Protest is a fundamental part of a functioning government, a functioning society, and a functioning community. I’ve been a mod on queer forums, and I always gave people a way to argue their case so long as they were engaging in respectful debate. I would tell people the boundaries and make sure they followed them. For example, if someone wants to say I’m not really nonbinary, I’ll argue the point with them because it’s my duty as a community leader, but I will establish they must gender me correctly and not use slurs for the duration of the debate, even if they disagree. They’re welcome to make their disagreement while respecting me, and usually they couldn’t manage that balance and I banned them. They would run out of patience before I did. It is absolutely essential that community moderators have an abundance of patience.
But not everyone wants to mod that community and not every community wants that debate to be happening. I am very grateful for your work and I have run communities that encourage discussion as well, but it’s not really a moral imperative or legal requirement or anything. Every community has its own culture, tone, rules, expectations, etc.
Again, I think it’s great that you run a community that operates like that and I think those discussions are very important and good for our society. Thank you for doing it, truly. But not every single Internet community has to allow extensive debate.
You and I have very different ideas about the moral responsibilities of people in authority. I think it’s essential that leaders be held to a higher standard in all cases.
I guess, it’s all good. I just feel like if I ran a PTSD board I shouldn’t have to allow folks who deliberately trigger people under the guise of debate and such because they “follow the rules.” I’m not saying that you would allow that, I just think that is much more at the forefront for me. I really do respect your position and I’m glad we have you running communities.
Oh yeah I don’t allow that sort of thing. I let people be harder on me as a leader than I’d let them be to people I’m responsible for protecting. If I’m to be worthy of power within a community then I have to be willing and able to advocate for the community. That means taking zero tolerance towards attacks on others, and embodying the community’s best values to the face of those who disagree. I always give troublemakers clear requirements for remaining in the community if that’s what they want. Protest is essential to social health, but it must be done without hate, and it’s better for animosity to be directed towards leaders than members.
Protest is a fundamental part of a functioning government, a functioning society, and a functioning community. I’ve been a mod on queer forums, and I always gave people a way to argue their case so long as they were engaging in respectful debate. I would tell people the boundaries and make sure they followed them. For example, if someone wants to say I’m not really nonbinary, I’ll argue the point with them because it’s my duty as a community leader, but I will establish they must gender me correctly and not use slurs for the duration of the debate, even if they disagree. They’re welcome to make their disagreement while respecting me, and usually they couldn’t manage that balance and I banned them. They would run out of patience before I did. It is absolutely essential that community moderators have an abundance of patience.
But not everyone wants to mod that community and not every community wants that debate to be happening. I am very grateful for your work and I have run communities that encourage discussion as well, but it’s not really a moral imperative or legal requirement or anything. Every community has its own culture, tone, rules, expectations, etc.
Again, I think it’s great that you run a community that operates like that and I think those discussions are very important and good for our society. Thank you for doing it, truly. But not every single Internet community has to allow extensive debate.
You and I have very different ideas about the moral responsibilities of people in authority. I think it’s essential that leaders be held to a higher standard in all cases.
I guess, it’s all good. I just feel like if I ran a PTSD board I shouldn’t have to allow folks who deliberately trigger people under the guise of debate and such because they “follow the rules.” I’m not saying that you would allow that, I just think that is much more at the forefront for me. I really do respect your position and I’m glad we have you running communities.
Oh yeah I don’t allow that sort of thing. I let people be harder on me as a leader than I’d let them be to people I’m responsible for protecting. If I’m to be worthy of power within a community then I have to be willing and able to advocate for the community. That means taking zero tolerance towards attacks on others, and embodying the community’s best values to the face of those who disagree. I always give troublemakers clear requirements for remaining in the community if that’s what they want. Protest is essential to social health, but it must be done without hate, and it’s better for animosity to be directed towards leaders than members.