lulz okay for thee but not for me?

May 17, 2005 6:03 PM

I like this post, and I like similar posts. But based on recent history, if it was from any other poster, it would result in a lot of people complaining in the thread and calling for its deletion. I just want the over-zealous self police enforcers around here to consider that, and step back a little to consider how they have contributed to the site recently. Please help make MetaFilter a more relaxed and friendly place, with in-thread bickering especially kept to a minimum.
posted by Pretty_Generic to Etiquette/Policy at 6:03 PM (31 comments total)

If it was a joke post, why was my joke comment deleted?

I posted a '.' as a moment of silence for all the little people who died, and it was hurriedly removed. Not funny enough?
posted by Mean Mr. Bucket at 6:37 PM on May 17, 2005

I've been considering posting something like this for a few weeks, so thanks for doing it for me P-G.
I don't post or comment much here, but I do read MeFi almost every day and I have to say that the level of self-policing has got totally insane. It seem that every other thread offends someone to the point that they have to piss in it, in terms that strongly suggest that the commenter is somehow physically endangered by poor FPPs.
Just chill out people. If a post annoys you flag it and move on.
posted by thatwhichfalls at 6:38 PM on May 17, 2005

Perhaps we need to salute the flag feature every morning.
posted by Pretty_Generic at 6:42 PM on May 17, 2005

Not funny enough?

No, too soon.
posted by felix betachat at 6:58 PM on May 17, 2005

if it was from any other poster, it would result in a lot of people complaining in the thread and calling for its deletion.

But since it was posted by Matt, this modestly amusing and reasonably trivial post will be admired and feted by the MeTa denizens.

Still, the thread has made me wonder: who would win in a fight between Matt and Steven Berlin Johnson?
posted by I EAT TAPAS at 7:00 PM on May 17, 2005

boo hoo
posted by geekyguy at 7:09 PM on May 17, 2005

If it was a joke post, why was my joke comment deleted?

mathowie hates you.
posted by quonsar at 7:14 PM on May 17, 2005

Mr. Bucket, someone probably thought your '.' was a bookmark.
posted by mexican at 7:21 PM on May 17, 2005

Yeah MMB, check your email.
posted by jessamyn at 7:25 PM on May 17, 2005

Please help make MetaFilter a more relaxed and friendly place
Too late. Your window of opportunity for that closed sometime in 2002.
posted by darukaru at 7:53 PM on May 17, 2005

I have to say I agree with P_G's sentiments. For instance, I loved the leia dog costume post from today for the same reasons that I posted the midget thing: it's kooky stuff found on the web that I've seen nowhere else. I saw a bazillion flags on the leia dog costume post and there are "omg, this is so pepsi blue!" comments but it's exactly what I would post on mefi, since day one of this site.

Unique, but wacky.

That doesn't mean posts should be lifted from fark, which just streams the reuters oddly enough news pile of random man-bites-dog crap, but stuff more along the lines of everlasting blort, which I enjoy for the smart yet silly line it walks (despite the owner calling me an asshole every 60 seconds somewhere on this site).
posted by mathowie (staff) at 8:06 PM on May 17, 2005

(despite the owner calling me an asshole every 60 seconds somewhere on this site).

Wait until Fiona hits thirteen. You'll be dying to return to the days when the only person doing this is quonsar.
posted by Ryvar at 8:15 PM on May 17, 2005

No shit. My daughter's eight, and in her worst moments she's already telling me she hates me.
posted by rocketman at 8:22 PM on May 17, 2005

Hi, rocketman!
posted by Dr. Wu at 8:29 PM on May 17, 2005

Wow, people flagged the leia post? That was awesome, and classic MeFi.
posted by smackfu at 8:34 PM on May 17, 2005

Interesting.

I'm not sure I follow your premise, PG, that this post would, on any other day, from any other poster, be reviled and shouted down. I hesitate to ask "Who, exactly, would be doing the shouting down?" because I won't ask you to name names, but really: what's so wrong with it that people would freak?

It's an internet hoax that apparently has legs, it's a pretty hilarious image to contemplate, the post has an example of the hoax and info about the hoax. It's non-commercial (unlike the Leia post). What's to hate on?

If we're talking about recent backlash toward "hey, look at this amusing product!" posts, then I have to utterly disagree. That kind of policing should continue at a healthy clip. There's no end to one-link wonders of that sort, any of them could easily be planted by marketers, and it's just nice in general to keep shilly cruft out of MetaFilter - there are more than enough places already saturated with it. Many millions of dollars are spent producing products that will amuse us for half a minute or less. Not every novelty item for sale needs a link there. Exceptions? Sure. Vibrating toys meant to be held between the legs? Sure.

But they've gotta be good shit. The Leia dog costume? Perhaps not immediately, totally, eminently deletable, but that's the best I could say for it. You do yourself a disservice, Matt. You've never posted anything so trite or thin as that.
posted by scarabic at 8:34 PM on May 17, 2005

since people are complimenting--this post on Glasgow is full of truly wonderful stuff
posted by amberglow at 8:35 PM on May 17, 2005

mathowie, you wouldn't be doing things right if you weren't getting called an asshole every minute or so.

I am not looking forward to the day my son tells me he hates me. Since he can't speak yet, I'm safe for a while but he did bite me tonight.
posted by fenriq at 9:17 PM on May 17, 2005

You do yourself a disservice, Matt. You've never posted anything so trite or thin as that.

Two words: spirit foam


(another wacky product I felt was so absurd it was worth linking to and laughing at, just like the leia costume, which is disturbing on millions of levels without having to resort to calling the poster a shill for the company -- and yet it became a bit of an in-joke for months afterwards)
posted by mathowie (staff) at 9:39 PM on May 17, 2005

It gets better child wise. Mine are 21 and 22. They only hate me sometimes.

Mathowie rules. Just remember when the kid gets you down there are only 18 years (25 really) to go.
posted by Carbolic at 9:43 PM on May 17, 2005

The leia dog costume is hilarious. The idea that someone would think of this, and then another somebody would manufacture it, and then someone else would buy it - are all reasons to keep passing the open windows.
posted by taz at 9:48 PM on May 17, 2005

My daughter's eight, and in her worst moments she's already telling me she hates me.
I can trump that - my youngest daughter just turned 5 and she tells me that I am a "stupid dumbhead" with disturbing frequency.
posted by dg at 3:50 AM on May 18, 2005

You've never posted anything so trite or thin as that.

Hmmm...
posted by Cyrano at 6:35 AM on May 18, 2005

Stop fuckin' deleting shit, goddammit!

/three... two...
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 7:05 AM on May 18, 2005

I saw this news spoof a couple weeks ago and it didn't even occur to me to post it to mefi. Alas! We could have tested this theory of P_G's, sort of.
posted by kavasa at 7:13 AM on May 18, 2005

I do read MeFi almost every day and I have to say that the level of self-policing has got totally insane. - thatwhichfalls

I agree with your sentiment. But I submit that the behaviour you're speaking of isn't self policing as it purports to be, but more like a "everybody bitch at everybody else" model. Self-policing is something that comes from within. The bickering and bitching at each other is demonstrating the commentators' LACK of self-control and self-discipline, completely contratrary to the self policing ideal.
posted by raedyn at 8:31 AM on May 18, 2005

Entirely agreed with Pretty_Generic. (He's got a big German head on his shoulders.)

As I posted last time this came up, Mefi's like a ever-renewed sampler box of chocolates. You may not like every kind of chocolate in the sampler, but somebody does, and you can always find several chocolates that you do like.

Don't like an FPP? Fine, try the next one. (Me, personally, I honestly don't enjoy most light amusing threads. I'm like one of those people who prefers dark chocolate to milk chocolate.)
posted by orthogonality at 8:47 AM on May 18, 2005

Bad post: flag the post and move on.

Comment in a thread complaining about the post being bad: flag the comment and move on.
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 9:15 AM on May 18, 2005

orthogonality needs to change his nick to Forest Gump. And I agree with him.
posted by terrapin at 10:09 AM on May 18, 2005

(He's got a big German head on his shoulders.)

That's not the only place he's gotten German head.
posted by kenko at 11:37 AM on May 18, 2005

Mine are 21 and 22. They only hate me sometimes.

I'm 21, and I only think mine are mildly uncool. But if I had kids they'd fucking hate me, so I'll skip that and go straight to having grandkids.
posted by NickDouglas at 5:37 PM on May 18, 2005