Jokes in AskMe are no good February 27, 2004 10:12 AM   Subscribe

Can we please make it stop? It's bad enough that we really want a 100+ post thread about same sex marriage every day. Do we have to drag it into AskMe?
posted by y6y6y6 to Etiquette/Policy at 10:12 AM (17 comments total)

I'm confused. The only connection between same-sex marriage and AskMefi in the linked thread that I see is that Seth is the poster. Other than his posting a rather stupid question about how do illegally copy DVDs what is the issue?
posted by terrapin at 10:23 AM on February 27, 2004


Damn, that was fast. The comment I was referring to is gone now.
posted by y6y6y6 at 10:26 AM on February 27, 2004


I deleted it (it was a jokey comment by quonsar) while you were posting this I guess.

quonsar, I've asked you privately before, but I guess I'll make it public here: can you please refrain from posting jokes on ask metafilter? It doesn't help anyone answer questions and makes the site less useful. There's a message below every comment box that says this:

note: Ask MetaFilter is as useful as you make it. Please limit comments to answers or help in finding an answer. Wisecracks don't help people find answers. Thanks.

I wrote that specifically to keep Ask MetaFilter from turning into another MetaFilter/MetaTalk one-liner fest of people posting jokes and other sorts of noise.

Ask MetaFilter has a purpose and if it is related to the question a little humor is fun every once in a while, but posting jokes that have nothing to do with an answer is pointless. It looks like posting just for the sake posting to see one's name on the site or something.
posted by mathowie (staff) at 10:27 AM on February 27, 2004


"Someone" was basically telling Seth that he shouldn't do things like illegally copy DVDs if thought God opposed gay marriage.
posted by y6y6y6 at 10:28 AM on February 27, 2004


here i am trying to make an honest buck on my new Gay Marriage DVD Box Set, and already the Christies are stealing it.
posted by quonsar at 10:46 AM on February 27, 2004


> here i am trying to make an honest buck on my new Gay
> Marriage DVD Box Set, and already the Christies are stealing > it.

Ceci n'est pas une blague -- Rene Magritte

PS, no shit, I really mean it! -- rene
posted by jfuller at 12:31 PM on February 27, 2004


I do find it disturbing that someone who tries so often to pass himself off as an arbiter of morality would so openly ask for help to commit blatantly illegal acts. But I agree that AskMe is not the place to note this.
posted by rushmc at 1:37 PM on February 27, 2004


I never said I was an arbiter of morality.


All I have ever posted in the blue or the grey is a request to cut out all of the ridiculous AxeGrinding/LeftyFilter crap.

However, everytime a comment is made about this, all I ever got was "why don't you try to just present the opposite side?"

So on three seperate threads, I tried to present a counter-argument. Not because I agreed with it, but to prove a point.

In each of the threads, I was spoken to as if I was a hateful, stupid, redneck mouth-breather. Consequently, my original point was proven: Metafilter is NOT a good discussion site.

As a site that exists to share interesting things from the web, MeFi works great. As a discussion site, it is terrible. There is an overwhelming bias; for political purpose it is effectively Lefty LGF. This isn't inherently a problem. But it becomes a problem when the bias permits no counter-viewpoints. Those that disagree are persuaded to not post, for fear of being shouted-down. So a chilling effect occurs.

The result? It becomes increasingly redundant as the same viewpoints and outrage are repeated ad nauseam. That really ruins the signal to noise ratio which, in turns, ruins the Blue.


MeFi is terrible at discussion on hot-button issues, so those things should not be put up in the blue for that purpose.

That is all I have tried to say. I never claimed to be an arbiter of morality or a blessed virutous Godly man.


(And for your edification, I DID ask if it was illegal. I wasn't sure that it was because when I learned copyright law, there was a fair use exception. It is changing all the time, which is partly why I asked the question. To see if it was still allowed or if technology and the law prohibited it.)
posted by Seth at 2:22 PM on February 27, 2004


For being such a lefty-filter, Metafilter sure has a lot of members who constantly complain about it being so.
posted by LittleMissCranky at 2:39 PM on February 27, 2004


"In each of the threads, I was spoken to as if I was a hateful, stupid, redneck mouth-breather."

I really think you're being too sensitive about this. Just because we disagree and feel like explaining how we think you're wrong doesn't mean we think you're a hateful redneck.

I didn't see any "Fuck off and die you Christian piece of shit".

What I saw was "That's messed up Seth. I really think you're wrong".

How can we talk about these things if we're going to try and make sure no one ever gets offended?
posted by y6y6y6 at 3:26 PM on February 27, 2004


Seth, that's what makes this place SO MUCH FUN for me. I love being the one to ruffle the feathers, and being a super-righty with really odd opinions on everything makes it all the more fun.

MeFi would suck if all I got were "Yeah, you are like so totally right dood" responses.

Oh, and 8X==D to anyone who thinks my attitude sucks. :-)
posted by shepd at 4:54 PM on February 27, 2004

MeFi would suck if ...
Yeah, you are like so totally right, dood!
posted by mischief at 4:59 PM on February 27, 2004


I hear "lefty" and I tune the rest out, sorry. (Ditto for whatever the equivalent of "righty" would be.)
posted by rushmc at 5:44 PM on February 27, 2004


dickhead?
posted by quonsar at 7:46 PM on February 27, 2004


Yeah, you are like so totally right, dood!

Went to take the trash out last night and noticed the dome light was on in the Toyota of the couple in the basement apartment. Knocked on the door and told him. He came out to try to turn it off to no success. She then came up the stairs to investigate and said he to her, Dude, like, the dome light is on!
posted by y2karl at 4:50 AM on February 28, 2004


my heart really goes out to Seth and all the other oppressed "righties" on this site. I mean, will no one give you people a voice?
posted by mcsweetie at 7:59 AM on February 28, 2004


Whoops, I'm late to this particular party.

Seth sez- As a site that exists to share interesting things from the web, MeFi works great. As a discussion site, it is terrible. There is an overwhelming bias; for political purpose it is effectively Lefty LGF. This isn't inherently a problem. But it becomes a problem when the bias permits no counter-viewpoints. Those that disagree are persuaded to not post, for fear of being shouted-down. So a chilling effect occurs.

Seth, since you seem to have missed it, I have a counter- argument to your rant on the Blue, right now. Go look, if you don't believe me. You claim that the lefty bias leaves no room for discent, then I would like to point out that not one "lefty" here attempted top tell me that I couldn't post Card's argument, or that I was wrong, faulty, icky or fascist for having done so. That's the exception to the generalization which proves it false.
posted by Wulfgar! at 9:47 AM on February 28, 2004


« Older I'd like to declare a moratorium on comparing...   |   How to reduce server load on large threads Newer »

You are not logged in, either login or create an account to post comments