvassed? What type of material are they made out of... not poly I hope? Is that all they're allowed to wear? Can Super Mods fly?

We get masks, not capes. They are fully canvassed, air-conditioned, custom-tailored by Tibetan sherpas of hand-plucked Himalayan yak wool, and dyed with the blood of mine enemies.

[LosRockets]

I have been around this forum as long as almost anyone and I honestly don't care about the issue. I get annoyed w the newbie posts but I either make a helpful quick reply if I have time or just move on. This is a popular forum, not a secret clubhouse, so the great thing is there's always someone willing to help out. And while Fred is no longer allowed to post here, there are several other quite active members who, like myself, are willing to discuss and spend money on higher end or more obscure products. There was a bit of a vacuum for a little while but honestly...I don't think I'm missing anything. Then again I also read SF regularly so maybe that's why.

[bruschetta]

Do Super Moderators get capes? Are they fully canvassed? What type of material are they made out of... not poly I hope? Is that all they're allowed to wear? Can Super Mods fly?

The moderator uniform is too degrading to describe. And too revealing to share.

[TravelingJ]

Transparency here is a total joke. Joe kills off things on the main site and tells nobody. Regulars are banned and nobody is told what happens. Search is convoluted and hidden to the point where it's useless. "Go use the search" makes me madder than anything. How? Search ONE TOPIC forum? Absolutely useless. Turn on the damned search that EVERY forum in the world uses. If that puts such a demand on the server, then someone needs a new $7 a month server.

[LesserBlackDog]

Thanks for that constructive contribution.